The Crust

 
Developed by VEOM Studio and published by Crytivo, The Crust launched on PC via Steam on July 15, 2024, currently in Early Access. Earth is dying, and you are the CEO of a lunar mining operation tasked with keeping humanity alive — one conveyor belt at a time. Consequently, this is less a survival game and more an industrial management sim wrapped in a gripping narrative about the last hope of our species.
Core Gameplay

Underground Base Building: Your colony is carved directly into the moon’s crust, with subsurface rooms dug out in a side-scrolling layout reminiscent of Oxygène non compris. You must manage oxygen, water, food, and power to keep your colonists alive while simultaneously expanding deeper and wider. Furthermore, the split-level design — surface infrastructure above, mining operations below — creates a satisfying layer of spatial planning.
Resource Automation: The backbone of the game is an automation pipeline straight out of Factorio. You mine raw lunar materials, feed them into processing machinery, and chain production lines together to manufacture advanced goods. However, optimizing these chains is where the real depth lies, as inefficiencies quickly snowball into colony-wide crises.
Research and Trade: Three distinct research trees unlock new technologies, machinery, and capabilities over time. Additionally, you can trade processed resources with Earth, creating a dynamic economy where your colony’s survival depends as much on diplomacy and commerce as it does on your conveyor belt layouts.
Narrative Exploration: The campaign mode delivers a story-driven experience with faction politics, tough choices, and multiple endings. Surface expeditions send scouts into ancient craters and new biomes, adding a layer of exploration that breaks up the base-building routine and feeds consequences back into the larger narrative.

Comment cela se passe-t-il ?
The Crust is Oxygène non compris for players who want a stronger narrative backbone and a more grounded sci-fi setting. It shares the colony-management DNA of its peers but distinguishes itself through its lunar politics system and the tension of trading with a dying Earth. In contrast to pure sandbox builders, the campaign mode gives every production decision genuine stakes.



Jeu
Principale différence
Meilleur pour




Oxygène non compris
Purely systems-driven; no narrative or political layer.
Pure simulation engineers.


Factorio
Surface-level factory building without the colonist welfare angle.
Automation obsessives.


Frostpunk
More focused on moral dilemmas; less emphasis on production chains.
Narrative-first managers.



Détails clés

Développeur : VEOM Studio
Éditeur : Crytivo
Plateformes : PC (Steam)
Date de sortie : July 15, 2024 (Early Access)
Genre : Base Builder / Colony Simulation / Strategy
Vibe : Industrial Moon Dad Simulator

Pour qui ?

Must-play for: Fans of Factorio or Oxygen Not Included who crave a story to anchor all that production planning.
Perfect for: Players who enjoy managing ecosystems of interdependent systems and watching them either thrive or spectacularly collapse.
Skip if: Early Access rough edges frustrate you, or you want action and combat rather than spreadsheets and supply chains.

Pourquoi ça marche
Ultimately, The Crust succeeds by giving players a reason to care about their conveyor belts. Many colony sims front-load the systems and leave the world feeling cold; this game, however, wraps every logistical decision in a narrative about humanity’s survival. Moreover, the dual pressure of managing an internal colony economy while trading with a politically fractured Earth creates a tension loop that most base builders never attempt. For an Early Access title, the ambition on display is genuinely impressive — and the bones beneath the surface are already exceptionally solid.