Olaf pulled back the curtain, letting a sharp triangle of morning light into the office. The desert beyond the dusty glass was already ablaze with the rising sun. After studying the bleak terrain for a few moments, he returned to the table and toyed with the copper plate announcing his title: “Head of Building Management, Olaf Vikkers.” Olaf picked up his desk phone’s receiver and dialed. A sterile machine beep answered. Olaf sighed.
— Mr Weyers, I address you as the head of the New Committee Blue Wing. My employees are working just beyond East Point now, constructing the new station according to your orders. It has been relayed to me that you’re displeased with my estimated deadlines, so I wanted to set this straight: some of my people have tasks in the city, and half of them are tied up building the highway, also, by the way, at your request. My crews are working double shifts, Mr. Weyers. It is not physically possible for them to do more. There is simply too much work.
Olaf stared out the window again: white dunes in red sunlight.
— Just know, Mr. Weyers, that your station will get built. This I vouch for personally.
Hello!
Quite some time has passed since the successful wrap-up of our Kickstarter campaign. After a small break to rest and reflect, we took stock and came up with two beautiful numbers: we were supported by 2,938 backers, who in total donated over $120,000. Again, thank you everyone! It was awesome.
Now that the campaign is over, it’s time to focus on development, and to deliver our first (but not last!) rewards.
New monsters and dangers of the Dome in development
The desert under the Dome was a bit empty, so we decided to spice thing up with some new and unusual creatures! Now the sands of the Dome will be host to giant, acid-spitting beetles; doodlebugs the size of a car, which wait hidden in funnels in the ground for their prey; huge armadillos; and possums with a squad of aggressive joeys living on their backs.
News spread quickly at the Magellan Research Facility. By 1:00 pm, all White Wing employees had abandoned their lunches and gathered at the loading dock to await the cargo.
An expectant silence greeted the truck’s arrival. A huge, hulking form lay in the back, haphazardly covered in layers of tarpaulin.
Lab tech Rao, Dr. Osovitsky’s assistant, touched him gently on the sleeve.
“What’s that oozing?” he asked, nodding at the thin layer of slime covering the body of the truck.
“Нemolymph, I suppose.” Osovitsky pulled a notebook and pen from his pocket, and began to take notes.
The truck eased to a stop. A Black Wing sergeant exited the vehicle and took a few long strides towards the scientists.
“Unload,” he said to a group of Oranges standing nearby. They approached the cargo reluctantly. “Just take care not to get any of this stuff on you, it’s almost like acid. Made a mess of Medeiros’ and Ginsburg’s shoes.” “Astonishing!” mumbled Osovitsky, scribbling on his notepad. “Giant acid beetles!”
New NPC’s and characters
Every story is driven by its heroes, so we pay the closest attention to our characters. Before sketching out an NPC’s physical appearance, our writers detail their backstory and personality traits.
Among these faces you will find a cult leader who controls the will of hundreds, a married couple who bitterly hate each other, and a stern woman who holds the fate of half the Dome in her hands.
And our community manager, a more desperate case than all the others combined...
The Supported badge in Discord and secret channel access
As you may recall, we promised our backers special insignias on Encased’s Discord channel and forum. But the forum was looking rather desolate, almost post-apocalyptic, so we decided to kill it and focus our efforts exclusively on the server.
We now have a moderator on Discord to answer your questions, and we’re also going to post new art and notes on the development process, and discuss stuff with our backers (oh, and post memes of course).
We’ve also created a special closed channel with exclusive content access, for backers only.
It’s not hard to get to get to this secret channel. Just send a message to one of these users: Dima#4327 / Evilmanik#9553
They will request your email address. Keep in mind, it must be the same email as the one in the Kickstarter profile you used to back Encased. Once you’ve been approved, your Discord profile will gain a special status and access to our restricted channel.
Social activity rewards
Community wallpapers
Only a few under the Dome remember how it all began. Maelstrom affects the mind in strange ways, distorting memories and making events from only a few years ago recede to a terribly distant past. Only a handful of things remind you of the world that’s gone: old photographs, films and hand drawn postcards. Images of the morning fog in Crystal Sands, the Committee vaults full of relics, and the boarding terminal of the Spire Station.
Link to download: Version А, Version B.
As you probably know, we have a whole line-up of rewards which can be unlocked with subscriptions, likes and shares on social media. More details here.
The top tier rewards are still waiting to be unlocked: the Bloodbath perk and a canine companion who can be transformed into a melee killing machine! It’s not too late to unlock this content, you just need to:
- Subscribe to Encased Facebook page
- Follow Dark Crystal Games in Twitter
- Retweet an embedded tweet
- Join our Discord server
For a certain number of users who committed a particular action, we update total social points. Once there are enough of them, the special perk and canine companion will be added to the game.
We’d also like to remind you, you can create a custom character who will appear in a directory of CRONUS employees and has a chance to end up a real, in-game NPC. Another reason to fill out the form is a unique in-game item you will receive after final release.
Pre-order on our website
Although the Kickstarter campaign is over, we’re still receiving messages from people wanting to support our game. We’ve made it possible for these latecomers —and anyone else wanting to save a few combonds— to pre-order Encased.
This is a great way to support the developers, to get the game at a reduced price, and to obtain exclusive items***.
***available to all Kickstarter backers for free.
"Explorer's Way" Boots
Limited edition version of the standard ‘Explorers’ with white soles. On every box it claims these boots are made from synthetic Dome-tech material. Tough but light, they let you walk a little bit faster.
71 Sentinel Handgun
Deadly power in an elegant nickel-plated body. Though technically a pistol, the Sentinel uses rifle ammunition. The massive recoil compensator allows for more accurate fire.
There are four editions available for pre-order:
Digital Copy: includes a digital copy of the game with Early Access and a letter of thanks from the developers.
Digital Deluxe: includes a digital copy of the game and exclusive digital material — a map of the territory under the Dome and an artbook.
Digital Collectors: includes a digital copy of the game with Early Access, exclusive digital material, digital soundtrack, ten additional character portraits, and a story about events from before the beginning of the game.
Digital First Access: includes everything listed above, as well as access to Alpha and Beta versions of the game.