Sand Sailor Studio has released their highly anticipated Viking tribe-building survival game, ASKA. The game takes you to undiscovered lands, where you must forage for resources and food, build a tribal settlement, fight mythical beings, and survive the darkest of winters. Unlike many colony sims, ASKA can be played with up to three friends.

After a rough night at sea, your ship starts to sink in the middle of nowhere. However, the gods have other plans for you and give you a second chance at life by safely guiding you to the shores of a mysterious island. Your new goal is to rebuild your tribe and uncover the dark secrets lurking beneath this place. To aid you on your quest, the gods bless you with a structure known as Odin’s Eye. This building can create a beacon that guides other Vikings toward your base.

Besides the typical hunger, thirst, and cold you have to deal with in other survival games, you are also expected to lead a tribe and meet their needs. Build them shelters, fires, and places to work. Each villager has their own positive and negative traits, such as needing less food or requiring more water. Some prefer to work during the day, making farming or foraging best for them, while others want night shifts, which are perfect for guard duty. You can mark where they forage or patrol by placing flags in those areas. Once you build a large enough settlement and recruit plenty of tribespeople, the goal becomes to make them self-sufficient. That way, you can relax and focus on uncovering the island’s secrets.

There is a large open world to explore and points of interest to discover. Some may even have a boss you can fight or a horde of enemies to take down for loot. Not every enemy is a mythical being; there are also regular animals. These range from peaceful ones like deer, which you can hunt for meat, to wolves and bears that will attack when you get close to their den. You can also find cave entrances scattered around the world. Some tunnels might seem to lead to a dead end, but digging a little deeper can reveal a large space filled with terrifying creatures. While these dark places are more dangerous, they also provide the better resources you need to expand your tribe.

ASKA has just been launched as an early access title on Steam, meaning there is lots more to come.

The developers are planning to release two major updates before update 1.0. These will expand the island and add new buildings for you to construct in the village. In between, we can expect smaller updates that will focus on community-requested features. Sand Sailor Studio expects the full release of ASKA to launch sometime next year.

Are you going to jump into the game right away, or wait for the full release? Let me know in the comments.