Asteria Takes 2D Mining Action to Space

Asteria doesn’t have time to dig through mountains block by block – just blow it up and get back to the action.

Technology in games like Minecraft generally doesn’t stray too far from medieval-level tools. But what would mining and crafting look like with more modern, or even futuristic, equipment? Asteria, an indie craft-em-up with a focus on action, answers this question with lasers – lots of lasers. The game is unashamedly inspired by fellow indie mining side-scroller Terraria, but with a refreshing dose of efficient technology and ranged combat in its sci-fi reimagining of a fully-destructible sandbox world.

Everything in Asteria is faster-paced than you may have come to expect. Rather than laboriously tunneling through blocks of terrain, you’ll be carving through the environment with powerful ranged mining tools from the get-go. Combat is also entirely ranged, invoking some elements from classic action platformers like Metroid and Megaman. Other conveniences like practically limitless inventory space and a lack of death penalties ensure that you’re always ready to jump back into the action, when some other games might have you deliberating over full pockets or searching for lost gear.

Asteria is available as a discount-price beta at its official website, and there’s a Steam Greenlight campaign in the works. Notably, the game’s code is open-source and the full release will include modding tools for the community to use as it will. If it strikes your fancy, there’s a whole hostile alien world of opportunity out there.