A deep insight into [REDACTED]The challenging endgame

On behalf of the Striking Distance Studios team, I would like to thank everyone who pre-ordered [REDACTED]. I hope you enjoy the 72 hours of Early Access on Xbox.

If you haven’t pre-ordered the game yet, you still have a chance to get in on the fun and check out the new gameplay trailer before our official launch on October 31st. Come on, I’ll wait.

[REDACTED] is our take on a fast-paced roguelike-style dungeon crawler. The action takes place in the Black Iron Prison, a space prison where things only really get going after a full-scale outbreak spawns a fearsome pack of bloodthirsty monsters. You are an expendable prison guard with a mission: find the last escape pod and get out of there.

This is a passion project for our team between AAA publications. We’re big fans of roguelikes and wanted to put our stamp on the genre with a vibrant, comic-inspired style and an energetic, futuristic punk rock vibe.

We’ve already talked about some of the innovative new gameplay features we’ve added, like Rivals and Fight Your Last Corpse. But of course we saved a few surprises for last.

Today we wanted to tell you about a sneaky ultra-hard mode called The Watcher Run.

The Watcher Run is a completely optional endgame playthrough for the most hardcore fans out there. This is the only way to unlock the final parts of the story [REDACTED]and is the ultimate test of your skill, strategy and wits.

You unlock dossier folders for every rival you encounter in the game as you fight your way through the Black Iron Prison. For each dossier you complete, you will receive a code that you can use to open a mysterious vault in the escape pod bay at the end of the prison.

Once you have secured all eight codes and reached the vault next to the escape pod, you will have the opportunity to unlock The Watcher Run.

And this is where things get interesting.

If you choose this challenge, you will take on the role of “Guardian”. The role of “Guardian” has its advantages – you wield a cattle prod and the plasma cannon, a new and powerful ranged weapon. Otherwise, it’s quite simple: you have to complete one final run through Black Iron, taking on every boss and rival from start to finish – without dying.

Don’t worry, the guard isn’t just a guy with a big shiny gun and a cattle prod. He has the unique ability to leave any room that does not have a boss or rival encounter before it is cleared. This speeds up the start-up and reduces your exposure to combat, but costs you the ability to unlock upgrades along the way. This is a real high-risk scenario because there is a catch.

If you die, you lose any upgrade you purchased. So basically everything you’ve earned up to this point. Like I said, The Watcher Run is not for the timid and the stakes are high. But so are the rewards.

If you fight your way through the prison, complete the entire run without dying, complete a final battle for life or death that unlocks one of two special endings for the game (no spoilers), you’ll gain access to the plasma cannon and a new suit , which offers 100% hazard protection And Deflects enemy projectiles back to the attacker.

I can’t wait to hear from all of your unique player stories exploring Black Iron Prison (whether you take The Watcher Run or not) in the coming days when we launch the game worldwide on October 31st. We hope you enjoyed playing the game as much as we did!