Spacebase Startopia
Spacebase Startopia
Game
Game2013
Startopia
Developer My Little Planet Ltd, Mucky Foot Productions Ltd
Startopia is a video game by Mucky Foot Productions (formed by ex-Bullfrog employees) and published by Eidos in June 2001, in which the player administers various space stations with the task of developing them into popular hubs. The game has a comical overtone, with lighthearted humour and cartoonish aliens. The game was re-released on GOG.com in September 2012 and was added to the Steam catalogue in October 2013.… From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
218 reactions from 4 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Lemmy, Mastodon) · newest Oct 24, 2026 · last updated Oct 24, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
92
LovedLoved
164 positive · 15 negative
95% range 87–95%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 164 | 15 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 14 | 0 | 20 |
| Lemmy * | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Mastodon * | 1 | 0 | 0 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Very Positive
680 of 752 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
92% recommend · 167 yes, 15 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 182 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Very Positive (880 of 974 positive).
Players praise Startopia as a classic space station management game with enduring charm and humor. [1][2][3] Reviewers often compare it unfavorably to its remake, calling the original superior. [4][5][6]
Liked
Representative posts
- [15]
It's OK, but nothing great, even kinda lame. This is an RTS, management game. There's a short campaign and some story is involved. It is mostly a sandbox. Good music. Decent graphics. Bugs... sometimes the game keeps running in the background after quitting. Runs fine on win 7. Now, this is the perfect example of a game that, even if a classic, didn't age well. The mechanics are poor. The game is very repetitive. …
- [1]
Be warned that this game is old and the interface feels all 20 years of its age. However, if you can stomach old games, this is one of the true classics from its era. A space station management/tycoon game with a lot of heart and humor. Numerous ways to build your station, several ways to challenge yourself or just relax and mess around. I've played this off and on for two decades and still own the original disc so …
- [3]
"Aged extremely well" is the galactic understatement of the year. First launched in 2001 (!!!), it still looks stunning, even on modern computers, even without the utterly unexpected recent patches. Patches that have literally nothing to do with the "sequel" that just launched. Startopia is gloriously ambitious, and manages to deliver most of what it promises. No small challenge, even after 20+ years. You'll learn …
- [6]
One of those games which I discovered in early 2000's and still come back to it every here, now and then. Truly a classic game with sarcastic funny AI. Don't bother with latest remake called "Spacebase Startopia", its complete cheap knockoff cashgrab garbage.
- [2]
I love this game to death, I originally played it on a CD-ROM in the 2000's, and it's just as interesting and charming as it ever was. Highly recommend playing through the tutorials and campaign to fully experience the game's sense of humor. If you're playing on a modern computer, switch on the beta in your steam config for some better hardware and resolution support. But honestly, play it at a smaller 3:4 …
Summarised from 34 of the 219 public posts collected about this game; every point cites the posts behind it ([n] opens the post) and the split is counted from the posts’ own ratings. Updated Oct 13, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
Players who liked Startopia talk about timeless humor and British charm; those who didn't talk about outdated interface and graphics. Which matters more to you?
Critics, per Wikipedia
John Lee reviewed the PC version of the game for Next Generation, rating it four stars out of five, and stated that "Although a bit short on missions, it turns out to be a real kick to build your own luxury hotel in space. Startopia received generally favorable reviews upon its release. It holds an average of 85% and 86/100 on aggregate web sites GameRankings and Metacritic. Startopia sold approximately 110,000 copies.
