Former Dead Island and Dying Light devs reveal their new game, a "cozy survival" gem - without any zombies this time

Astrobotanica is a cozy survival game set on a version of Earth akin to the planet's state 300 thousand years ago - and surprisingly, it's headed by former Dead Island and Dying Light developers.

Founded this year, Space Goblin Studio is a small team of developers - but its size certainly doesn't speak to its expertise. The studio is comprised of mastermind devs behind smash-hit zombie titles like Dead Island and Dying Light. Space Goblin's debut game, however, isn't what most would expect knowing the devs' gory history - it's not a zombie game, nor is it any flavor of action-packed horror.

The game is called Astrobotanica, and it's actually a relaxing survival game - the furthest possible thing from a zombie game that a game could be. It places players in the shoes of an alien biologist exploring Earth as it was 300 thousand years in the past, with lush biomes and primal humans to discover. Astrobotanica features all of the cozy game essentials fans of the best farming games would expect - growing, harvesting, tending, and the like.

Players can turn their plants into all sorts of useful tools, too, from food to medicine. It's not all that simple, though. Earth is alien to the extraterrestrial protagonist, which means lots of learning and experimenting with both the plants themselves as well as the soil they grow in. There's also fauna to look out for amid the flora, with hungry birds and nosy rodents to fend off along with other mysterious local creatures.

There are Neanderthals to communicate with in Astrobotanica, too - players can heal them, earn their respect, and trade with them for a less lonely experience on ye olde Earth. When not exploring, getting to know primal humans, or planting, there's endless opportunity to decorate and make oneself at home. It's perfect for any stan of games like Stardew Valley, and you can wishlist it now on Steam if you're interested - I know I am.

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