DESOLATE

Nearga · HypeTrain Digital

Released: Jan 17, 2019
Platforms: Windows
Last updated: 04 Sep 2026, 16:07 GMT

Updates & announcements

20 posts

15 Jul 2024Developer post
You Have 24h to Grab Free Game During HypeTrain Summer Sale
Hi everyone! Missing the Summer Sale already? So are we, that's why HypeTrain is throwing its own: from July 15 to July 29, most of the publisher's games will be available at a nice discount. Don't miss your chance to restock your Steam library with some indie gems! Visit HypeTra
10 Jun 2024Developer post
HypeTrain News: Steam Next Fest + New Title!
Heya! We're aware that no one likes to read long off-topic updates, so let's get straight to the point: two of our games will be participating in the upcoming Steam Next Fest, and we'd love it if you'd give their demos a chance. We can't promise a complete match to your tastes, b
08 Sep 2022Developer post
Get 75% off DESOLATE during HypeTrain Digital Publisher Sale
Autumn is a season of harvest, and games are no exception! Our publisher HypeTrain Digital decided to join the festivities and arrange a mega sale to be held from 8 to 12 September. Apart from the biggest discounts of up to 90%, HypeTrain Digital Publisher Sale features new game
01 Nov 2021Developer post
Desolate Update: Updated animations and reworked respawns
Hi Volunteers! We continue to work on Desolate, and today we’ve released another update, in which we’ve fixed a few in-game bugs and made some useful improvements. Reworked the system of enemies’ appearance in the open world. Now the respawn does not occur in the presence of the
Hi Volunteers! We continue to work on Desolate, and today we’ve released another update, in which we’ve fixed a few in-game bugs and made some useful improvements.

Reworked the system of enemies’ appearance in the open world. Now the respawn does not occur in the presence of the player;
Fixed the respawn of Alpha Sapsy in the hunt mission;
Updated Stone Throwing Animations;
Fixed context animations when hitting an enemy with a modified weapon;
Reworked the balance of melee weapons that have no modifications;
Fixed a bug with the interface in the character menu that prevented you from clicking the "Use" button.
Thank you for the feedback you give! It helps us make Desolate better. If you've witnessed a bug, please let us know in the comments under this news or on our Discord: https://discord.gg/qwWQwZep
Original post
19 Oct 2021Developer post
Desolate Update: bugfixes and improvements
Hello Volunteers! Welcome to another Desolate update. In this update, we've fixed a lot of in-game bugs that were bothering you. The list is attached! Fixed shooting NPCs - captains now support attacks with fire Fixed bipedal NPCs attacking four-legged players NPCs no longer turn
Hello Volunteers! Welcome to another Desolate update. In this update, we've fixed a lot of in-game bugs that were bothering you. The list is attached!

Fixed shooting NPCs - captains now support attacks with fire
Fixed bipedal NPCs attacking four-legged players
NPCs no longer turn after the player when they are stunned
NPCs of the same faction no longer fight against each other
Items that the player can pick up are now visibly highlighted
Fixed a bug with losing control after getting kicked in a fight with an NPC
Added a voiceover when hitting a block
NPCs no longer dragged their feet when standing close to a wall or fence
No more getting their kicks stuck in walls during fights in cramped quarters
Updated a lot of models and textures of the environment
Fixed bugs with Blindman
Improved sets of physical reactions to blows on NPC people
Thank you for the feedback you give! It helps us make Desolate better. If you've witnessed a bug, please let us know in the comments under this news or on our Discord: https://discord.gg/thd7SUcu
Original post
01 Oct 2021Developer post
Try demo of Outbreak Island, the detective survival simulator
Hello everyone! Our friends from TinyMagicians and HypeTrain Digital have just released a demo version of Outbreak Island - an open-world survival simulator with detective elements. We think the game deserves attention, so we decided to tell you about it! In the demo, you’ll play
06 Sep 2021Developer post
Updated combat AI and bugfixes
Hello Volunteers! We’d like to present the next Desolate update to you. Today’s menu features improved combat artificial intelligence, new NPC animations and fixed bugs. List of improvements Improved Combat AI: New NPC behavior in combat: more tactical attacks on the player Fixed
Hello Volunteers! We’d like to present the next Desolate update to you. Today’s menu features improved combat artificial intelligence, new NPC animations and fixed bugs.
List of improvements
Improved Combat AI:

