Dark Moon Wants To Make You Fear The Light
You know, I really dig this new trend of dark survival strategy. I get how mutants and ancient abominations are spooky, but I felt more tension in Frostpunk than I do in most haunted house simulators. Having the make the call on who lives and dies, walking the line between totalitarianism and obliteration, that’s the kind of shit that glues me to the screen. With Jujubee S.A.’s newest game Dark Moon, they’re hoping to do that same kind of dark survival strategy… in SPAAAAAAACE!
In Dark Moon, the Sun has gone all apocalypse mode and unleashed a massive wave of radiation. This means that direct sunlight leads to certain death. Earth got hit pretty hard by the radiation, wiping out all satellites and maybe killing everyone? The trailer is unclear as to whether the radiation did the sad kind of Earth cooking that kills everyone, or the fun kind that turns us all into Mad Max bandits. Whichever it is, everyone on the Moon got cut off from Earth. As the Moon has no atmosphere, direct sunlight has become instantly lethal. So the survivors must cling to the darkness and somehow try to make their way back home.
“But hey Ted, doesn’t the Moon spin? Won’t Dark Moon be a rather short strategy game?” Good question! Luckily, mankind has built giant walkers that function as mobile bases. Called the Mechaplex, this mobile mining facility allows you to both expand your city and keep moving. You’ll have to mine resources and complete quests on the go, always aware that the deadly rays of the sun aren’t far behind. Researching new technology and building up your fleet to return home is your primary objective, but just as important is maintaining your crew. Various quests will require you to make hard choices, which will force you to confront the darkness within as well as without.
So it all sounds nice, but the real test of a game like Dark Moon is whether or not the choices are actually impactful. It’s pretty hard to care about the little dots on the screen toiling away, and most obstacles can be avoided with clever enough resource management. Sure, I could become a cannibal. Or I could just get better at managing my food. Even the toughest moments of Frostpunk can be bypassed if you have the extra stuff to burn. So will Dark Moon present you with real decisions with no easy answer? No idea. But I’m eager to see what they do with it. If anything, moon-walker strategy game sounds dope.
Dark Moon is coming out for PC on Steam June 2020. No word yet on console release, or price at launch. You can add it to your Steam wishlist now, where you can also find more information on the game.
