SEED First Impressions: Finally a Global-Scale Game for Sims Fans

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Lots of video games claim to create immersive worlds that respond to what players do. But after playing SEED, I finally felt like I was actually in a different world, not just navigating a game filled with tasks and markers.

SEED, created by Klang Games, is often compared to a mix of The Sims and RimWorld. Players create characters who live in a world full of other digitally created people. While that comparison is accurate, it also shares similarities with Tamagotchi – you guide your character’s life, but don’t have complete control over everything they do.

SEED is still being developed, but a recent update added many new features. TopMob visited Klang Games to test the newest version and see how much the game has improved so quickly.

The Seedlings Are The Future Of Avesta

The preview started with players establishing a new colony. We began with only the Kernal – our ship, stocked with essential resources to help the colony thrive on the world of Avesta.

Before starting, players each design a Seedling – their in-game character. Seedlings have a simple, visually balanced style reminiscent of the game Runescape. Players can also click a ‘Random’ button to automatically generate a Seedling if they prefer not to customize it themselves.

After you customize your Seedling’s appearance, you’ll choose a backstory. This determines your starting stats, which might not seem important at first. However, these stats will later affect what structures you can build and what abilities you can learn. New players can simply choose a backstory they like without worrying about optimizing for the future.

Once we created our characters (called Seedlings), the game placed them in the world, and surprisingly, they immediately started texting! That’s because Seedlings in this game are powered by AI chatbots, letting them actually communicate with you, the player. You can also give them commands through a menu, though they don’t always follow them perfectly.

Okay, so we finally got our characters into the game world after creating that Seedling, and honestly? They just stood there… texting! It was a little weird, but hey, that’s where the story started.

At first, when I asked my in-game character to gather wood, it would respond with oddly philosophical statements like “chopping wood is a concept,” but then just stand there. I quickly realized communicating with it was like playing an old text adventure game – you had to use very specific phrasing to get it to do anything. Otherwise, it would simply repeat my request back to me, pretending to understand.

We had to get to work building a society, not just talk about it! In the game SEED, each area has a ‘Society Level’ that players raise by completing quests together. To get our new society started, we focused on collecting essential resources like wood, stone, and water, which we then used to construct shelters, a fireplace, and workstations.

Building Cities Is A Step-By-Step Process In A Game That Never Sleeps


Image Via Klang Studios

It was time to collect firewood. I told my companion to chop down a tree, and they used a strange tool – a mix between a lightsaber and a blowtorch – to do it. I explored the area a bit, and when I returned, my companion was back to daydreaming, gazing at the clouds.

In the game SEED, players need to carefully plan out every single action their character, the Seedling, takes. It’s not as simple as just telling them to chop wood; you have to instruct them to pick up the wood, bring it to the Kernal, and then go back to chopping – and repeat that process over and over.

A 24-hour timeline at the bottom of the screen lets you schedule actions for your Seedling when you’re not directly controlling it. You can use this to manage its daily routine – setting sleep times, telling it when to find food and water, and instructing it to collect resources to benefit the colony.

I wasn’t expecting the game to be so reactive initially. I’m more familiar with games like Warcraft 3, where you give orders and they continue until you change them. Once I understood how SEED worked, it made sense – the game continues even when you’re not actively playing.

Simply cutting wood isn’t enough. Players also need to tell their workers to collect the wood, bring it to the Kernal, and then return to chopping – it’s a repetitive cycle.

I’m really fascinated by how different SEED is from games like Final Fantasy 14. In FFXIV, when you log out, your character just… disappears until you’re back. But in SEED, the world doesn’t stop! That’s why planning a schedule is so important – you really have to stay on top of things. It reminds me of a Tamagotchi, honestly. Your Seedling isn’t invincible; they can get hurt doing everyday tasks or even starve if you don’t keep them fed and watered. And if something bad happens, they can actually die, which means you have to start all over with a new one. It’s a lot more involved than just logging off and coming back later!

SEED now includes a mobile app that allows players to quickly check on and care for their Seedlings—their digital pets—without fully launching the game. This makes it easy to ensure their Seedlings are always happy and healthy.

Players can have more than one Seedling by buying additional ones with in-game money, letting them start fresh with each new one. Plus, characters who are in a relationship – even if those characters are Seedlings owned by different players – can have a child that inherits traits from both parents.

The game lets you easily swap out seedlings, and they’ll quickly tell you what they need. However, it’s important to know that SEED doesn’t offer a lot of guidance. Players are presented with a lot of information all at once. The developers plan to fix this in future updates, as most players won’t have the benefit of having someone who worked on the game explain things while they play.

What Kind Of Society Votes For A Dictatorship?


