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 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 like corridors, open rooms, intersections must be read differently
✦ Line of sight becomes critical
✦ Cover becomes relevant
✦ Movement is about positioning and 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 threat 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
✦ 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 gameplay loop.

We’ll share more details soon so stay tuned on the Steam page for all the latest updates!