Biome 1 of 4 · The unfinished zone

The Desert

Your drop capsule comes down here, in the one region ARCHON never finished terraforming. The desert is where you learn to fly, find the first human station and tear the first hole in the sky shield.

The place

Open dunes you can ride over, sandstone canyons, oases and a horizon of ridges. Sandstorms roll through as thick walls of dust, the wrecks of earlier fights lie in the sand, and a boosting glider leaves a wake behind it. The day runs on a 24-minute cycle, and at night you fly by headlamp.

The fight

Two relays hold the shield over the Node, a generator powers the turrets that guard it, and a factory keeps sending patrols out onto the ring road. Take the relays, the generator and the factory apart, then break the Node itself. When it falls, a window opens in the shield and the gate to the jungle unlocks.

On the side

Five optional contracts, including the Sand Ring race and the trail of the Silent Caravan, plus iron ore to mine. The station sells the Swift, and the Ray becomes available once the Node is down.

Free on iPhone and iPad

The whole desert chapter is free on iPhone and iPad. A one-time purchase unlocks the jungle, ice, lava and the Citadel. There are no ads.

Screenshots

In-engine captures, work in progress. In the game this region is scored by “Horizon Drone”, a track from the original soundtrack. Which glider to bring: see the five hulls.