The Banished Vault ensnared me with its impeccable vibes and a surface similarity to the wonderful FTL: Faster Than Light, but now I am very tired and never want to go to space again. Lunar Division and Bithell Games' turn-based strategy-survival romp puts you in charge of a huge city-sized cosmic monastery hurtling through space, chronicling its discoveries and trying to flee an ominous force nipping at its heels: the Gloom. It's bad news, apparently.
It is blessed with an art style that presents space and the vessels travelling across it as a medieval diorama with strong ecclesiastical vibes, as if a monk created a sci-fi board game. At times it is clinical and scientific, but there are bouts of rich flavour, from the hand-drawn crew portraits to the brief but tantalising descriptions of your discoveries as you traverse the void.
