Oort Online Early Access impressions: discover the beauty of voxels
When you think of voxels you think of blocks and clunkiness, it’s not often you think of how beautiful they can be. After getting hands on with Oort Online this week, I can tell you that voxels are most definitely a beautiful thing.
Oort Online is currently available from Steam Early Access; both a standard and Collector’s Edition are available and players can save 10% up until November 20, 2014. You can also purchase a variety of packages via the official website. If you’re considering checking out the game in its current state then it’s worth mentioning that you won’t be getting a polished version, however, that doesn’t stop Oort Online from being highly addictive and fun.
Oort Online is still in its early stages and is currently in its pre-alpha form. Many features that will be available on launch have yet to be implemented. The RPG elements have yet to be added, character models consist of orange blocks, and no creatures inhabit the lands other than the flying birds. However, you can explore the beautiful worlds and build to your heart’s content, meeting and chatting with other players as you do so.
My first few steps into the world of Oort Online had me admiring the landscape, the world I had chosen was populated with large trees and pink blossoms as well as hilly areas with dips and rocky crevices throughout the land. Wanting to get right down to building, I chose a flat area and built a small, fairly basic hovel. It wasn’t much, but it was mine. The controls were extremely easy to get used to. Players are instantly given a wide range of blocks in their inventory, however, you’re just as welcome to go about the land harvesting your own building materials. Being able to cycle quickly through the different options and tolls, as well as the ability to swap out your on-screen inventory items with those in your larger inventory, ensures that building is a breeze. Whilst playing I had to constantly stop to take screenshots and appreciate the landscape as the time of day or weather changed. The night sky was particularly breathtaking.
I hadn’t been playing long when I encountered another player, after greeting each other we both ventured our own ways and I decided to take on a new task. Moving over to the nearest large hill, I began to tunnel through the side of it. To our shared surprised, halfway through digging I met with the same player, who had apparently had the same idea but on the other side of the hill.
After my foray into being a builder and miner, I decided to explore this strange but wonderful world. Climbing to the top of a mountain, I found it was completely hollow. They say that curiosity killed the cat and it certainly got the better of me as I plummeted to the bottom and had to respawn. Apparently not one to learn from my mistakes, I did the same thing atop a mountain, only this time there was water at the bottom preventing me from insta-death. Beneath the surface of the water I discovered strange black debug blocks. There was also a beautiful waterfall that you could walk behind. I discovered that staying under the water too long also results in death and having to respawn, again.
Exploring is a lot of fun and is made even easier with the use of the grappling hook. Although I felt a bit like Batman while grappling my way to distant ledges or to climb out of dark recesses, it’s an extremely useful tool. If the grapple fun fails you and you find you are lost or stuck, you have the option of respawning at either your home or the capital. You can set your home location anywhere, enabling you to return to your favourite creation at any time. Players can also choose to teleport to other worlds, exploring different terrains with different elements such as lava or bright pink grass.
Continuing to explore, I came across many creations of other players. There were castles, forts, houses, and caves. However, the most intriguing was a large tower spiralling into the sky. Of course I climbed it, who wouldn’t? I found myself on a large bridge high in the air, upon finally reaching the end of it I was faced with another tower that I promptly descended. At the bottom of the tower it appeared as though the player who had created the towers and bridge had left their mark:
This pre-alpha version of Oort Online has a hell of a lot of promise. I was already excited for the official release of the game and now I’m even more hyped to get hold of the full game. In the mean time, the building possibilities within Oort are endless, so I have plenty to keep myself occupied for the time being.
If you want to find out more about Oort Online and all of the amazing features that will be available on release, then be sure to check out the official website. You can also watch the trailer below:
