“Revenge of the Savage Planet,” released this summer by Raccoon Logic Studios Inc., is the follow-up to “Journey to the Savage Planet” that released in 2020. In “Revenge,” we play as a space-faring colonist sent to prepare a colony on a new planet for our employer, Alta. When we land, we discover that Alta has abandoned the project and fired us, leaving the player to survive on their own with supplies that have been haphazardly dumped across the nearby planets. 

“Revenge of the Savage Planet” is short and sweet — and priced appropriately. It’s a pretty simple game made pleasant by the light-hearted comedic tone and the bright, engaging visuals. It’s also just challenging enough to be entertaining, while not so easy that it wouldn’t completely bore experienced players. There are a number of annoying difficulty spikes when swarmed by enemies who spawn by the dozen and chase you in every section of each area. Diligent players can manage the large numbers of aliens thanks to my favorite part of the game: the upgrades. Many upgrades aren’t needed for completion, which makes the experience feel somewhat customizable. The optional weapon and mobility upgrades can make a huge difference in combat.

There’s very little story to “Revenge of the Savage Planet,” which is somewhat understandable given the size of the game. But single player games need to have either a high level of unique, creative gameplay or a gripping narrative. When you don’t have either … well, why am I playing? While “Revenge” can be a co-op experience, it’s still distinct from multiplayer games. The other problem I had was how quickly the game turned into a grind for resources — and not a  fun grind. It doesn’t help that certain quest markers don’t offer any function nor tell me what my goal is when getting to the right area, and the planets feel small and grating to navigate. 

Just about everything that “Revenge of the Savage Planet” does has been leveled up by similar games such as “No Man’s Sky,” and with much more depth (except for the collectible outfits — I loved those). The aesthetic and the obvious love the developers have for this world stands enough to impress, but that’s not enough to make it great.