Once Human always looked more fun when someone else played it. When I played it at launch in July 2024, the combat felt janky, the building felt janky, and there was something about it I just couldn’t get into. Since then I’ve watched a lot of people play Once Human and have a lot of fun with it, and 22,974 people were playing it on Steam when I checked today (SteamCharts).
Is Once Human good?
Once Human is good for a lot of people, and I don’t know what they’re experiencing that was so different from what I got out of it. It potentially could also be a skill issue on my part. My time with it was in the week it came out, so this might be out of date now, especially with everything that’s been added since.
Critics were split too. Once Human got “mixed or average” reviews on Metacritic: IGN gave it 8/10, Eurogamer gave it 3/5 and said mediocre action limits a cracking open world, and GamesRadar+ gave it 2.5/5 (Wikipedia). Steam players rate it higher: it held an 80% positive rating on Steam in August (games.gg).
Is Once Human PvP?
Once Human has both PvE and PvP servers, and on most servers you only have the monsters to deal with. PvP runs through Chaos State, which stays off until level 10 and can be switched on by holding P or by picking up Echo Stones (PCGamesN). Each server is split into Worlds you can move between without losing your character.
It’s definitely multiplayer, and that was one of my biggest issues. I was looking for places to set up, and there were just loads and loads of blokes everywhere in all the decent places. Servers also have a shelf life: they wipe after a set time, and your best gear goes to Eternaland, a private island that carries into the next scenario (Wikipedia).
Is Once Human cross platform?
Once Human is cross platform now. It came out on PC on 9 July 2024, on iOS and Android on 23 April 2025, and on PS5 and Xbox Series X|S on 25 August 2026 (Wikipedia). It’s free to play on all of them.
Cross-play lets PC, mobile, PS5 and Xbox players share the same session, and cross-progression syncs your character between platforms once you link them through a NetEase account. Progress doesn’t carry between regions, though, and linking the wrong account first can wipe a character, so it’s worth reading the cross-progression guide before you start.
How does Once Human compare to Rust and 7 Days to Die?
Once Human compares to Rust and 7 Days to Die the way you’d expect a free game like this to compare to a game that’s paid. I’ve got over 600 hours in 7 Days to Die and over 450 in Rust, and Once Human definitely felt like the free version. It felt like a freer version of those games.
That doesn’t mean it’s small. Once Human had over 230,000 people playing at once on Steam at launch, and players had to wait in queues to get in (Wikipedia). At Gamescom 2026, Starry Studio said it had passed 30 million users, before the console launch (games.gg).
How does Once Human make money?
I don’t know how Once Human is making its money. I assumed it was cosmetics, or something at scale, and that’s pretty much what Starry Studio says. Derek Qiu, from Starry Studio, promised “There will be no pay-to-win. I swear to God, there will be none” (Windows Central).
The microtransactions are cosmetic: character and weapon skins and decorations for your base. The same cosmetics also show up as rewards in the battle passes you progress through as you play.
Does the Once Human ship expansion make me want to play again?
The Once Human ship expansion makes me want to play again, fuck yes. I would love to play the idea of Waterworld. I’ve played many Minecraft mods that try to simulate Waterworld, but the biggest problem has always been the time it takes to get enough resources to do anything incredible.
The same issue was there in Shipwrecked, Stranded Deep, Raft, all of these types of games. There’s the gathering side that all crafters have, like The Forest and 7 Days, but then with an extra level of inconvenience: the fucking water.
Isles of Abyss arrived on 21 October as its own scenario, and your ship is your base: you build it from hulls, gunwales and decks, and save the design so you can summon it again if it sinks. You start at max level and progress through tech trees, with propulsion going from manual power to sails, fuel and finally electric drives. The endgame is a group fight against a sea boss called the Sunken Lord (games.gg).
If building isn’t your thing, other players’ ship designs are there as templates to start from (games.gg). Once Human averaged 18,345 players on Steam over the last 30 days, with a peak of 44,067 (SteamCharts).
FAQ
Is Once Human free?
Yes. Once Human is free to play on PC, iOS, Android, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S. It makes its money from cosmetics and battle passes.
Is Once Human PvP?
It has both PvE and PvP servers. PvP runs through Chaos State, which unlocks at level 10.
Is Once Human cross platform?
Yes. PC, mobile, PS5 and Xbox players can play together, and cross-progression carries your character between platforms through a NetEase account.
