We wouldn't bat an eye if you compared Jan Dolski, the protagonist of The Alters, to Robert Pattinson's Mickey Barnes after playing two hours of 11 bit studios' latest. It's the sort of space video game that wears its influences proudly on its sleeve. Coupled with a surprisingly restrained scope and hard-hitting writing, this might be the sleeper hit in the sci-fi gaming space we were waiting for this year.
At first glance, The Alters is doing a lot. It's equal parts a management sim with base-building elements that owes much of its DNA to The Sims, a narrative adventure à la Deliver Us Mars, and a stress-inducing juggling of resources akin to the studio's beloved Frostpunk titles. That's a lot of spinning plates, and it could have been too much for a single game to handle properly.