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 218 · most liked firstBe warned that this game is old and the interface feels all 20 years of its age. However, if you can stomach old games, this is one of the true classics from its era. A space station management/tycoon game with a lot of heart and humor. Numerous ways to build your station, several ways to challenge yourself or just relax and mess around. I've played this off and on for two decades and still own the original disc so my hours on Steam only reflect buying it again here for convenience. --- Of…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →We are fifteen hours in, and I’m having a lovely time playing Startopia while I wait for the UK to wake up. We’ve got a good little group in, but would love some more company! 💖 Twitch.tv/iamhuld And don’t forget to tell your friends and family to donate! gofund.me/fbdcf4f8
positive · AI labelView post →Much like space it is infinitely better then the remake.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I love this game to death, I originally played it on a CD-ROM in the 2000's, and it's just as interesting and charming as it ever was. Highly recommend playing through the tutorials and campaign to fully experience the game's sense of humor. If you're playing on a modern computer, switch on the beta in your steam config for some better hardware and resolution support. But honestly, play it at a smaller 3:4 resolution, because there aren't any GUI scale options and it's crazy hard to read at…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →"Aged extremely well" is the galactic understatement of the year. First launched in 2001 (!!!), it still looks stunning, even on modern computers, even without the utterly unexpected recent patches. Patches that have literally nothing to do with the "sequel" that just launched. Startopia is gloriously ambitious, and manages to deliver most of what it promises. No small challenge, even after 20+ years. You'll learn to love your station's visitors, and hate some others with a passion. You'll…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This, This is Peak Tycoon. you like starwars? buy this, its not related but its aesthetically inspired. like aliens in general? buy this. like 2001 a space odyssey? tycoons? old gems? buy this. i had this when i was 12 and accidentally broke the disc, i'm finally able to figure out how to play this rather than being terrible at it.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a hidden gem. It's a fun game, with fun aliens and structures. I wish it would get a true remaster because the idea of making basically, a resort for alines on a space station is really unique.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Fixed-rate logic, and store velocities (or similar) so the graphics can interpolate to whatever display rate it wants. The extreme of this was StarTopia that ran the game at 12Hz, but rendered at whatever - you really couldn't tell. Every time I've worked with delta time in gameplay - TROUBLE!
neutral · AI labelView post →Probably: * Fallout 2 * Command & Conquer: Red Alert 2 * Broken Sword: The Shadow of the Templars Fallout 2 isn't as refined and tight as Fallout but I personally enjoy it more. It's arguably far too big but as I've played it so many times (unusual for me - I'm usually a one-and-done person when it comes to time sink RPGs) that isn't a bad thing. I enjoy the writing, mechanics, and atmosphere. Also I voice a robot dog in a mod for it. Red Alert 2 is the best C&C game ever.…
neutral · AI labelView post →The game aged well. I used to play it for days, so I just bought it for my Steam collection too. And it is a delight of nice music, sound, strategy and overall vive. Don't forget to look outside your station at the stars.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Playing a game called Galacticare, which is kind of Two Point Hospital and a game I played obsessively many years ago called Startopia. Really liking it.
positive · AI labelView post →Not many games earn a permanent install spot on a computer for more than 20 years, But startopia is one of those games. Fresh install, grab grapphics drivers, install steam, vlc, winamp... and then install startopia, im not sure its my a tradition, or an old charter or something.. or maybe just habit at this point, but it always goes right back in its spot on my hard drive.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's short, old, but it has aged really well. Great game!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →man I can't believe the remake failed. this game remains such a highlight I am really bummed they didn't even manage to recreate it. Arona will remain my friend.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →One of my top 10 favourite games, like, ever. I remember seeing my late mother playing this back when I was younger (maybe circa 2010?), and thinking it was cool as hell. I also remember seeing a Grey named Ayy Lmao which was really funny, and I'm pretty sure there's a Zedem Monk on one of my save files named Metal Dog. It's a huge shame that this game doesn't have much - if any - fans at all. This game is honestly super underrated, and it has a great soundtrack. I recommend playing on Sandbox…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's OK, but nothing great, even kinda lame. This is an RTS, management game. There's a short campaign and some story is involved. It is mostly a sandbox. Good music. Decent graphics. Bugs... sometimes the game keeps running in the background after quitting. Runs fine on win 7. Now, this is the perfect example of a game that, even if a classic, didn't age well. The mechanics are poor. The game is very repetitive. Several micro-management aspects are plainly dumb (pick-up garbage anyone?). The…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Aside from nostalgia, Startopia provides laughs and inside jokes for the Star Trek or Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy fan. I find myself coming back to play through the campaign every few years. This game gets things right for an enjoyable space-based society, where the new game under this brand feels too simplified for the modern time.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →There's a space station sim from 2001 that I still play because I love it so much: Startopia. I'd like Startopia 2 to be pretty much the same as the original (including graphics) but with higher-poly models and better scripting tools for modders.
positive · AI labelView post →still better then most AAA games
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →In the game "StarTopia" there was a species of alien you could eventually attract to your starbase that just liked pleasure and would poop money. Anyway this is how I often envision the United States, and oddly enough I say that positively. I DON'T want us to be Kasvagorians. Only Gem Slugs.
