Ever envisioned yourself as a space renovator? No, well that’s a shame because I have a game that let’s you do just that.
Rebots is a cozy automation game, where you renovate asteroids turning them into paradises for your alien customers.
In this article, we’ll be giving a full review of the game and ranking it from decaf to fully caffeinated.
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Story
Rebots is full of chaotic plot lines, kicking things off literally with a crash landing
You are a new employee of the Rebot Corporation, heading to headquarters to start your new job, only things don’t really go to plan, and you accidentally crash land, destroying a whole stack of buildings and things in the process.
The main story follows you making amends by helping out aliens at headquarters, and the favours can range from collecting minerals, to crafting certain recipes, to just talking to other aliens. The game has a quest based story, so you’ll uncover more about the world and the main story through completing different quests, and there’s a few key characters that you’ll work through quest progressions with, each with a different focus like gardening, knowledge, or building.
Each character you interact with has their own mini story, and the dialogue and variety of these characters are really what makes the game so fun and hilarious. If you pay attention to the details, there’s some really funny sub-plots, and plenty of personality to uncover.
Rebots is packed with a quirky story, that is entertaining and drives the gameplay so for story, I’m rating Rebots as Fully Caffeinated.
GAMEPLAY
Rebots is a mash up of a life sim and an automation game, and it’s got some surprisingly addictive gameplay.
As an employee of the Rebot Corporation your main job is to find aliens the ideal asteroid to set up their dream home. Each alien has their own unique needs, and you’ll need to satisfy those requirements before you can let them know their asteroid is ready to move to. Some of these requirements will just be stocking the asteroid with a certain fruit, and others will require you to build some infrastructure before it’ll be habitable.
You’ll get your pick of asteroids in the asteroid belt, but you’ll need to purchase each section before you’re able to visit, with each holding a different number of asteroids. Each asteroid has it’s own climate, including temperature, and carbon dioxide level, and each will have different resources, so you’ll need to strategically choose which asteroids to make habitable, and which ones just to mine for resource.
If you’re looking for a sophisticated automation game, this is not the game for you, instead the automation in this game is dumb as a doornail, but in a hilariously good way. You’re able to spawn Rebots to do your dirty work for you, harvesting, transporting, and storing your goods, but these Rebots are anything but smart, and need a whole lot of assistance to perform even the most basic of tasks.
But never fear, the Rebot Corporation has you covered, you’re able to spawn Extractor Rebots, that basically act as supervisors for your basic Rebots, and are able to tell them what to do. You’ll need to ensure your Extractor Rebots have the resource your trying to collect within their range, and then connect it up to your chosen destination. Make sure to create a pathway back to your Extractors too, otherwise your Rebots will get stuck, because, well they’re kinda dumb.
Rebots aren’t able to distinguish between items, so you’ll need to build Sorters to be able to tell them whether they’ve got the right thing, and as you progress you unlock further crafting Rebots that allow you to construct, and deconstruct resources, build buildings, and more. The automation in the game is honestly hilarious. Using your extracto legs can give you a birds-eye view of the asteroid, and it’s so entertaining watching the Rebots go about their tasks.
There’s tons of different resources to collect or construct, and you’ll unlock more and more recipes as you level up in the game. The further you get into the game, the more complex things will become, but it feels like the difficulty increases proportionally to your experience, with the progression feeling really good.
Overall, Rebots has some really solid gameplay that has an addictive game loop, a good progression arc, and is one pushed by the quests and the stories in the game, so for gameplay, I’m rating Rebots as Fully Caffeinated.
DESIGN
Rebots features a quirky cartoon style that honestly fits the vibe of the story and gameplay so well. The game is full of colour, and uses it to distinguish things well, and I loved the different designs of the fruits and minerals. The characters are all quirky, and have a lot of personality, that can be told just through the design.
The soundtrack is great, and the sound effects add a lot of dimension to the game, creating a fun and quirky game world to navigate.
This is a game that is easy to underestimate because of it’s simplistic design style, but it’s actually designed so thoughtfully, so for Design, I’m rating Rebots as Fully Caffeinated.
ORIGINALITY
I’ve definitely dabbled in both automation and life sim type games before, but Rebots really hits a unique note.
The design style could be compared to games like Frog Detective, with the 3d cartoon style, and the automation side follows some typical automation game loops.
What really sets this game apart is the quirky story, the funny dialogue, the interesting design, and the concept of renovating asteroids. The whole overarching game play uses familiar elements and mechanics in a fun new way, bringing a different twist on them, and really giving you a unique game to play.
I really enjoyed the not so serious take on automation, and feel like this is the first game I’ve played that takes a humorous spin on automation mechanics, giving you a whole new experience and a game that feels like it doesn’t take itself too seriously.
This game is really one that stands out, interpreting familiar mechanics in a quirky and funny way, so for originality, I’m rating Rebots as Buzzed.
THE FINAL BREW
Rebots is one of those games that sneaks up on you, and next minute you’ve sunk 10 hours into the game and you still want to play more.
The mix of quest based progression, with the hilarious dialogue, and the not so serious take on automation, make for a game that is addictive, and just fun to play.
We’ve ground the beans, we’ve carefully weighed and pressed the grinds, and brewed this game down. Now it’s time for a taste test….Rebots is Fully Caffeinated.
Rebots is available on Steam now. Make sure to head over to YouTube to enter our giveaway for your chance to win 1 of 4 keys for the game! You can find more info here
Until next time, stay caffeinated!
