Offworld Trading Company

About

In Offworld Trading Company, you run a Martian corporation where every decision revolves around outmaneuvering rivals with cash rather than cannons. Buy, build, and sell resources to corner markets while balancing production chains and stock ownership. Compete against up to seven opponents, human or AI, to dominate the economy by buying their shares. The game thrives on calculated risks: undercut competitors, exploit black-market networks, or manipulate supply lines to crush their profits. It’s real-time strategy without armies, focusing on economic pressure and strategic foresight. Set against the backdrop of a post-collapse Mars colony, the game stands out for its ruthless focus on financial warfare. Players juggle supply and demand in a system where timing and resource allocation matter more than brute force. With no tutorials or hand-holding, it rewards those who grasp market dynamics and adapt quickly. Community feedback highlights its depth and replayability, though the learning curve is steep. A 2017 Game of the Year nod from Gamasutra underscores its clever twist on classic RTS tropes.

Storyline

After the Great Collapse, hope died for most of us on Earth. The asteroids were supposed to provide us with limitless resources, but their promise was stolen by a corrupt monopoly. The powerful enforce a status quo dedicated to protecting their interests, leaving the rest of us fighting over scraps. Mars is the last chance for anyone who still believes they can make something of themselves. It's time to stake your claim. Time to head Offworld. The year is 2063. The last generation experienced a series of disastrous setbacks, making even the most optimistic of us doubt our futures. Earth suffered the Great Collapse: a world-wide market meltdown fueled by human greed and achieved by an artificial intelligence gone rogue. There was also the Red Disaster, leaving behind failed and dying government-sponsored colonies on the Martian surface. In this environment of fear, a powerful Syndicate took over and claimed exclusive rights to the resource-rich asteroid belt. Fueled by enormous deposits of precious metal and other materials, the Syndicate became the exclusive lender to world governments. No one was safe from their controlling hand, and after the reestablishment of debtors prison, the remaining free countries of the world decided something drastic needed to be done. The spark needed to ignite the human spirit lay offworld. The governments of the world determined to re-establish colonies on Mars, hoping to wrestle back control of their futures from the usurious Syndicate lenders. In an attempt to do things differently this time and avoid a second Red Disaster, a free market based on competition and meritocracy seemed our best bet. Long-gone were the days of subsidies and automated electronic transactions. Each colony's business would be won on the economic battlefield, and only the most successful ventures would be allowed to continue. The New Martian Colonies would be supplied and fought over by a strange variety of people, all with one hopeful idea in common: "Let's do it better this time around."