Road to Vostok vs HIRAETH

• Perspective: First-Person
• Multiplayer: Single-Player Only
• Setting: Desolate Alien Planet (Ahra Prime)
• Platforms: PC (initial), with Mac/Linux planned
• Early Access Release: 2025-09-03
• Unique Feature: A highly ambitious solo-developed survival game with a dual-mode structure, combining a hardcore survival sandbox with a deep, episodic narrative campaign.

• Resources: Found by scavenging the environment and hunting alien wildlife. These are essential for the game's deep crafting system.
• Lore Notes: Scattered notes and logs that provide environmental storytelling, allowing players to piece together the history of the failed colony on Ahra Prime.

• Sci-Fi
• Survival
• First-Person
• Open World
• Crafting
• Story Rich
• Immersive Sim
• Indie
• RPG
• Action
• Adventure
• Simulation

• EVA Suit: The Extra-Vehicular Activity (EVA) suit is the player's primary piece of gear. It serves as armor and a life support system. It can be upgraded with different modules to enhance its durability, power, and oxygen capacity.

Progression is horizontal, focused on loot and shelter customization rather than traditional leveling. Players upgrade their survival odds by finding better weapon attachments, medical supplies, and armor plates. Multi-shelter support allows players to establish safe houses across different zones.

Progression is based on a deep crafting system and progressive skills and perks. The core of survival is managing the player's EVA suit, which requires maintaining oxygen, power, and durability. Players must also manage personal stats like health, stamina, fatigue, and hydration, and can suffer from afflictions like radiation sickness.

The game features map-to-map travel across three main layers: Area 05 (starting zone with traders), the Border Zone (guarded by hostile forces and physical obstacles), and Vostok (the final high-risk zone). Each area consists of multiple sub-maps like the Village, Shipyard, and Radar station.

The game features a large, explorable open world with a full day-night cycle and dynamic weather, including snow and sandstorms. The world includes both surface and underwater environments. The playable area is planned to be gradually expanded throughout the Early Access period.

• ETERNAL Mode
  A pure, endless survival sandbox. The only objective is to survive for as long as possible against the harsh environment and deadly creatures of Ahra Prime.
• REVELATIONS Mode
  A five-chapter, narrative-driven campaign that follows the player's journey to uncover the secrets of the abandoned colony while being guided by the mysterious Charon.

Early Access Standard Edition launches at $14.99 with a 25% launch discount for the first two weeks. The price will adjust to $19.99 thereafter until the 1.0 release. All future content builds (Nomads, Signal, Gunslinger, etc.) are included in this price.

The game will be a single, one-time purchase. This will grant access to the full game, including the 'ETERNAL' sandbox mode at the start of Early Access, and all five chapters of the 'REVELATIONS' story mode as they are released over time. There will be no price changes during Early Access.

The game will follow a phased release model. After the initial Early Access launch with the 'ETERNAL' sandbox mode, the five chapters of the 'REVELATIONS' story campaign will be released cyclically. The developer also plans to add vehicles and expand the world map.

• Q: What happens when I die in Vostok?
  A: Vostok is a permadeath zone. If you die there, you lose everything, including your stash/shelter progress—essentially a full game reset.
• Q: Is there a co-op mode?
  A: No. The game is designed from the ground up as a hardcore single-player survival experience.
• Q: Why did the developer switch to Godot?
  A: The switch was made following Unity's licensing controversies to ensure long-term stability and full creative control.
• Q: What is 'Area 05'?
  A: It is an evacuated zone in southeastern Finland where the player begins their journey, featuring shelters and traders.
• Q: Does the game support Linux?
  A: Windows is the primary launch OS, but native Linux support is planned to arrive a few months after the initial Early Access release.

• Q: What is ☵ HIRAETH?
  A: HIRAETH is a single-player sci-fi survival game being created by a solo developer. It features two modes: a hardcore, endless survival sandbox and a five-chapter story campaign.
• Q: When will it be released?
  A: The game is scheduled to launch into Early Access on PC on September 3, 2025. The full 1.0 release with all story chapters will be at a later date.
• Q: Is it a difficult game?
  A: It is designed to be challenging, with deep survival mechanics. However, it will feature four difficulty levels, including an easier 'Wayfarer' mode for players who want to focus on the story.
• Q: Is the developer really just one person?
  A: Yes, the game is primarily the work of a single solo developer, Paweł Tomkowiak, under the studio name Jade Horse. This is a key aspect of its development.

• Targeting a stable 60 FPS on mid-range hardware using Godot's Vulkan renderer. Native Linux support is planned for post-launch.
• Laptop Performance Note: Grounded photogrammetry assets can be VRAM intensive; ensure your laptop is plugged in to maintain stable clock speeds for high-resolution texture streaming.
• Laptop Consideration: G P U T G P: Minimum 80W recommended for consistent framerates in dense forestry.
• Laptop Consideration: Cooling Thermals: Aggressive cooling recommended as the engine's physics calculations can lead to CPU heat spikes.
• Laptop Consideration: C P U Power Limits: Ensure PL1 limits are not restricted to avoid stuttering during AI spawn cycles.
• Laptop Consideration: M U X Switch Optimus: Recommended to bypass integrated graphics for a 15% performance gain.
• Optimization Detail: Upscaling Tech: FSR 2.2 and DLSS support confirmed for the Early Access launch.
• Optimization Detail: Key Settings Impact: Volumetric Fog and SDFGI (Global Illumination) have the highest performance impact.
• Game Name: Road to Vostok

• OFFICIAL PC SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS from the game's Steam page. These specifications are for the Early Access version and may change. An SSD is recommended for higher tiers.
• Laptop Performance Note: Laptop performance will vary based on the specific model's cooling and TGP. The game's complex systems and high-fidelity world can be demanding, so a modern gaming laptop is advised.
• Laptop Consideration: G P U T G P: Maximum TGP for the laptop's GPU is essential to handle the advanced graphical features of Unreal Engine 5.
• Laptop Consideration: Cooling Thermals: The game's visually rich world and detailed simulation elements will require a laptop with a cutting-edge cooling solution to prevent thermal throttling.
• Laptop Consideration: C P U Power Limits: A powerful multi-core mobile CPU will be critical for handling the complex survival systems and AI.
• Laptop Consideration: M U X Switch Optimus: A MUX switch or NVIDIA Advanced Optimus is a critical feature for reducing latency and ensuring the best possible performance.
• Game Name: HIRAETH

• G P U T G P: Minimum 80W recommended for consistent framerates in dense forestry.
• Cooling Thermals: Aggressive cooling recommended as the engine's physics calculations can lead to CPU heat spikes.
• C P U Power Limits: Ensure PL1 limits are not restricted to avoid stuttering during AI spawn cycles.
• M U X Switch Optimus: Recommended to bypass integrated graphics for a 15% performance gain.

• G P U T G P: Maximum TGP for the laptop's GPU is essential to handle the advanced graphical features of Unreal Engine 5.
• Cooling Thermals: The game's visually rich world and detailed simulation elements will require a laptop with a cutting-edge cooling solution to prevent thermal throttling.
• C P U Power Limits: A powerful multi-core mobile CPU will be critical for handling the complex survival systems and AI.
• M U X Switch Optimus: A MUX switch or NVIDIA Advanced Optimus is a critical feature for reducing latency and ensuring the best possible performance.