Ixion is a city-building space opera inspired by Frostpunk and Anno

Ixion, an upcoming survival city-building game set in space has just been announced at tonight’s PC Gaming Show. Developed by France-based indie studio Bulwark Games and published by Warhammer 40,000: Mechanicus publisher Kasedo Games, Ixion is described by the studios as a “strategic survival space opera” that sees you trying to find a future for humanity among the stars when the earth is in its last days.

The game combines elements from multiple genres, reaching across elements of city building, survival, and space exploration. You’ll take control of the Tiqqun space station and its despondent crew to journey into space and try to salvage a future for humankind. You’ll manage the station’s infrastructure and venture out into a “vast stellar map” of solar systems – both known and yet to be discovered – to mine key resources and find other survivors to trade with.

The space game will task you with researching new technologies to ensure your crew’s survival, and you’ll need to keep everything powered and running smoothly. You’ll also open up new areas of the station itself as you progress.

Here’s a trailer:

On the topic of inspirations behind the game, junior project manager at Kasedo Christian Woolford says, “The pressure of Frostpunk, the systems within the Anno series, the feel and composition of Banished – these were a few of the inspirations that have guided us in creating Ixion”. Plus, it’s not designed to be firmly set in the sci-fi genre: “We were really keen for this game not to come across as super sci-fi,” the dev adds. “It’s near to present day.”

“Taking notes from Ad Astra, [and] Interstellar in terms of themes, there’s a grittiness to it that conflicts with the clean and super-tech versions we see of space ships in futuristic materials. The solar system is just being colonised, that technology has just come into existence, and DOLOS [Aerospace Engineering Corporation] is on the forefront of that new frontier. The buildings we see inside the station use principles from modern day, with some improvements and imaginings, in their functioning. We really wanted to convey with the story that this is a fragile and risk filled venture – it’s not been done before.”

Ixios is currently due to launch sometime in the first half of 2024.

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