The idea of terraforming a planet to make it inhabitable for humans is an often explored area in games. But indie devs Gaddy Games is offering another take on this with Plan B: Terraform.
This game will have you mine resources to grow a city, but in this management sandbox there’s also a real-time terraforming system that models the greenhouse effect and the water cycle.
You will need to warm up the atmosphere (but not too warm) so that ice melts to form rivers and later oceans. And after enough conditions are met you can then plant trees that grow into forests, slowly making the planet more hospitable for human life.
Plan B: Terraform has been three years in the making, and is described by Gaddy Games founder Nicolas Gadenne as a “calm and contemplative science-fiction management sandbox game with a strong emphasis on automatization based on a credible near future.”
In a lot of ways, Plan B is a city builder, but the idea of a fully simulated environment system that governs the terraforming aspect is fascinating.
It remains to be seen how robust the greenhouse model is portrayed. Can you have the planet go back to being red again from pollution and reckless expansion? If it is, this could really be an educational experience, or a very popular YouTube video.
In any case, Plan B: Terraform will be heading to Steam Early Access sometime “in the first three months of 2023.” Expect it to drop sometime in March 2023 at the latest.