The release of Astrolabe Interactive’s highly anticipated survival game, the sky-bound Aloft, is almost here. The game offers a unique world made of floating islands, with multiple biomes surrounding a large and mysterious cyclone. You will have to uncover what happened to an ancient civilization and restore the ecosystem from a dangerous fungal infection while flying your very own island.

The hook of Aloft is its ability to lay claim to any rock that floats in the sky. By unlocking various building recipes scattered around the world, you gain the knowledge to build more structures like sails and a helm to control where the island will go. These can be upgraded over time for faster speeds or better maneuverability. You can switch bases at any time as long as you have the materials to construct the necessary items to get it moving, so when you find a larger landmass, you can easily move out.

Building is a huge part of Aloft. There are plenty of decorative pieces and multiple wall and floor styles, like wood, stone, or sandstone. If this is not enough, the game has another trick up its sleeve. Instead of using the preset furniture that the developers made, you can create custom creations with the free-building mechanic. Players can place and stretch wooden beams and different kinds of cloth in any way they like to build something unique.

Crafting can be done by various stations, and some of those can be automated with wind power. On the starting island, you will learn most of the basic recipes to get you started, like the glider, so you can soar through the skies and easily visit other rocks. A variety of tools is available for chopping wood, mining stone, farming, and more. Similar to the construction system, you unlock better tools after interacting with a certain number of recipe stones.

As you progress through Aloft, you will find some islands covered in fungus. These are infected and need to be cleansed by defeating the source, but it won’t be that easy. Once you have found the root cause, a swarm of mushroom enemies pops out of the ground, ready to defend their new home. There are a few different kinds, like a small, basic shroom that is not harmful alone but can overwhelm the player with quantity, or a brute. The brute is a lot stronger and can perform a leap attack. By defeating the corruption, you unlock new combat abilities that will help you clear later infestations much faster.

After the fighting is over, it is time to take a look at your eco guide. This book tells you what tasks you need to perform around the island in order to cure it of the infection. This can be as simple as removing the last remnants, chopping down dead trees, or creating medicine to get the animals back on their feet.

Aloft can be played alone or with friends and is set to release into Early Access on the 15th on Steam. The game also has a free demo for you to try.

What do you find most excited about the game? Let me know in the comments.