The colony sim merges with the tower defense genre. In this "Ark of Charon," players will be building fortresses on the backs of saplings of the World Tree, aiming for a place to grow.

"Ark of Charon" is a new type of game that combines colony simulation and tower defense, in which players embark on a journey to guide a giant beast-like world tree sapling to a nursery. The player becomes the caretaker of the trees, controlling the familiars and turning the trees into moving fortresses as he or she proceeds on his or her journey," according to developer Sunsoft

. Players are likely to alternate between periods of inactivity, during which they can stop and mine resources, build defenses, and make equipment, and periods of movement, during which they can expect to be constantly under attack.

The 2D mining scene is reminiscent of many good games in this genre, and the idea of getting what you need quickly while stopped seems pretty good. Some screenshots show ballistas, bows, and catapults protecting trees, while others show modern weaponry reminiscent of phalanx air defense turrets powered by wind turbines.

"Ark of Charon" was co-developed by Angoo and Sunsoft and published by Sunsoft. Sunsoft, by the way, is a rather venerable Japanese company with a history dating back to the arcade era. They resumed publishing PC games in 2022.

You can find Ark of Charon on Steam.