RimWorld vs Oxygen Not Included:
Reorganizing Colonists or Redesigning Heat and Plumbing?

RimWorld

Randy Random, Cassandra Classic, and Phoebe Chillax are AI Storytellers. They bring unpredictable events, rising tension, or a calmer pace to colony life.

Assign jobs around colonists’ backgrounds. Someone skilled at negotiation may still refuse physical work.

Food and beds are not enough: hunger, fatigue, cramped rooms and nearby deaths affect moods, and a colonist at breaking point can derail everyday plans.

Injuries are tracked by body part, so damaged eyes affect shooting or surgery, while injured legs affect movement.

A Peg leg restores walking at a slower pace, while an expensive Bionic leg offers greater running speed at a higher financial cost.

Form a Caravan of people and animals to trade, attempt rescues, go on expeditions or relocate the whole colony.

Oxygen Not Included

The Oxygen Overlay shows airflow and carbon dioxide buildup, helping you make breathable spaces rather than just watch an oxygen stockpile.

Lay pipes through excavated space to deliver gases and liquids, and supply equipment with power as the underground colony expands.

When expanding production, account for equipment heat as well as the temperatures where Duplicants live.

Duplicants respond differently to stress, so food, accommodation, and leisure are also part of keeping the base running.

Build resource cycles by turning waste into fuel or unbreathable gas into usable air.

Procedurally generated asteroids give you changing environments in which to rethink the placement of essential facilities.

RimWorld

Custom playstyle lets you adjust threat strength and harvest yields separately, raising combat pressure while keeping yields steady.

Damage adaptation raises pressure while the colony avoids losses, separately from the effects of wealth and population.

Reviews describe plans disrupted by mental breaks during raids or dangerous colonist behavior, linking defensive preparation to everyday food and behavior management.

Oxygen Not Included

Automation Ribbon handles automation signals through Ribbon Writers and Ribbon Readers, while directly mixing ordinary automation wires with ribbon causes a signal overload.

Gas Shutoff and Liquid Shutoff consume power while open, making automated fluid control part of the power budget as well.

Reviews report slowdown in large colonies, so long-term base plans must account for the strain of running a bigger colony as well as resource balance.