The ship-salvaging simulation game will cost more in 1.0 form, and it’s coming to consoles later
Hardspace: Shipbreaker is a simulation game about, well, working a job — a really cathartic salvage job that happens to be in space. It’s a game about tearing the prized tech out of spaceships in order to (eventually…) pay off an astronomical debt. If that concept speaks to you, you’ll want to keep an eye out: Hardspace: Shipbreaker is nearing its 1.0 release.
The end of the Early Access road is in sight, as explained in a blog post by developer Blackbird Interactive. The team’s current estimate places the 1.0 version of Hardspace: Shipbreaker in the spring 2022 window, and the docket includes a feature that players have craved for a long time — the ability to save a ship that’s in progress and just walk away for the night. There’s also an end to the campaign with Act III, though you can keep breaking ships “once the story has finished.” It’s a beefy 15-hour-plus game as is.
Along with Steam Achievements, 1.0 will also have “tons of bug fixes, optimizations, and stability improvements.” If you’re already playing, heads-up: resets are still a concern.
“We know that [player progression resets] can be frustrating to existing players, but it’s an unfortunate necessity when introducing new campaign content,” said the studio. “As the full release adds Act III and revises some portions of Act I and II, as well as rebalancing progression, we needed to reset progress one final time.”
As tends to be the case with Early Access, Hardspace: Shipbreaker will cost more as a 1.0 release. It’s $24.99 today, but it’ll be $34.99 once it sheds the Early Access banner.
There are few Early Access games I genuinely care enough about to keep tabs on them month-to-month. For everything else, it’s nice to check back in right before the 1.0 version lands knowing that so much stuff has been brewing behind the scenes.
While Hardspace: Shipbreaker is a PC-ass PC game, Blackbird is planning a console version, too. That’ll be coming down the road — the porting “work has already started” — so it’s just a matter of time. And more improvements will be made to the PC version post-1.0.
“We originally planned for a single year. In the end, the ability to test features and gain player feedback and data in real time proved so valuable to development, and so rewarding as developers, that we decided to extend our time in Early Access to just under two years,” said the developers. “We can’t wait to share what’s next with all of you, whether it’s more Shipbreaker or another brand-new world!”
[Image Credit: IcyGlare]
