Like a bespectacled boffin dangling a piece of cheese over the cage of a two-headed lab rat, Abiotic Factor has been teasing me with its 1.0 release for a while. Developer Deep Field Games initially broached the subject back in April as it detailed its upcoming Cold Fusion update, before confirming Cold Fusion is the 1.0 update earlier this month.
Now, Deep Field has pinned down a specific date upon which the Half-Life-inspired survival game will reach its final tram stop. Expect the G.A.T.E research facility to formally open its doors on July 22.
For those unaware, Abiotic Factor sees you and up to five other friends play as scientists trapped in the bowels of a Black Mesa-ish subterranean warren of high-tech physics labs, administrative centres, and encroaching dimensional rifts.
Instead of chopping down trees and hunting animals as you do in most survival games, you instead ferret food out of vending machines and use your megabrain to craft weapons and survival kits out of the facility’s furniture and equipment.
It’s a fantastic premise for a survive ’em up, which Deep Field has executed brilliantly thus far. Morgan Park ventured through its blast doors last year, coming away thoroughly enamoured with its blend of goofy scientist shenanigans and rich, smartly designed survival systems:
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“Everything you build at first is so delightfully DIY: One of the first weapons I crafted was a crossbow made from a meter stick, chair leg, rubber bands, and markers. The only thing that kept me alive during our harrowing first days in the facility was a cafeteria tray shield.” , delivering numerous massive updates such as the aquatic-themed Crush Depth
Outside of its imaginative take on survival, one of the most impressive elements of the project has been its highly dependable early access progressand the more recent Dark Energy, like clockwork. The 1.0 update, Cold Fusion, adds a whole new area to the game called the Residence Sector, as well as a brand new upgrade system, improved base assaults, buildable office cubicles, and much more.
I’ve only dabbled with Abiotic Factor thus far, resisting its allure so I can experience the game at its fullest and most refined, and I genuinely can’t wait to see what the final version looks like. The game’s currently 20% off as part of Steam’s summer sale, bringing the price down to $28 (£24). So if you’re already sold on the premise, you might want to pick it up now before the discount ends on July 10.
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