One of indie and early access gaming’s biggest successes is growing once again with Kerbal Space Program: Breaking Ground, the newest expansion for the intricate space simulator. Featuring tons of new items to use in your rocket construction and space exploration efforts, longtime fans are understandably excited for this $14.99 package. But what all is in there and is it worth the price? I went hands-on with the new DLC and am here to break down my thoughts for both longtime fans and potentially returning players.
If you do take that leap you’ll certainly find yourself enrapture once again in the beauty and joy of Kerbal Space Program
I’m firmly in the latter group, having spent tons of time with Kerbal Space Program but drifted off at various times as other games ate up my gameplay hours. Still, KSP always sat there, tempting me with its relaxing and intricate gameplay. While the base game was expansive, and last year’s Making History expansion built atop it, there has always been a small feeling that you put more into the game than it returns to you. Dozens of hours can be spent building up your available roster of engine parts, learning new skills, and eventually making it to the outer reaches of the Kerbin system only to find little of interest there. That’s where Breaking Ground shines the brightest.
Planetary features offer up more things to discover on the planets and moons scattered around. These all feed into the Science system, so there isn’t some grand new gameplay mechanic here, but it’s a nice reward for the time put into the experience. Of course, this isn’t all that Breaking Ground adds, and the rest will be more appealing to players like myself who haven’t launched a rocket in months.
These include new robotic parts which will surely offer tons of new mechanics to mess with. I’m no master builder, so I won’t say how far the true fans will take this, but it seems quite promising for Kerbal’s future. This is also true of the new deployable science stations. Taking these along on your outer space journeys means more things to do once you arrive, and more science rewards over the long haul.
That’s the headline features of Kerbal Space Program: Breaking Ground and they all play well with what’s come before. Fans who have run out of things to do and see in KSP will certainly want to pick this up. For those who’ve drifted away from the space program business, it’s not totally clear that this will offer something enticing enough for a purchase. A lot of the elements require you to be far along in your campaign, either official or of the sandbox variety.
However, if you do take that leap you’ll certainly find yourself enrapture once again in the beauty and joy of Kerbal Space Program. The base game still holds up exceptionally well and this latest expansion just adds a bit of flavor on top. If it gets you back into the game then it’ll have been worth it, whether you get to enjoy the new content right away or 100 hours later.
