Gaia

Gaia is a survival game about a treasure hunter searching for a planet said to be the home of the Ancients, whose technology can bend time. When your ship’s engine fails on approach, explosions leave you as the sole survivor of the crash. From there, you determine how the story continues and ends.

Survive and build

Harvest minerals, alien flora and underwater resources, then craft items, vehicles, blueprints and ammunition. You can construct a base from modular buildings, including assemblers, floors, walls and energy-producing structures. Manage hunger, thirst, rest and leisure, grow food, and maintain the electrical system so your buildings have enough energy to operate.

You can cook recipes using ingredients such as alien flora or alien meat. Crops including corn, chili, carrots, onions, cabbage and leeks differ in nutrition, growing time and yield. Your needs affect gameplay: eating prepared food, drinking water, resting, relaxing, using the bathroom and washing your hands all matter. Neglecting them can reduce your maximum health, running speed or mental health, and low mental health can cause serious problems.

Choose your approach

Three AI storytellers offer different experiences: Cora Core provides a gradually rising difficulty, Tranquillio Pax offers a relaxed sandbox, and RNGesus Silvius makes outcomes unpredictable.

You also choose from four biomes when starting a game. Your location may be on a beach near the ocean or inland in a dense or sparse forest; each map has its own challenges and advantages.

Weather and events

The day-and-night cycle, seasons, date, wind, rain and temperature affect both you and your base. Rain puts out fires, solar panels do not work at night, and wind changes turbine efficiency. Crops can die in winter if the temperature gets too low, so the changing conditions affect what you build and when you act.

Events include raids by local wildlife or space mercenaries, who may attack from the ground or arrive in spaceships to fire on your base. A Nox event fills the atmosphere with poison from an exploding meteorite, slowly killing anything that breathes. Solar flares create fire tornadoes that spread fire and can damage almost anything; animals that catch fire can spread it further. Meteor showers are mostly visual but boost your well-being while they last, and trade ships let you trade with different factions.

Explore underwater

To reach the ocean’s deeper levels, you need to build a submersible. Diamonds and gold can be found below, along with the biomechanical whale and other underwater mysteries.

Wildlife and threats

The planet’s intelligent AI includes cowardly animals such as deer, which run when you approach; passive wildlife; aggressive creatures such as most monsters and all space pirates; and territorial animals such as wolves and sand scorpions.