Once Human aims to be «the» next forever game – but is it good enough?

First came The First Descendent, then came Zenless Zone Zero and now we have Once Human. That’s three prestigious free-to-play games to be released this year alone. Games of this kind can only be successful when as many people as possible spend as much time as possible playing them – and spend as much dough as possible while they’re doing it.

These games welcome you with open arms and an easy start. The thing is, they can only work if somebody foots the bill. As a result, every new free-to-play title fancies itself as the next forever game à la Fortnite, Minecraft or Rust.

Once Human, however, might just be tripped up by its own greed – a voracious appetite for data. At the start of the game, you have to agree to the terms of service. There’s nothing unusual about this per se. However, Once Human’s TOS have stopped the game’s Steam rating from rising above «mixed».

Essentially, they dictate that users need to disclose among other things their ID, home address, date of birth or messaging account details. Starry Studio and parent company Netease, the Chinese corporation that published the game, have already released a statement on the issue. In it, they maintained that an ID is only required in certain cases. Say, if the authorities ask for it or if a child is too young to play and their parents need to be identified. What’s more, the company says users are only asked to share other sensitive data on a voluntary basis via surveys.

Despite data protection concerns, Once Human has almost made it into the top ten most-played games on Steam, where it’s available in addition to the Epic and Windows Store. After playing the game for almost 10 hours, I’d say this isn’t for nothing. Once Human is an online survival game with all the things a survival game entails. You can build your own base, mine resources, craft weapons and items and explore the game’s huge world alongside other players.

The Rosetta Stone and Stardust

The game is set in a post-apocalyptic world (what else?) In 1967, researchers discovered that the Rosetta Stone contained matter from an alien planet. As a result, an organisation of the same name was founded to conduct experiments with it. This caused a mysterious substance, Stardust, to be released and spread across the entire world. Most of humanity mutated into monsters. At the same time, a kind of new dimension opened up and Rosetta began raising superhumans known as Beyonders. You play one of them in Once Human. The story is absolutely convoluted and I couldn’t tell you a word of it without Wiki. But that doesn’t matter.

Once Human is a typical free-to-play hamster wheel. The world is massive, with things to discover around every corner. My quest log is full to bursting and I never have enough resources to build everything I want. What I’ve done so far has been fun.

My living quarters are taking shape, I’ve crafted myself some fancy new equipment, I tune my motorbike in the garage and produce glass in the furnace for special display cases. That’s where you put Deviations, magical creatures you can use in battle or to help you gather resources or do other chores. There’s certainly no shortage of content or things to do. The post-apocalyptic world with its six-legged school bus monsters and searchlight-headed mutants looks pleasantly surreal.

Once Human’s favelas

I still haven’t warmed to the high population density. In a post-apocalyptic survival game, I don’t want to have a ton of neighbours a stone’s throw away from me in every direction.

It’s worst near important quest areas or dungeons. The roads leading there are littered on both sides with small camps serving as revitalisation points. It makes me feel like I’ve taken a wrong turn and wound up in a Brazilian favela.

This aside, I’m still motivated to delve further into the world of Once Human. I’m up to my ears in checklists to work through, countless resources and menus crammed with upgrade and skill options. That’s why I’m asking myself, as I do with every new free-to-play title: is this game good enough to become a forever game for a critical mass? Because «good» isn’t good enough. Plus, Once Human has data protection concerns to contend with.

Every month, newly released games clamour for your undivided attention. Because of my job, I can’t dedicate mine to one single game. I need to play others too. However, it’s also extremely rare that one of these games grips me so much that I want to leave all the rest untouched. There’s no doubt that a lot of work has gone into Once Human. But it remains to be seen whether the game will become a long-running hit like Fortnite, or whether it’ll meet the same fate as Bloodhunt, Redfall or Exoprimal in a year’s time.

Once Human is available for PC and will soon also be released for Android and iOS.