2018 has come and gone. The Gamer News Team gave our picks for our favorite games of the year, but one of the most popular, best-reviewed games on Steam during 2018 managed to slip through the cracks. That game? You guessed it. Rimworld.

That’s right. It turns out that the top-down, sci-fi colony survival sim from Ludeon Studios was Steam’s number one player-reviewed title for 2018. Just as everyone would have predicted.

The game - which is inspired by the “western vibe of Firefly, the deep simulation of Dwarf Fortress, and the epic scale of Dune and Warhammer 40,000 - has managed to live up to its aspirations through the eyes of fans and critics alike with “Overwhelmingly Positive” reviews.

The game’s creator, Tynan Sylvester, made the exciting announcement via Twitter on New Year’s Eve. Not only did he provide the news, he backed it up by including a link that proved the achievement. Sylvester also included a second link that analyzes the top-rated games on Steam as a whole; not just for 2018. Rimworld makes another impressive showing, ranking eighth overall on the list.

Rimworld has managed to be a hit beyond Steam reviews as well. The game sits at a Metacritic score of 93, with a User Score of 8.8. For perspective, Rimworld’s Metacritic score is only one point below 2018’s Game of the Year, God of War. Rimworld even managed to edge out other indie darlings such as Subnautica, Return of the Obra Dinn, Dead Cells, and even Celeste - a game that actually held one of the nominations for the 2018 Game of the Year. It is clear that the game has done something right to receive such acclaim from fans.

Therein lies one of the secrets to Rimworld’s success. Early versions of the game were initially released as a Kickstarter crowdfunded game beginning in 2013, before officially launching in October of last year. The game evolved through community feedback and transparent development updates, which has allowed the game to become the intricate, yet charming game that players clearly enjoy.

If you've never played the game, now is as good a time as any to check out Rimworld. But don't take our word for it. If player reviews are any indication, you won't be disappointed.

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