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PayPalΔV: Rings of Saturn from developer Kodera Software is a physics-based hard-science mining sim, and the 1.0 release is out now. It comes with full Native Linux support and it runs quite well on Steam Deck too.
Made with Godot Engine, this is a game for real true space nerds. Our contributor scaine was quite a fan of it when taking a look back in late 2019 and since then the game has only gotten much bigger and better. You can also see a previous brief interview I did with the developer here.
This is a game all about mining asteroids and there's no fancy lasers or hyper-drives to be found, instead it focuses on real science as they say all the "technologies are real and there is no technobabble". There's a lot of seriously clever touches to the game although it can feel a bit daunting to get into. An initial struggle is quite worth it though, because it's a thoroughly interesting game to just go do some space exploring and mining.
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I've been enjoying the peaceful loneliness of it. A fair amount of time is just you swinging your ship around, flying around and doing some mining and with all the space science going on — it certainly looks and feels the part if you're into games that don't hold your hand. The initial tutorial is somewhat brief but a reasonable crash course in the main flying mechanics. After that though, you're largely left to your own devices to play it how you wish.
Honestly can't tell you the joy I felt hearing my LIDAR beeping away due to an escape pod floating around near me. So I speedily went to grab it, completely overshooting it of course because the thrusters will make you just keep on going and I was getting a bit ahead of myself. Trouble is, another ship was also closing in on me.
This other ship was seemingly trying to harass me, giving me little thruster nudges and generally being a nuisance. My first attempt to grab the escape pod was thwarted by a mixture of me not lining up my ship to the correct orientation to pull it in, and that damn AI ship pestering me. I've no idea what they were really trying to do, I assume also trying to grab the pod but it's mine now.
My biggest problem with the game is the constant beeping. It's supposed to be helpful, pointing you towards things but I personally found it confusing, unhelpful most of the time and quite distracting, especially when you're just trying to learn the ropes and it's just beeping at you. It could have done with some clearer walk-through on the beeps and how to adjust them.
Apart from that though, ΔV: Rings of Saturn is an easy game to get utterly lost in for hours. Go check it out.
Available to on GOG, itch and Steam.
Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
neon_soaked_chryssalid Jul 22, 2023
Quoting: ghostdogDoes it run well on Steam Deck? Or is it too complicated for a controller?Check out the Steam Community page for it, they have a pinned topic about the Deck in the discussion section. I had read through it when I purchased my Deck, and at that point it seemed like it had fair playability. I've never personally tried it though.
Still interested, but going to wait for a lower sales price.
Last edited by emphy on 22 July 2023 at 4:43 am UTC
But the accessibility really isn't it's strong point ;)
Nevertheless, congratulations to 1.0, thanks for supporting Linux and respect for keeping at it! :D
Quoting: emphyNot a fan of the dlc-spamming. Especially at release (and even during the early access?).
All the DLC aside from the OST is AI art packs. The developer has vehemently defended this decision. While the base game is fun this has personally made me not want to play it.
Quoting: emphyNot a fan of the dlc-spamming. Especially at release (and even during the early access?).
Still interested, but going to wait for a lower sales price.
There's two, and they're mutually-exclusive. That's spam now? If you don't want the portraits to be anime characters, and you don't want the portraits to be furries, don't buy either of the DLCs. Doesn't seem difficult to me.
benstor214 Jul 23, 2023
Quoting: CatKillerQuoting: emphyNot a fan of the dlc-spamming. Especially at release (and even during the early access?).
Still interested, but going to wait for a lower sales price.
There's two, and they're mutually-exclusive. That's spam now? If you don't want the portraits to be anime characters, and you don't want the portraits to be furries, don't buy either of the DLCs. Doesn't seem difficult to me.
I’m really torn about it.
First the facts: There are 5 DLCs. 2 free and 3 paid.
- a story/art book
- 4K texture pack
- a soundtrack (paid)
- an avatar asset flip, anime version (paid)
- another avatar asset flip, furry version (paid)
Personally, I don’t consider 5 DLCs as ‘spamming’, but admittedly I wouldn’t know when something is considered ‘spam’ in the community.
In principle, I’m against releasing DLC during the early access phase, as it contradicts the original spirit of DLC being an extension of the original scope of a released game. (But who am I kidding? This spirit, if it ever existed, has been thrown overboard long time ago. Some publishers are even actively trying to redefine the term “early access” as something completely different already.) It feels like the developer tries to ‘double-dib’ inside my wallet, which I don’t like.
Also, I dislike the fact that 2 out of 5 of the DLCs are AI generated art, as releasing such assets always feels like a cash grab (to me).
The developer may could have refrained from these secondary sales propositions, but I am unsure about the viability of a project without these…?
None of these DLCs are pricey, none are required and indeed I have no interested in either furry portraits or anime portraits, so I won't be picking them. Pretty sure all the DLC was voted on by the crew populating the pretty awesome Koder Discord.
Definitely recommend picking this one up. Liam and I have covered it a few times now, but I'll say again that the atmosphere DeltaV generates is really engaging. The precision and newtonian physics presents a bit of a learning curve, but even there, you play almost like a point-n-click if you prefer, as there are "automatic" control schemes if you want them, and those can even be upgraded by buying AI or Pilot upgrades for your ship. I love the messiness of trying to precisely position my ship manually though.
Great game, and I'm chuffed to see it finally release!
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