Developer Maschinen-Mensch enormously enjoyable rogue-like exploration adventure, Curious Expedition, might be getting on a bit (it released back in 2016), but it’s just received a free multiplayer mode, previously available in browser-based beta, in its latest update.
The gist of Curious Expedition, if you’re unfamiliar, is that it’s the 19th century and players, cast as daring adventurers, must embark on a race across inhospitable climes to find (ie. steal) exotic treasures in order to secure fame, fortune, and a footnote in the history books.
What that equates to in practice is a compelling blend of board-game-like exploration across a procedurally generated hex-based map, and a text-based choose-your-own-adventure-style yarn. The ultimate goal each game is to score highest against the AI across a set number of expeditions, and to do that you’ll need to purchase supplies and prepare a party – whose useful individual perks are usually offset by negative traits such as paranoia, misogyny, or racism, eventually making them something of a liability as things start to go wrong.
The Curious Expedition – 1.0 Release story trailer Watch on YouTube
Once your ship docks at the outset of an expedition, you’re free to explore the uncharted map at will, stopping off at sites that look ripe for pilfering, trading with increasingly unimpressed locals, battling wildlife, and maybe even angering a few gods. The terrain isn’t kind, though, and you’ll need to carefully manage your limited food and resources as you blunder about, in order to keep your hunger, sanity, and reputation in check. Fail and your journey will grow increasingly difficult, die and it’s game over.
The randomness of Curious Expedition’s events admittedly won’t be to everyone’s taste, but there’s a lot of atmospheric enjoyment to be had as you frantically conjure up on-the-go strategies to stave off ever-looming disaster.
Curious Expedition’s slightly odd multiplayer mode, known as Rivals – which actually launched in beta as a free browser experience last year before making its way into the game proper in the latest update – follows much the same trajectory as the solo game, albeit pitting players against human opponents in its own distinctive way.