Astrobotanica just hit Steam Early Access, so now I can finally hang with cavemen as a botany-obsessed alien

In most media, an alien race crash-landing onto Earth means only one thing - a bloody battle where humanity must expend all its energy, bombs, and bullets to survive against its otherworldly invaders. In Astrobotanica, things are the complete opposite for two reasons. Firstly, it's set 300,000 years ago, and last time I checked, cavemen didn't have tanks and assault rifles. Secondly, Xel - the blue-skinned, pointy-eared protagonist of the new survival game - isn't here to kickstart some planetary domination. Instead, they're here to indulge in their hobby of botany, live off the land, and coexist with the primitive human population.

Swapping the intensity and combat elements of most survival games, Astrobotanica is a more relaxed experience. You won't be zapping wooly mammoths with an alien laser pistol or anything. Instead, things are a bit more Subnautica-esque. Explore the Earth, use your scanner to discover and learn about new plants, and eventually build yourself your own home base. The local cavemen are also not hostile towards you - skeptical, sure, but they aren't going to be launching any spears your way. Instead, Xel must make bonds with them, trade with them, and use their botany knowledge to create remedies for their ailments.

That knowledge is crucial for Xel's own survival, too - a carbon dioxide breather, they must get to grips with the flora of Earth quickly and grow their own supply of plants to allow them to live on this new planet.

As well as discovering and farming plants, crafting, building your base, and generally shmoozing with your new Neanderthal mates, you can solve environmental puzzles to unlock secret areas of the map. There's a hint of Ark in here too, with an animal taming system that lets you recruit everything from a crab to a dodo.

The early access version of Astrobotanica launching today is also pleasingly complete, with all of the core systems I've mentioned present from day one. However, developer Space Goblin Studio has still drawn up a roadmap of smaller new features and improvements it plans to make over the course of 2026. A fishing catalog, a campfire and food cooking system, a UI rework, and much more is all planned.

Astrobotanica is live right now in Steam Early Access. It'll set you back just $16.99 right now thanks to a 15% introductory discount, so if you're thinking about grabbing it, you'd do best to pull the trigger on it sooner rather than later. You can find its Steam page here.

I've been looking forward to Astrobotanica for quite some time - the Subnautica fan in me was drawn to some of the gameplay similarities, even if this is above the waves rather than beneath them. While some might rue the lack of combat and risk, I certainly don't - I like the blending of survival game and life sim here. Narratively, I do wonder what kind of an experience it'll offer - will Xel ultimately be looking for a way back home, or to settle down and live out the rest of their days on Earth? I can't wait to find out.