neutral · AI labelView post →This software appeals to my carbon-based sense of humour.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Intro Startopia is very British. It’s easy to see if you’re British but people from other countries might not quite get it. Everything about the game is British. First off the setting is very ‘Hitchhikers guide to the galaxy’, and it has a 70’s feel that is modernised for the 90’s, or at least early 00’s. The layouts of things, the wacky architecture, the aliens and the names of everything. The gameplay itself is quite British with combat taking a back seat, which perhaps it should do.…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →One of those games which I discovered in early 2000's and still come back to it every here, now and then. Truly a classic game with sarcastic funny AI. Don't bother with latest remake called "Spacebase Startopia", its complete cheap knockoff cashgrab garbage.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Startopia is an old-ass (and very British, ymmv if that affects things) starbase building game which has influences from a wide variety of real-time sim games, including juggling different alien species under one roof. I don't think its quite as in-depth as Tropico's factions, but IS 0 away team bs
neutral · AI labelView post →good old game shame it didn't get developed more but hard to compare it to some new games now like Ixion an so on since ever since bullfrog studios was gone no one cares for management games now
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I was a fan of this game back when it first released. It is wonderful to see the original developer has returned to updating it.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is my childhood, at that time I can't read ENG so I stuck at tutorial. The BGM of maun menu was so impressive I can still remember there's someone reporting something.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →TLDR: Theme Hospital, but a trading space station filled with some stereotypical aliens. General Thoughts/Overview: Startopia (ST) was surprisingly good. I’ve tried to get into it in the past, but never quite gotten over the learning curve as I found the tutorial quite stale. This time was no different, but it was a pleasantly charming game once I’d ploughed on and got my teeth into it. We are the volunteered administrator of a derelict space station. Our main role is to ensure the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is a gem from my childhood. The new remake (Spacebase Startopia) is a half-baked, buggy, cash-grab. Play this one. The only challenges come down to UI and QoL compared to modern games but wow does this game hold up in almost every other area! The devs even came back to it 20 years after the original release 0.0 Passion like that is missing from a lot of bigger modern devs and studios. if you want a deep, good colony sim/management game and you don't mind outdated graphics give it a…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Amazed to find this classic gem on Steam. Even more impressed that it's receiving care and support. I was able to buy it, install it and play it with virtually no problems. I was honestly shocked. This is sure to become a game I will gift gladly.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is one of the BEST games not just of its time, but of ALL TIME. I'm 21 and have played this game since I was 3 or 4 years old on the family computer wayyy back in the early 2000s. You won't find many games with this much charm and style that are so timeless that you can play them and still feel like a kid playing it for the first time. I'm so glad it's in some form of development again and to see some of the original team come back to be the ones developing it! I'm just so so happy to…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I'm thinking more God Game like Theme Hospital or Startopia.
neutral · AI labelView post →Unofficial Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy: the space station management game
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game will allways had a place in my heart since I was a kid. Love its still available. If you love old time economy strategy games, best choice.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I still enjoy playing StarTopia 25 years later. Of course, if you don't like the game, you can always torture it... www.youtube.com/watch?v=xfRt...
positive · AI labelView post →Startopia was my favorite game for years! Just ahead of Theme Hospital. I should check that out.
positive · AI labelView post →Simple, classic highly enjoyable.I would recommend this game big time. I play it every year still, very relaxing.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Game has never even gotten to start screen for me. A warning to others that if it doesn't open then don't keep trying, because if you go past 2 hours of 'time' in whatever way Steam counts it then you will be refused a refund. So, I'm now stuck with a never functioning 'game.'
