Indie game developer Simon Roth had put out the title Maia five years ago for early access on Steam. It was one of the first games to ever be released for early access and it was well received by fans. Maia, a hard sci-fi colony builder game, had gotten almost half a million dollars in backer funding. And then in December of 2013, it was put into a five-year long early access hole where Roth had worked continuously to put out the best product he could. Now, the day has finally come where Roth pulls Maia out of early access and into full release:
The game tells the story of a planet-fallen crew of colonists who must survive the hostile land around them while building their shelter and off-world habitat. Roth also claims that there is a fully narrated campaign storyline in the game now, with upcoming free DLC and a couple more intense expansion packs.
The trailer that was released for Maia shows off some of the building that can be done on the toxic planet as well as the dangers that come with it:
With a movement style that can be compared to The Sims, Maia is much more than illy, gibberish slice-of-life. It has unique alien creatures that are shown to either harm the colony or can possibly perish from either poison from the planet or traps set up by the humans. The buildings that can be created are useful for the colony and can be built to whatever size the player chooses.
Gamers can also choose between an over-the-top view like most of the trailer shows, or they can experience the game in first-person mode. This can be useful for however players want to enjoy their playthroughs for both the narrative story and side missions.
Maia is finally available after five years of early access and is up on Steam and Itch.io for $24.99 USD. It is currently on sale as well for its release, but only for a limited time.