A new trailer reveals an in-depth look at the upcoming underwater city builder,Aquatico, and shows a diverse and complex ecosystem. Overseer Games, an indie studio from Croatia, may have something appealing tofans that missBioshockasAquaticowill let players create their own underwater city like Rapture.
Overseer’s brief blurb on their website states that the team is made up of some industry veterans, without mention of their specific background.Aquaticowill be the studio’s second title after another city builder,Patron, which boasted some unique aspects to the genre. As the title implies,Patronhad a closer focus on the social aspect in city building when compared to othercomplex city builders.
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After Earth’s surface became a “barren and inhospitable wasteland” people had to find a new way to live, and so they moved underwater. WhileRapture fromBioshockwas built as a utopia for creatives,Aquaticosees players design an underwater paradise for necessity. The trailer continues to show some of the intricacies of the upcoming game, such as gathering resources, supplying locations with power, and the game’s unique “domes.” The domes are connected to one another via some kind of central connecting unit. In the domes, the people of the city can walk freely.
Much likePatron,Aquaticais boasting that the citizens of the player’s city play a huge role in the core gameplay. The narration implies that aspects such as religion and education will play into the overall satisfaction of each individual citizen. The trailer says that these people are not drones, but rather go through entire life cycles. From birth to death with key moments such as education, marriage, and having children along the way,Aquaticaseems to have a complex life sim within the city builder. This is shaping up to be a game for players that enjoy a lot of complex systems, and judging by theamazing sales Dwarf Fortresshas garnered, there may be a wide audience for this gameplay style.
The trailer wraps up by describing some elements of exploration in the game. Of course, building a city on multiple levels of the seafloor is going to come with some dangers. However, such a risk is imperative to further expanding and finding new resources to help your city thrive. The trailer ends by alluding to some threat lurking in the abyss, claiming that progress attracts attention, and “not all attention is good” before a foreboding growl plays over the game logo and the release date of January 2023. Whether there aredeep-sea Lovecraftian monstersor simply other underwater survivors is left a mystery.
Aquaticawill release on PC in January 2023.
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