The sci-fi survival game from the creator of DayZ heads to space Skyrim in its latest DLC, accompanied by a free update that adds oil processing and chainsaws

A geothermal landscape in Icarus: Dangerous Horizons
(Image credit: RocketWerkz)

I haven't checked in on Icarus, the sci-fi survival game from DayZ creator Dean Hall, for quite a long time. And, well, a lot has changed in the years since it launched as a solid but somewhat unremarkable survival game. Over the course of hundreds of updates, RocketWerkz has added a fully explorable open world, masses of new missions, fishing, and paid DLC that expands the map and adds hardcore survival mode. Rocketwerkz even threw in a flamethrower to celebrate just how many updates it has done.

Contrary to the myth, Icarus' flight shows no signs of slowing down either. This week, the studio released another huge DLC accompanied by a substantial free update that, combined, seems like a game's worth of stuff.

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Icarus: Dangerous Horizons | Trailer - YouTube Icarus: Dangerous Horizons | Trailer - YouTube
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Elsewhere, the DLC adds 17 missions for players to embark on, radioactive zones where players can harvest uranium for processing, soldier outposts to battle through, interactable NPCs, laser guns, and a new vehicle called the Hoverframe, which is basically the speeder bike from Return of the Jedi. It's a beefy package, and so it should be, given it's priced at $30 (£25), albeit with a 15% launch discount.

The free Kepler update is less expansive than the DLC, but it still folds in some major new features. The primary addition is a new tech-tree tier that introduces oil processing. Players can now harvest crude oil from oil deposits using pumpjacks, refine it in oil processors, and create byproducts like plastics, synthetics, and epoxy. Refined oil can be used to fuel various new power tools, such as a nail gun, a jackhammer, and a chainsaw. I should imagine Rocketwerkz has much bigger plans for oil refining, too, given the industrial opportunities it unlocks.

Alongside oil processing, the Kepler update adds a flame turret and tesla coil for more creative base defence, concrete and stone variants for base fortifications, expanded building options including curved structures, saddles for mounts, 12 extra missions, two new armour sets, and new specialist tiers for tool, weapon and armour attachments.

Icarus has come a long way since launch. Rocketwerkz has demonstrated its commitment to supporting the game in the remarkable consistency of its updates, and there's plenty to get your teeth into at this point, with or without expansions. If you're considering picking it up, it's currently available for two-thirds off at $12 (£10). That discount ends on March 19.

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Contributor

Rick has been fascinated by PC gaming since he was seven years old, when he used to sneak into his dad's home office for covert sessions of Doom. He grew up on a diet of similarly unsuitable games, with favourites including Quake, Thief, Half-Life and Deus Ex. Between 2013 and 2022, Rick was games editor of Custom PC magazine and associated website bit-tech.net. But he's always kept one foot in freelance games journalism, writing for publications like Edge, Eurogamer, the Guardian and, naturally, PC Gamer. While he'll play anything that can be controlled with a keyboard and mouse, he has a particular passion for first-person shooters and immersive sims.

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