New NPC behavior in combat: more tactical attacks on the player
Fixed unrealistic NPC dodging
Also, NPCs got some new melee animations
Bug fixes:

Fixed game crashes
Fixed bug when pressing tab would cause a player character to run endlessly
Improved melee combat:

Fixed a bug where a punch could go through an opponent
Improved NPCs' reactions to blows to make it clearer when a blow reaches the target

Feedback
Thank you for staying with us and giving us your feedback! Feel free to write your feedback about this update in the comments below this post, or on the Desolate Discord server: https://discord.gg/AubFteC8 Thanks for your help, volunteers!
Original post
03 Sep 2021Developer post
Participate in the testing of the update
Hello Volunteers! Today we invite you to test the next Desolate update. List of improvements As before, the purpose of public testing is to test new features and fixes that will hit the game in the future. To put it simply, play for fun, test the game and pay attention to the new
Hello Volunteers! Today we invite you to test the next Desolate update.
List of improvements
As before, the purpose of public testing is to test new features and fixes that will hit the game in the future. To put it simply, play for fun, test the game and pay attention to the new features. Improved Combat AI:

New NPC behavior in combat: more tactical attacks on the player
Fixed unrealistic NPC dodging
Also, NPCs got some new melee animations
Bug fixes:

Fixed game crashes
Fixed bug when pressing tab would cause a player character to run endlessly
Improved melee combat:

Fixed a bug where a punch could go through an opponent
Improved NPCs' reactions to blows to make it clearer when a blow reaches the target

How to participate in the beta test
Important: please note that the beta test may overwrite your autosaves - normal saves will not be affected. However, we advise you to make a backup copy of your saves and move them to another folder just in case.

You need to have a purchased copy of Desolate in your Steam library.
Go to your Steam library in your profile, find Desolate, right-click on it, and click "Properties.
Select the "Beta Tests" tab.
Select Beta test Development
Enter password: 4ewilCSA8kllq6d5u899
Close the "Properties" window and wait until the game is updated
Turn on the game after updating. Play the Prologue Desolate or start the walkthrough in the open world.
How to return from beta mode to classic build:

Go to your Steam library in your profile, find Desolate, right-click on it and click "Properties".
Select the "Beta Tests" tab.
Click on the Beta Tests tab and select no beta there
Wait for Steam to update the game to its normal state

Feedback
You can write your feedback in the comments below this update or on the Desolate Discord server: https://discord.gg/AubFteC8 Thanks for your help, volunteers!
Original post
07 Jul 2021Developer post
Customization and Bugfixes
Hi Volunteers! We continue to improve Desolate, and today we’ve released another update. We've upgraded the customization and some other aspects of the game - a total of more than 10 changes and improvements in the patch. Customization In this update, we updated the appearance of
Hi Volunteers! We continue to improve Desolate, and today we’ve released another update. We've upgraded the customization and some other aspects of the game - a total of more than 10 changes and improvements in the patch.
Customization
In this update, we updated the appearance of the game characters to make them look more realistic. Desolate now has new hairstyles, new facial models and hair tones! We hope this will help you create more unique and interesting volunteers.
Bugfixes
That's not all! We've fixed several in-game bugs at once. Check this out:

