Summary
As we’ve come to better understand our universe, humanity is faced with a big question: Are we alone? Are there other civilizations out there? The theme of intelligent spacefaring civilizations existing outside of Earth goes back at least as far as H.G. Wells’The War of the Worlds, and have continued to be a favorite subject across various science fiction novels, movies, television shows, and video games. But the simple fact is we have no proof of aliens. Scientists have found several places that could theoretically support life, but never anything that definitively confirms its presence. A popular as the concept of aliens might be, science fiction occasionally likes to subvert expectations and go in the opposite direction.
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Fermi’s paradox asks why we have failed to make contact with other spacefaring civilizations, and there is no shortage of possible answers. Maybe different civilizations are simply too far apart to reach each other at their current technological level. Sometimes there’s just nointelligentlife but plenty of fun. Maybe whatever civilizations once existed were wiped out by some cosmic force, a great calamity, or just their own hubris. Maybe whatever life exists is just so disappointing that it’s simply not worth making contact. Or in a few rare occasions likeRed DwarfandFirefly, we really are alone. Whatever the reason, the absence of aliens can be just as fascinating as their inclusion.
Note:Some of the games included on this list include references to past alien life or depict alien fauna. However, we have strived to avoid titles that depict currently-existing intelligent species or portray aliens in central roles, as in the case of popular franchises likeStar WarsandStar Trek.
8Boundary
Surgical Scalpel’s multiplayer FPSis all about space warfare, with an emphasis on how combat is affected by weightlessness. There are a variety of playable characters but so far all of them have been human. It probably helps that most of the game’s maps have been centered around fighting in orbit and aboard space stations, so there would not be a lot of opportunities for encounter aliens anyway. Instead, it is primarily fighting between human astronauts who have access to various weapons and skillsets who need to use the strange environment to gain a tactical advantage.
This popular sci-fi/horror series notorious for its overly gory combat, which involvedhaving to dismember mutated humans that weren’t good at staying down. But it also gained a reputation for its cynical view of the universe and humanity’s place within it. One of the big themes in the series is the simple idea that thereisn’tintelligent life out there, at least none that we can make contact with.
Turns out there’s a reason for that, too-the closest thing thatdoesexist to alien life has been systematically exploiting a common pitfall in the development of civilizations and wiped out every intelligent species that manages to evolve. That includes humans. The parts of the galaxy that aren’t empty are just gravesites for previous civilizations, or you might say,deadspace.
6Deliver us the Moon/Deliver Us Mars
It is pretty firmly established that our moon is not a likely place to find extra-terrestrial life, contrary to whatA Trip to the Moonmight claim. KeokeN’s indie adventureDeliver Us the Moontherefore has no aliens to be found. Instead, the story focuses on an astronaut’s journey through an abandoned lunar station as he tries to get it operational and uncover the mystery of what happened to its previous occupants.
The sequel, Deliver Us Mars, follows a similar pattern, picking up on characters established in the first game and following their exploration of a lost human colony. Both games lack any sort of alien presence, instead focusing on a bleak future where humanity’s trying to turn to other worlds in an effort to prevent its own extinction.
5The Callisto Protocol
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Callisto is one of several Jovian moons (alongside Europa and Enceladus) that scientists have theorized could support life. Ironically,The Callisto Projectportrays a cynical future with few aliens to be seen, at least not until pretty late into the story. Most of it follows a prison that’s developed a problem involving a viral outbreak causing zombie-like mutations, so most of the game’s enemies are humans.
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Although an alien origin for the pathogen is eventually revealed, the outbreak and subsequent carnage were entirely caused by human efforts to meddle in something they did not fully understand. It is a classic case of humans trying to play god and paying the price.
3The Expanse: A Telltale Series
The Expansewas already a series that prioritized conflicts among humans after they have spread through the Solar System. The same is also true of Telltale’s take on the popular show, albeit perhaps on a smaller scale. In fact, since the game is a prequel to the series, its events would technically pre-date the appearance of the protomolecule meaning evenlessof an alien presence.
Instead, the focus is placed on the XO (later Captain) of a scavenger crew operating around Jupiter. Instead of aliens, problems stem from interpersonal conflicts, space pirates, and the hazards of space itself. A big part of the game is protagonist Camina Drummerhaving to make decisions that affect her relationships with the crew as well as how certain aspects of the story play out.
2Manic Miners
Manic Minersis a free-to-download fan remake of the classic 1999 RTSLEGO Rock Raiders, itself based on a LEGO toyline that still remains popular 20 years after its end. The basic premise was a crew of asteroid miners getting sucked into a wormhole that brings them to another solar system in a distant galaxy, and their misadventures on “Planet U” as they attempt to get enough energy crystals and ore to repair their ship.
Although there weretechnicallyaliens in the form of the planet’s wildlife (a lot of which fed on the energy crystals the miners are looking for), the actual appeal of the sets was largely the sci-fi mining equipment and the used future aesthetic which stood out among other LEGO themes.Manic Minerstakes the original game’s setup and expands on it, allowing a total nostalgia trip forplayers who grew up on classic LEGO and old LEGO games.
1The Outer Worlds
Obsidians strange sci-fi RPG takes place in a future where humanity’s efforts to colonize another solar system didn’t quite go to plan. Although there is some alien fauna, the story itself is primarily a human one, structured as a sort of combination between homage to old science fiction movies anddark comedy about the dangers of unchecked capitalism.
The whole system’s been hijacked by a handful of corporations who have instituted themselves as an authoritarian government, allowing them to exploit everyone and everything without consequence. The player is the “unplanned variable” who shakes up the currently existing order. This is a fully human story about human problems, without much of an alien presence.
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