Once Human release date, gameplay, trailers and more

When is the release date of Once Human? Starry Studio’s open-world online multiplayer game introduces us to a strange and wonderful – yet terrifying – post-apocalyptic version of reality, filled with gruesome horrors, adorable companions, walking houses, building, crafting, shooting and more.

Since the almost unbelievable story of The Day Before, a zombie survival MMO game, it’s clear that what we’re all missing is a post-apocalyptic, open world, online multiplayer game. We want to work with others is a more realistic example of how we can survive the end of the world. Once Human is just that: you were once human, and now you’re a metahuman. Imbued with the powers of Stardust, you and other survivors must learn how to live in this new world. If that interests you like us, read on to learn more about Once Human’s story and gameplay leading up to its release date.

Once human release date

Once Human’s release date is July 9, 2024, as announced during this year’s Summer Games Fest. The game is available on Steam and Epic Games for PC, as well as on Android and iOS.

The survival game was first announced in 2022, with the first beta taking place in November 2022. Since then, multiple Once Human betas have taken place to hone the gameplay and mechanics, and more than 17 million players have pre-registered as of April 2024 for the game.

Once Human was developed by Starry Studio, a subsidiary of NetEase Games. Although Once Human is Starry Studio’s first game itself, NetEase developed and published Naraka: Bladepoint, NeverAfter and Dead by Daylight mobile. Since the latter are both mobile games, it makes sense that Once Human is also being developed for mobile, and it’s an encouraging sign that even such a big game will work on a handheld platform.

Once human gameplay

You wake up in a post-apocalyptic world with nothing but the clothes on your back. It’s up to you to fight your way back to some semblance of normalcy while surviving the harsh environment, enemy factions, and grisly horrors that surround you. The world itself and the living things in it, including yourself, have been infected by Stardust. To top it all off, there is an alien parasite that has left you and others with alien gifts and mutations.

Survival

Survival is the first major aspect of Once Human, where you learn that both hunger and thirst can quickly exhaust you, but satisfying your needs isn’t always the best option either. Stardust has polluted the earth and water, and if you resort to consuming the seemingly natural resources around you, it can seriously affect your health. If you’re going to drink the water, you better hope you have a way to restore your HP soon after.

The harsh environment is not just limited to water and food, as ever-changing seasons, varying biomes and weather conditions also pose a threat, especially in the early days. Collect resources and collaborate with other players (if you wish) to build a secure base of operations and your first tools of defense.

Building

There are no limitations when it comes to building your base in Once Human. The building mechanics are truly spectacular, allowing you to build anything from a modest box to an entire mansion for you and your comrades. You can even move whenever you want, something that is often a significant drawback in other survival crafting games. This crucial piece of knowledge means even the pickiest of us can start building somewhere quickly – no need to risk your life looking for the perfect location.

Fights and weapons

Survival requires weapons, especially when taking on the monstrous entities around you. There are seven weapon categories, and by collecting resources and blueprints you can create weapons to suit your needs and combat style. From your basic weapons you can then add attachments and perks as your arsenal becomes more powerful than you.

Standard battles will take place as you explore the world around you and face off against normal enemies, both monsters and enemy factions. However, there is also a story behind it, and as you try to unravel the secrets of Stardust, you will encounter the most gruesome enemies of them all: The Great Ones.

Finally, there’s the Stronghold Conquest, an area of ​​the map that leads to even more combat opportunities. This is where PvP comes in, and if you want to set up a base here, you’ll have to chase down other teams to take control of the Beacon Area.

Differences

Deviants are the result of the Stardust infection, but apply to both enemies and companions. Some Deviants you may encounter include skeletal spiders, the Arachsiams, or the Wanderer, a bus with legs. On the other hand, some Deviants, as evidenced by the Deviant trailer below, are a cuter creation that you can team up with, and are there to aid your survival.

Once Human trailers

The Summer Games Fest release date trailer at the top of the page provides some more context on how the end of the world came about. With man-made monoliths somehow resulting in the arrival of Stardust in an ill-fated attempt to make progress. Here we get a glimpse of some of the terrible horrors that await us in the new world. The short trailer also teases some of the weapons and companions we’ll encounter along the way.

Speaking of which, the Deviants Trailer shows off some of the companion creatures you can choose and create to accompany you on your journey. A teddy bear, a nutcracker and a toy llama are three of the types that seem to be on offer, and each can wield weapons, defend your base and attack on your behalf, or simply help you gather resources.

The gameplay trailer, meanwhile, shows off what Once Human has in store once you’ve survived your first few nights and have weapons and tools at your disposal. As part of one of the story missions, a team of Metas enter a hospital to try to control the spread of infections, in other words, to kill the Deviants within. Zombie-like humanoids attack from all angles as a more powerful, teleporting Deviant makes its way towards the squad, showing just how chaotic and tense battles will be.

That’s everything you need to know about Once Human before its release date arrives now. After the game’s successful Next Fest demo, there are no more betas and demos to try out. If you’re really desperate, make sure you’re pre-registered and then check out some of our other favorite building games and open world games to help you out.