fixed the blocking hit animation - now the animation works correctly if you crouch down and stand up;
fixed a bug related to Vanogh's boss kill;
Fixed a bug with the Butcher that caused some players to freeze and crash;
fixed the bug with the infinite hit animation after using the energy cell;
updated icons in the customization window;
fixed Spanish subtitles in the start room;
fixed a rare bug where animal models were "flying around" in the sky;
several bugs that led to crashes have been fixed;
The Tab key can now be assigned in the settings to be used to bring up the inventory;
Both sprint modes now work correctly, which can be set in the settings (Tap shift / Press Shift);
Boxes are no longer signed as empty if they have items in them.
We will continue to work on Desolate and update the game. If you have witnessed an in-game bug, please let us know about it on Discord: https://discord.gg/ygSKN7QT
Original post
17 Jun 2021Developer post
Some improvements and bugfixes
Hello, Volunteers, We continue to improve Desolate and fix in-game bugs that sometimes prevent you from playing comfortably. In today's bugfix: Kick is added to the in-game settings and can now be reassigned to any key; Fixed bugs with Spartan and Viking perks; Fixed a bug where
Hello, Volunteers, We continue to improve Desolate and fix in-game bugs that sometimes prevent you from playing comfortably. In today's bugfix:

Kick is added to the in-game settings and can now be reassigned to any key;
Fixed bugs with Spartan and Viking perks;
Fixed a bug where the game would crash if the Madman hit the bonfire;
Fixed visual glitches on the character status screen;
We will continue to work on Desolate and update the game. If you have witnessed an in-game bug, please let us know about it on Discord: https://discord.gg/TsJXJcyZ
Original post
09 Jun 2021Developer post
Desolate: Bugfix #2
Hello, Volunteers, Thanks to your feedback, we’ve found and fixed several in-game bugs in Desolate: Fixed a bug where the player would lose control during melee fight in cooperative play; Fixed a bug where the user would end up in the safe zone instead of the location where they
Hello, Volunteers, Thanks to your feedback, we’ve found and fixed several in-game bugs in Desolate:

Fixed a bug where the player would lose control during melee fight in cooperative play;
Fixed a bug where the user would end up in the safe zone instead of the location where they had saved before after loading in the cooperative game;
Fixed several bugs that caused the game to crash or fail to launch;
We will continue to work on Desolate and update the game. If you have witnessed an in-game bug, please let us know about it on Discord: https://discord.gg/bgq5JxZA
Original post
06 Jun 2021Developer post
Crashes in the co-op are fixed
Volunteers, After the major Desolate update, we found a problem with connectivity in co-op games. We released a small patch that fixed this problem. However, if you continue to have trouble connecting in co-op games - let us know about this in the comments below this text or writ
05 Jun 2021Developer post
Major Update: combat, FPS boost, character appearance and improved lighting
Hello, Volunteers! We bring you the big Desolate update! New combat system, new animations, improved enemy reactions, redesigned character appearances, and a lighting upgrade that will give you up to +20 FPS performance boost depending on your PC. New Combat System You've given u
Hello, Volunteers! We bring you the big Desolate update! New combat system, new animations, improved enemy reactions, redesigned character appearances, and a lighting upgrade that will give you up to +20 FPS performance boost depending on your PC.
New Combat System
You've given us a lot of feedback on what could be improved in Desolate. In particular, you talked about how melee in the game could get better. You asked, and we delivered! Meet the new combat system in Desolate. New Kicks Now, in addition to the usual attacks in the game, kicking appeared. By pressing the F key, you can kick your opponent and push him away from you. This way you can get time to choose a new attack strategy or to run away. Counterattacks Previously, Desolate had the ability to block attacks. After your feedback, we decided to add the ability not only to block them, but also to parry! Clicking the left mouse button right after a successful block will now damage your opponent and briefly stun them. Combo Attacks, Accuracy and Animations As we promised, Desolate is getting new combo attacks! Thanks to them, melee became more dynamic and diverse, and you can deal more damage. There are two combo attacks:

Combo attack #1: Normal attack (left mouse button) + normal attack + kick (F key). The opponent will receive increased damage and will be thrown away at a further distance than from the normal kick.
Combo attack #2: Block (right mouse button) + kick + normal attack. The scope of the final attack will become larger, which you can understand by the special animation of the camera!
We've also added accuracy to your punches, so they don't go through enemy models. Plus, as you may have already noticed, there are new camera effects in close combat. This will add dynamic, cinematic effect to your battles. Reaction of Opponents in Battle In addition to the new mechanics, we have significantly improved the reactions of enemies to blows. Humanoid NPCs now have separate new animations in response to being hit. But that's not all! Blood effects on cutting weapons - are no longer an explosion of black liquid, but a directed spray of blood. It is important to understand if your hit connected during combat. Everytime your attack hits, you'll know by the way camera reacts and slight weapon jamming.
Updated Lighting and FPS Boost
We redesigned the lighting in the open world and in some rooms. The light has become natural, and the performance of Desolate improved as well - on different configurations the FPS increase is from +1-5 to +20. We will continue to improve lighting and FPS stability in Desolate throughout the year.
Appearance Options
Now you can play Desolate with a style. We have thoroughly improved the facial models available for selection, as well as redesigned the appearances of hairstyles and beards.
What's Next
Thank you for the feedback you give! It helps us make Desolate better. We will continue to improve the game further - now we plan to work on the game's balance, improve the open world and it's main questline and further the improvements of the NPC AI. We hope you enjoy this big update and give us even more feedback and support. If it wasn't for you, it wouldn't be here! Don't forget to subscribe to our Discord, where you can find company to play together, as well as chat with developers from Nearga: https://discord.gg/wYpBfgDD
Original post
27 May 2021Developer post
Beta-test of the new combat system
Hello Volunteers! Today we invite you to test the new Desolate combat system before the big free update launches. Beta test: combo attacks, new punches and AI The purpose of the beta test is to test the combat system before it arrives in the next big update. To put it simply, you
Hello Volunteers! Today we invite you to test the new Desolate combat system before the big free update launches.
Beta test: combo attacks, new punches and AI
The purpose of the beta test is to test the combat system before it arrives in the next big update. To put it simply, you should just have a good fight with the madmen, using any melee weapon available and more, because now you can kick them too! Testing takes place in two locations: in a special space in the open world (with boundaries for movement) and in the Desolate prologue, which you can fully complete. Important - backup your autosaves! Please note that the beta test may overwrite your autosaves - normal saves will not be affected. However, we advise you to make a backup copy of your saves and move them to another folder just in case.
A list of updates you can try and test:

Kicking. Now you can kick your opponent and thus either knock him away from you or break his block.
Combo attacks. Click twice on the normal attack button (Left mouse button) and then immediately click on the kick (F button) - the opponent will receive increased damage and will be thrown away at a greater distance. Or you can start the attack with a kick and then click the left mouse button - the normal attack becomes stronger. Combo attacks only work if you have a melee weapon in your hand!
Counterattacks. You can now repel attacks. To do this, press the left and right mouse buttons simultaneously.
New hit animations. Pay attention to the camera sway during fights, and how enemy models react to a blow, especially when falling down. We've added more physics to their movements and reactions to blows.
AI. We're working on the group intelligence of enemies. In this build, they don't just pounce on you in droves, but act tactically. While one is attacking you, the other is sidestepping or waiting for the right moment to do the most damage.
Anyone can participate in the beta testing of the new combat system from May 27 to 31.
How to participate in the beta test
Important - backup your autosaves! Please note that the beta test may overwrite your autosaves - normal saves will not be affected. However, we advise you to make a backup copy of your saves and move them to another folder just in case.

You need to have a purchased copy of Desolate in your Steam library.
Go to your Steam library in your profile, find Desolate, right-click on it, and click "Properties.
Select the "Beta Tests" tab.
In the empty field for beta access codes, enter the key: combatbetatest
Close the "Properties" window and wait for the game to update
Turn on the game after it has been updated. Play Prologue or a new game - there will be a special test location with different weapons and enemies.