Image Via Klang Studios

After finishing the initial quests, our group advanced, and it was time to add a political element to the game. We needed to vote for a leader, who would then assign roles to everyone else. If no one gets a majority of the votes, the game will randomly choose a leader.

Honestly, the political system in SEED really grabbed my attention, especially knowing how some players have behaved in the past. You can actually build a full-on dictatorship where one person has complete control and rules however they want. What’s really wild is there’s no way to vote them out – they decide when (or if!) elections happen, so they’re basically in power for life. They can even pick who takes over after them, kind of like in Crusader Kings, which is a really cool (and slightly terrifying) touch.

Okay, so we didn’t get to see it in action yet, but the devs talked about how players will be able to run businesses – it sounds a lot like EVE Online, where you can even sell stuff to players in different areas! What’s really cool is that the rulers can control how land is used, which opens up a lot of possibilities for politics, like making deals and buying support. I’m really excited about that part!

Unlike games like EVE Online where players can use force and weaponry to control others, SEED focuses on building communities through talking and sharing resources. It’s not a game about combat or overpowering opponents; instead, success in SEED comes from effective communication and careful planning, not from having the strongest military.

Seedlings can operate businesses, similar to how players do in EVE Online, and even sell goods to players in different areas.

Seedlings are more than just their basic stats. They have a deep and hidden system of skills and attributes that isn’t immediately obvious, and can be a bit tricky to find in the menus. Each Seedling develops like a character in a Final Fantasy game, learning new abilities as you play. You can also find books throughout the game that unlock even more powers.

Honestly, I really wish I’d had more time to play around with this system during the preview period. It sounds like you really get invested in your Seedling, and I can totally see how frustrating it would be to lose a well-developed character to something like gout – a silly death would really sting after all that work!

After reaching level two in Society, players gained the ability to build their own houses using a block-based system. This reminded me of the impressive cities within SEED – cities I’d even explored before.

What Do Advanced Seedling Cities Look Like?


Image Via Klang Studios

I’d played a version of SEED before the Klang Games preview. I deliberately went in without any instructions, wanting to explore on my own, and it quickly became clear I had no idea where to begin!

The fully developed SEED cities are huge and bustling, filled with buildings and lots of characters living their lives. I immediately felt lost and overwhelmed by the crowds, and struggled to find the first person I needed to meet.

I hadn’t discovered yet that you can disable the walls, which would have made it much simpler to locate each Seedling. The developers also told me they’re planning to add a camera that automatically follows the Seedling in a future update.

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Once I got the hang of the game with the preview, I could explore a more complex city. But surprisingly, I preferred the small, simple camp I’d helped create to the bright, busy city. I think most players will feel the same way – we’re more drawn to places we’ve built ourselves and want to return to them rather than explore something new.

Honestly, I was totally lost when I first jumped in. There were so many people running around, and no one really told me what to do. I spent ages just trying to find my starting character, this little ‘Seedling,’ in all the chaos!

One benefit of living in a larger community is the chance to meet more diverse characters, called Seedlings. I haven’t discussed the social aspects of SEED much yet, as they really need a larger player base to become engaging. These Seedlings can build friendships, romantic relationships, and even develop rivalries with each other.

After learning how to use the AI chat feature, I found it really helped me connect with and guide my in-game characters, called Seedlings. It’s a perfect fit for this game because it makes them feel more realistic, even though I know it’s just a sophisticated search engine at its core.

SEED Is Building Up To Great Things


Image Via Klang Studios

SEED is incredibly ambitious. It aims to be a virtual life simulator that’s always online – a concept game developers have been striving for a long time, with a few coming close to making it a reality.

In SEED, you nurture unique characters—the Seedlings—who grow and develop based on your guidance, but ultimately make their own choices. These Seedlings live in a shared world with many others, forcing them to socialize and cooperate (or not!). The game features different forms of government, so you’ll have the chance to climb the ranks and maybe even become a leader.

In SEED, characters called Seedlings combine the personality and development of Sims characters with the freedom of a traditional MMO hero. You influence their journey, but they ultimately grow and change on their own.

The game still needs some improvements – the camera feels a bit rough, and it could use simpler ways to automate common actions. Most crucially, new players will really need a good tutorial to learn the ropes. However, it’s understandable these things aren’t perfect yet, as the game hasn’t officially launched into early access and is still under development.

Honestly, SEED is massive. It’s one of those games where you start clicking around and suddenly hours have flown by. There are so many little things connected to each other, it’s incredible. If you’re into building or social games, you’ll really get lost in it. They’re constantly adding stuff too, so the world just keeps getting bigger and more detailed. It feels like a whole universe waiting for you to explore and build in!

SEED is launching in early access in Summer 2026. You can wishlist it on Steam today.

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2026-05-18 16:17