11 Bit Studios, the developer behind This War of Mine, Frostpunk, and Children of Morta, unveiled The Alters last year. It called it a sci-fi adventure where one man is trying to survive, and hopefully get home, after a space mission goes wrong. To do so, he must rely on both himself and various copies of himself. 

Today, 11 Bit Studios released a new trailer of The Alters that gives us our first look at its gameplay, which highlights that it’s a third-person, base-building survival game. The team says the story is “driven by life-defining choices and exploring the diverse paths one could take” after Jan crash-lands on an inhospitable planet turning toward a massive sun. 

Check it out for yourself in The Alters gameplay trailer below: 

“In this desperate race against time, Jan must harness local Rapidium crystals to create his many versions: the ‘Alters’,” a press release reads. “Set within an ever-moving mobile base, both teamwork and building a wide range of expertise are indispensable for survival. By selecting diverging paths for other Jans during the alteration process, they acquire distinct skill sets. They become invaluable, not only for maintaining the base, but also for tasks like cooking, crafting tools for surface exploration, and gathering essential resources.” 

11 Bit Studios says the Alters are more than mere resources, though, as they are sentient beings with their own emotions, problems, goals, and sometimes, existential doubts about their purpose. 

“Despite their differences, their collective goal is to escape, echoing Jan’s determination to survive: I’ll just do it all by myselves,” the press release reads.

The Alters is due out on current-gen consoles and PC sometime in 2024. 

For more, watch The Alters’ reveal trailer here, and then read Game Informer’s reviews of 11 Bit Studios’ other games: This War of Mine, Frostpunk, and Children of Morta. 

Are you going to check out The Alters next year? Let us know in the comments below!