Nova Lands

Nova Lands drops you on an unfamiliar planet with nothing but your wits and a lot of empty land, then asks you to turn that emptiness into a humming little industrial empire. It sits at the crossroads of a few genres you probably already know: the layout puzzles of a factory builder, the crafting curiosity of a survival sim, and the exploration itch of games that reward wandering off the beaten path. The hook is watching a pile of rocks and wood slowly turn into automated production lines while you’re off poking around a cave somewhere else.

How it plays

You start small, gathering basic resources and figuring out what your first base actually needs. As you unlock buildings, the game opens up: rarer materials become reachable, your production chains get more efficient, and you start pushing outward to new islands instead of just expanding in place. The real turning point is the helper bots. Once you’re setting those up, you’re not manually hauling and crafting anymore, you’re designing systems that run themselves, which frees you up to go explore biomes, dig through landmarks, and see what else the planet has going on. Combat exists if you want it (there’s a blaster, and creatures big enough to make you regret bringing it), but you can also choose the diplomatic route with the tougher boss creatures, trading valuables for peace instead of picking a fight. Other people have landed on this planet too, and part of the loop is running into them as you spread across islands.

Who it’s for

If you’ve sunk hours into automation games and enjoy the specific satisfaction of watching a production chain finally click into place, this is squarely in your wheelhouse. The 2D open-world angle also gives it a different feel from the more clinical factory builders, there’s more emphasis on wandering and discovery here than in games that are pure spreadsheet optimization. People who want a game that respects a pacifist playstyle will appreciate that combat is optional rather than mandatory. On the flip side, if base-building and logistics puzzles make your eyes glaze over, or you want something with a tighter narrative pull, this probably isn’t going to convert you. It’s a game about systems and patience, not plot.

Is it worth grabbing?

For anyone who already knows they like this genre, yes, easily. It blends automation with enough exploration and open-endedness that it doesn’t feel like a straight clone of the games it’s inspired by, and the bot-driven automation gives it a distinct identity once you get that far. If you’re on the fence because you’ve never really played a factory or automation game before, it’s a reasonably approachable entry point since it eases you into automation rather than throwing complex logistics at you immediately. Free games like this are exactly the kind of thing worth grabbing even if you don’t get to it right away: claim it, let it sit in your library, and it’ll be there whenever the itch to build something hits.

Quick facts

Genre: Adventure, Indie, Simulation, Strategy. Developer: BEHEMUTT. Publisher: HypeTrain Digital. Platform: PC (Epic Games Store). Released: June 22, 2023.