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I've actually played for probably several hundred hours. This game continues to be a top 5 for me, even as old as it is. If you like humor, management sims, and more humor, I can highly recommend this game. Play in sandbox mode for a chill time just building and hiring fun aliens.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →If you are selling an old game, make sure it RUNS.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →They just don't make games like this. This was an absolute gem of a management strategy game by the short lived Mucky Foot Studies. It offers a unique management of staff, different biomes on a space station, research, combat, economics, manufacturing, whole having a continuous tongue in cheek humour. The graphics may seems a little dated, but they're very serviceable, and there's remarkably few bugs, except skreshers, of course. If you like this kind of light strategy game, with a lot of…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This game is an old classic- with the biggest draw for it being it's dry, semi-dark witbased humor and accompanying fantastic voiceacting. The vibe of the game is darkly funny, and is a solidly fun "Hub" building game. Not a colony, but more of a glorified tourist trap, something still rather uncommon among "builder" type games. Highly recommend! Though, it's so old, it may not work on some machines. Just remember you can get a steam refund if it doesn't want to run on whatever you have.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I bought this game, back when it came out on CD. And I have played it for so many hours over the years. The missions are fairly quick to do, but you always have the option to keep playing the mission after you have won. There is also a sandbox option, that is quite challenging. There is so much dry humor in this game, that you just have to love it. I love this game so much, so I can only recommend it.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Developed by My Little Planet Ltd and Mucky Foot Productions Ltd and published by My Little Planet Ltd, Startopia is a management simulation that has earned a lasting reputation for combining strategic gameplay with an imaginative science-fiction setting. Instead of building cities on land, players are tasked with restoring abandoned space stations into bustling interstellar destinations where countless alien species can live, work, and relax. While the game first appeared years ago, its unique…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →it doesnt work the game worked on an older laptop but the screen is blank when i play it on my modern laptop.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →played for years and it's a classic that i still love
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Hello childhood my old friend
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Startopia is a space base building game. Kind of like Galacticare but less medical. Colonization is a Civ game about colonizing America
neutral · AI labelView post →daaaaang it just clicked in my head that you made that unofficial shadow rendering patch for StarTopia after Muckyfoot shut down. i loved that game & that patch was so cool - so uhh THANKS!
positive · AI labelView post →It can be a brutal game when things start to go wrong, but I've also played it through a few times. Wish we could get a more light hearted version, to satisfy the Startopia itch 😁
neutral · AI labelView post →46. Startopia - The unluckier half of British dev Bullfrog, Mucky Foot wanged out this excellent Space Station management simulator as their second game. Smart interconnected systems with lots of fun little bits, economy, construction, security, biosphere. Dungeon Keeper 3.
neutral · AI labelView post →I've played this game for many, many hours in the past twenty years, and ended up buying it on Steam today after finding out that one of the original devs got the rights back, and I wanted to support (and gain access to the new patches). I've now bought Startopia three times, that's how much I love it. Is it perfect? No. Is it bug free? Absolutely not. Is it one of the most charming management games I've ever played in my 42 years on this earth? Yes, absolutely. The attention to detail, the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The main campaign increases in difficulty slowly but surely - it's a great way to learn all of the system's complexities and interaction. UI is very early 2000, which means it's bad and clunky, making easy tasks a bit of a chore. There are some exploits that break the game's balance (such as farming the proper way), but that didn't diminish the fun a bit. Main campaign takes anywhere from 16-20 hours, custom games can increase that forever. Play it if you like easy RTS games or can't get into…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Single best space station manager game, and terraforming tools in-game of any game ever. 20 years ago I started playing and I have done a play-through every year since. And now, having had a kid and showing her games, especially at age 5, this game has become the go to in our gaming sessions together. This PLEASE, needs more, Anyway possible would be great, to see you develop more and more to this exact format. I realise there are others, but sorry, Space-station Startopia is not the same,…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Missed this one back in the day - I admit I haven't really experienced the game, but in my defense, I was having trouble doing so because of all the bugs. Also, looks terrible at modern resolutions (can't get the aspect ratio right, text is eye-bleedingly tiny, etc.)
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Startopia (2001) Space station manager! You build rooms and hire aliens to manage them. The rooms provide basic needs as well as recreation, encouraging visitors to remain on the station and continue spending money. Each type of alien is suited to a particular kind of task, and individual aliens have a set of statistics that determine their value as an employee. You finish various scenarios as objectives. its a funny game with a great sense of humour. I haven't played this back in the day but…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →it may be old but it is ridiculously FUN.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →City-builder in a space-station. Yes, it's old but it doesn't feel it and hardly looks it. Definitely worth the price.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →when i was about 10 years old i was i played this game when it was on gametap just because it had aliens in it when i play this game now i get nostalgia for the hours i spent on this game even though its dated it really is fun to play and experience if you havent already you can play it many ways against cpu friends or just chill out building up your way station if you are in to aliens city building you'll love this game
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →One of my favorite builder sims. It has a vry cozy feel, especially in sandbox mode.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
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