Minecraft’s phenomenal success continues to inspire countless developers, eager to replicate its unique blend of creativity and survival. The game that everyone wishes they had created, still thrives with hordes of players despite its age and distinctive, blocky graphics. It’s undeniable that developers and publishers alike want a piece of the Minecraft pie. However, it has proven to be an exceedingly difficult recipe to master.
Everwind is the latest attempt to recreate the aforementioned formula, and I’ve spent some time exploring what it has to offer. Did I savor every moment and leave satisfied, or did a few spoonfuls make me feel queasy? As it turns out, my experience landed somewhere in the middle.
Currently in Early Access, Everwind isn’t a complete masterpiece, but it already boasts a significant amount of content. While its distinct concept and identity are evident, it faces a long road ahead to secure its own dedicated player base and truly thrive. Content and updates are promised until it reaches its final form, much like other successful Early Access titles.
The adventure begins with the generation of a unique world, placing players atop a mysterious tower. This structure cleverly doubles as a tutorial, with each floor introducing essential game mechanics like combat, crafting tools, and cooking. This integrated approach makes the learning process feel intuitive and part of the overall journey, rather than a separate chore. All these survival game staples feel perfectly natural within Everwind’s world.
Once free from the tower’s guidance, the true quest begins: “Build your airship.” This involves scanning a rusted airship wreck on your island piece by piece using a specialized device, then dismantling its components to craft new engines, generators, and balloons. The process is a familiar grind of resource collection—chopping trees, mining stone, gathering grass, and smelting copper in a foundry. (Armed with a sword and shield, I felt ready to face a few capybaras.)
The task is slightly complicated by the few enemies present on the island: ragged skeletons that pose little real threat. Combat, however, is surprisingly engaging and well-designed, featuring parrying mechanics and additional abilities locked behind a classic RPG upgrade tree. Enemy AI, while functional, lacks depth and offers no surprises. Beyond the skeletons, the developers of Everwind seem fond of capybaras (especially those with tiny hats!), alongside wild boars and pheasants, offering opportunities for hunting meat and feathers.
After hours of collecting resources, dispatching goblins, and meticulously constructing all the necessary parts, my personal airship was ready to take to the clouds. Using a small boat, I rowed to a designated vessel on the map, placed my newly crafted components, and fueled the generator with wood. To get it running, I had to connect everything with pipes to transfer energy between the various engine parts. Soon enough, it was done – a vast world awaited, and the sky was my playground. It’s an expansive world at my disposal, and I found myself wondering if there was an end to it all. I certainly didn’t find one.
Everwind’s world isn’t just a horizontal plane of islands; it extends vertically into the sky. Naturally, I aimed for the celestial islands first, only to discover my airship needed upgrades for higher altitudes. I then piloted my vessel towards a prominent island featuring a peculiar, metal-giraffe-like building that had caught my eye since the start of the game. Parking on its roof, I quickly realized I wasn’t alone; venom-spitting spiders and exploding zombies were my unwelcome companions. It also became clear that my level was far too low, and my wooden armor and sword were utterly inadequate. (This was one of the first vessels I built; I added a small ramp because I didn’t know you could teleport to the ship.)
I died repeatedly, panicking at first because I didn’t know how to escape. However, I soon discovered that the scanning device could also teleport me back to my airship, offering a chance to retrieve my lost “orbs” (partial inventory) from where I died within a ten-minute window. Setbacks and mishaps are indeed not uncommon.
Lessons learned, I chose a less formidable island next. It was here that a fundamental question arose: “What is my ultimate goal?” Everwind, much like Mojang’s Minecraft, seemingly intends for players to forge their own narratives without explicit quests or a clear destination. This freedom is both a strength and a weakness.
As a game with RPG elements, Everwind feels incomplete without a compelling backstory. Why do I suddenly wake up in a tower? What happened to all the airships? Who are these monsters? A deeper narrative explanation would greatly enhance the experience. For now, the focus remains on upgrading my character and expanding my functional, if not always elegant, airship with everything I need.
Visually, Everwind isn’t particularly attractive, adhering to a blocky aesthetic reminiscent of Minecraft. While it attempts to add more flair with water reflections and particle effects, these often contribute to noticeable lag, particularly when new islands are generated. Given its Early Access status, these technical hiccups are somewhat expected and not extraordinary.
The design choices, however, are less defensible. The color palette is overwhelmingly brown, creating a dull and often unappealing aesthetic. My character resembles an odd blend of Minecraft’s Steve and Scooby Doo’s Shaggy, and the enemies roaming Everwind’s worlds manage to be neither frightening nor humorous. Crafting a distinctive visual style within a block-based world is challenging, and Everwind hasn’t quite succeeded here. The vast expanse offers your own adventure, if you’re ready to create it.
Everwind is definitely a game to keep an eye on, and it offers enjoyable gameplay in its current state. However, the Early Access price feels a bit steep. Should Enjoy Studio successfully refine its vision and iron out its kinks, Everwind possesses the unique elements required to potentially stand alongside, or even challenge, Minecraft in the block-building genre, offering something quite distinctive.