Odd Realm is an interesting gem that has come a long way since it launched in Early Access last January. It's a colony survival, or simulator, or manager, or builder, or whatever genre was born out of Dwarf Fortress. Frankly, the game is also lovely. Whereas most games in this genre fixate on one race of weirdos as the base of one's civilization, Odd Realm has many races with their own unique game characteristics. There is a wide variety of humans, but you can also play a group of dead skeletons who are good at magic. Three more civilizations are planned. Odd Realm is also rendered in fairly attractive pixel art, with high-resolution art for character and creature portraits.

After a few hours of use, Odd Realm offers a twist on a genre that has proven to be quite derivative in other games. Ancients (skeletons) in particular provide a cool playing experience. They do not need to eat or drink, but they cannot reproduce. Therefore, they must summon their minions to do something for them while they concentrate on magical tasks or digging through the earth to find dungeons where their lost brethren are imprisoned - it's the only way to increase their population! Humans, on the other hand, are good at gathering resources, but must devote much of their population to agriculture and other activities. They grow faster, but require a completely different style of play.

The game has received fairly positive reviews from those who have followed it from the beginning; Odd Realm is available on itch.io or Steam for $9.99.