How to return the game from beta mode to the classic build:

Go to your Steam library in your profile, find Desolate, right-click on it and click "Properties".
Select the "Beta Tests" tab.
Click on the Beta Tests tab and select no beta there
Wait for Steam to update the game to its normal state

Feedback
You can write your feedback in the comments below this news or on the Desolate Discord server: https://discord.gg/KHzf4cF8 Thanks for your help, volunteers!
Original post
06 Apr 2021Developer post
Desolate: Fight and Light
Hello, Volunteers! Nearga Studios here. Today we will talk (and show) about Desolate improvements in the upcoming free update. Combat system: combos, new punches, animations, accuracy For the last three months our team has been working on melee combat in Desolate, and we can fina
20 Nov 2020Developer post
Desolate 1.3.4: co-op saves
Hey, Volunteers! Patch 1.3.4 has been uploaded. — There’s now a «Save» button available when you play as a client. You’ll gain more control over your own progress in a co-op game and will not lose it. If you experience any problems because of this update, please let us know about
02 Nov 2020Developer post
Desolate: Bugfix
Hello, Volunteers! Update 1.3.3 has been loaded. — A bug that led to the progress loss has been fixed. If you experience any issues due to this update, please inform us about this on our Discord server:
01 Nov 2020Developer post
Desolate: Upcoming Hotfix
Hello Volunteers! We know that under specific scenarios, game clients and servers may lose their progress. We're working on a solution. An update with a bugfix will be released soon. In order not to lose progress, after leaving the server or ending a session do not restart the se
19 Oct 2020Developer post
DESOLATE: Roadmap and Updates
Hello Volunteers! This is not a voice in your head, this is us — developers from Nearga. We are happy to announce that loads of free improvements and expansions are coming to DESOLATE soon! We continue to work on many things regarding Granichny Island and its inhabitants — from n
Hello Volunteers! This is not a voice in your head, this is us — developers from Nearga. We are happy to announce that loads of free improvements and expansions are coming to DESOLATE soon! We continue to work on many things regarding Granichny Island and its inhabitants — from new versions of Volunteer’s appearance to the improved combat system, quests and environment. Today we want to share our plans for the next update with you, as well as uncover plans for the whole year ahead. Check your equipment and let’s get started!
Close combat improvement (early spring 2021)
Your main ally in DESOLATE are your melee weapons (apart from savvy and sanity, of course). That’s why we decided to develop this mechanic into something deeper. Battles with enemies will now get more interesting and spectacular than before.

3 distinct types of weapons will appear in the game, each with its own features: heavy, medium and light.
Battles will get more tactical: you’ll have to adapt to your opponents, pick a strategy, keep track of your stamina and search for a vantage point.
You will be able to risk and try to parry your enemy’s attacks, in case of success you will gain an advantage.
New animations will let you feel the battle dynamics and attack impacts better.

Characters’ visual improvement
A book is judged by its cover, right? We’ll make the appearances of the in-game characters more detailed and polished. Same thing applies to some of the environment objects.

New hairstyles, beards and facial options for the character creation
New starter suit for the main character
Environment 3D models and textures update

Elaboration of the storyline, quests and gameplay
Everything regarding story quests will be improved: locations, fast travel points, quest geography, and even voiceover.
And more...
But that’s not everything. In 2021 we’ll enhance artificial intelligence in Desolate. Enemies will get smarter, and clashes with them will become truly life-threatening. As for the visuals, Desolate will get even more good-looking thanks to the textures’ update. Keep an eye on the updates and stay tuned, Volunteers!
Original post
28 Jul 2020Developer post
Desolate Hotfix 1.3.2
Hello everybody! Nearga team here. We've just updated the game so that Windows 7 users can play the game without issues. We are sorry for the inconvenience that the issue had caused for some of the players. The update will be live by the time you read the news. Stay safe, folks!

Updates & announcements

List of improvements

Feedback

List of improvements

How to participate in the beta test

Feedback

Customization

Bugfixes

New Combat System

Updated Lighting and FPS Boost

Appearance Options

What's Next

Beta test: combo attacks, new punches and AI

A list of updates you can try and test:

How to participate in the beta test

How to return the game from beta mode to the classic build:

Feedback

Combat system: combos, new punches, animations, accuracy

Illumination and reflections

What's next

Hello, Volunteers!

Close combat improvement (early spring 2021)

Characters’ visual improvement

Elaboration of the storyline, quests and gameplay

And more...