When Not Everything Comes Close
So far, most of the threats we’ve shown have been based on proximity.
Shamblers, by design, create pressure by forcing the player into close-range decisions — when to approach, when to disengage, when to take risks.
This week we’re introducing a different type of threat.
Not all enemies in NO CLEAN START rely on getting close.
Remnants of What They Were
Some of the infected are not ordinary creatures.
They are former soldiers and special forces units originally deployed to contain the outbreak.
Over time, the infection has altered them both physically and mentally.
Their faces are deformed.
Their behavior is unstable.
Most of their reasoning is gone.
But not entirely.
What remains are fragments — partial memory, conditioned reflexes, residual habits from their previous roles.
In some cases, this includes the ability to handle weapons.
Weapons as Part of the Body
One of the more visible effects of the infection is how it affects their bodies.
Arms, hands and forearms often appear fused with their standard-issue weapons.
This is not just a visual detail — it reflects the loss of separation between the individual and the tool they once used.
Despite their condition, they can still fire.
Not with precision, and not with coordination, but enough to be dangerous.
A Different Kind of Pressure
Unlike Shamblers, these enemies do not rely on speed.
They rarely run.
Most of the time, they move slowly and deliberately.
The danger comes from somewhere else.
They introduce distance as a factor.
Spaces that felt manageable before — corridors, open rooms, intersections — now need to be read differently.
Line of sight becomes critical.
Cover becomes relevant.
Movement is no longer just about positioning, but also about exposure.
This shifts the rhythm of encounters.
Instead of reacting to something that is approaching, the player has to deal with something that can already reach them.
Integration with Existing Systems
These enemies are not isolated additions.
They are designed to work within the same encounter structure already in place:
power zones
encounter scenes
spawn coordination
This means they don’t appear randomly, and they don’t replace other threats.
They coexist with them.
A close-range threat and a ranged one in the same space create very different decisions than either of them alone.
This is the direction we’re moving toward: not more enemies, but more meaningful combinations.
Where This Fits
Up to this point, we’ve been building:
space
movement
encounters
class identity
Ranged enemies add another layer to that structure.
They don’t change the foundation, but they change how the player interacts with it.
Looking Ahead
Work is ongoing to integrate these enemies more deeply into encounter logic and overall pacing.
We’re also continuing to refine how different player classes respond to this type of threat, especially in terms of positioning, survivability and resource management.
About the upcoming build
A freely playable build is getting very close.
It will allow players to experience these systems directly — not as isolated features, but as part of a complete loop.
We’ll share more details soon.