Offworld Trading Company's First Expansion Announced, Takes You To One Of Jupiter's Moons

Offworld Trading Company, the RTS from Civilization IV designer Soren Johnson and his studio Mohawk Games, is growing with its first expansion. Titled Jupiter's Forge, the add-on is set on the planet's volcanic moon, Io. It is a "far harsher" environment than the base game's Mars setting.

"The further out into space we go, the harder survival becomes," Johnson said in a news release. "Unlike Mars, Io's resources are finite and will deplete over time, which makes the competition even more cutthroat. Players will have to adapt to an entirely different resource hierarchy than they've become used to on Mars or Ceres if they want their businesses to survive here."

In addition to a new setting, Jupiter's Forge introduces a new resource system, as well as new factions in the form of the Penrose Collective and the Diadem Trust. There is also a new resource, Basalt, in addition to new buildings and structures to collect. Additionally, there are more map events, including radiation storms, sulfur frosts, landslides, and tremors.

Jupiter's Forge also adds what's being called a 1000 Map Challenge. As its name suggests, this tasks you with beating maps that get harder as you go along. The maps have leaderboards specific to them, while players can track their progress on overall leaderboards that cover the entire game mode.

"The idea is to get as far as you can while overcoming the increasing difficulty," Johnson said.

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As for the new factions in Jupiter's Forge, the Diadem Trust lets players build "improved versions" of structures like the Hacker Array and Pleasure Dome. The Penrose Collective, meanwhile, introduces the ability to create two headquarters at the start of the game and return claims at any time.

Jupiter's Forge launches in "late" Spring 2017. For a closer look, take a look at the announcement trailer and screens embedded in this story.

Offworld Trading Company launched in 2015 through Steam Early Access and the full version is now available on Steam for $40. The game is published by Stardock. You can also buy it through GOG, Green Man Gaming, and Stardock's own website.

GameSpot's Offworld Trading Company review scored the game a 9/10.