I’ve been playing Space Crew over the last week, and it only gets better. I’m slowly progressing through the campaign, getting closer to defeating the alien invaders. Though occasionally frustrating, it’s been fun so far, and I’m looking forward to finally completing the campaign.

One criticism I almost included in my review was that the game felt a bit repetitive. Well, that’s only true if you stick to the easy missions. But once you start tackling the harder ones, especially the campaign missions, things get a lot more interesting.

The Phasmids begin sending more dangerous fighters after you. Some attach radioactive bombs to your hull that slowly kill your crew without even breaching it. Others deploy independent laser drones that tear through your shields. One ship type closes in and fires a focused beam that disables a system entirely.

The battles become more drawn-out and intense. You have to think more strategically, prioritising targets that pose the biggest threat. New crew abilities come into play. Your Comms Officer can tag ships for, letting you focus on repairing systems or putting out fires. Your Security Officer can unleash an EMP blast to give you breathing room mid-fight. Using the right ability at the right moment is often the difference between victory and a slow death.

Not to mention the environmental hazards. A black hole can spaghettify your crew if you don’t keep moving. You can get sucked into wormholes, forced to fight Phasmids as you travel through them. Radioactive comets can streak across a combat zone. More than once I’ve found myself using the Captain‘s emergency wart ability to escape a tough battle.

Alien space stations appear regularly at this stage in the game. You can hack them to disable their weapons or shields, but better hope your own shields hold as your ship has to remain stationary. Blasting apart these bases system by system is one of the most satisfying things in the game.

I also love some of the chaotic moments that have happened in this game. Off the top of my head:

• After a battle went to retrieve an item that was floating in space, only to realise it was a fire extinguisher that got sucked out when I purged the ship of aliens.
• I misclicked with one of my gunners selected. By the time I noticed, he was already going through the airlock and committed suicide by vacuum.
• I purged the ship of aliens as I often do, only to realise I also vented the person I was supposed to rescue on this mission.

This game is full of little stories like that. I’m on the final chapter of the campaign now, with my crew fully equipped and my ship using the most advanced tech. By this time next week, the Phasmid War may well be over.