''Underrail'' is a 2015

role-playing video game A role-playing video game (commonly referred to as simply a role-playing game or RPG, as well as a computer role-playing game or CRPG) is a video game genre where the player controls the actions of a character (or several party members) immers ...

by Stygian Software for

Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for ...

. It was first released in

early access Early access, also known as alpha access, alpha founding, paid alpha, or game preview, is a funding model in the video game industry by which consumers can purchase and play a game in the various pre-release development cycles, such as pre-alph ...

in late 2012. An

expansion pack An expansion pack, expansion set, supplement, or simply expansion is an addition to an existing role-playing game, tabletop game, video game or collectible card game. These add-ons usually add new game areas, weapons, objects, characters, or a ...

, ''Underrail: Expedition'', was released in 2019 while a sequel, ''Underrail: Infusion'', is under development.

Gameplay

''Underrail'' is a

post-apocalyptic Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which the Earth's (or another planet's) civilization is collapsing or has collapsed. The apocalypse event may be climatic, such as runaway climate change; ast ...

role-playing Role-playing or roleplaying is the changing of one's behaviour to assume a role, either unconsciously to fill a social role, or consciously to act out an adopted role. While the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' offers a definition of role-playing as ...

game focused on combat and exploration. It features

turn-based In video and other games, the passage of time must be handled in a way that players find fair and easy to understand. This is usually done in one of the two ways: real-time and turn-based. Real-time Real-time games have game time progress cont ...

combat, character customization, and an item crafting system. The player controls a single character, whose development and interactions with the game world are the focus of the gameplay. The game's ruleset is mainly inspired by the

SPECIAL system ''Fallout'' is a series of post-apocalyptic role-playing video games—and later action role-playing games—created by Interplay Entertainment. The series is set during the 21st, 22nd and 23rd centuries, and its atompunk retrofuturistic se ...

from the ''

Fallout Nuclear fallout is the residual radioactive material propelled into the upper atmosphere following a nuclear blast, so called because it "falls out" of the sky after the explosion and the shock wave has passed. It commonly refers to the radioa ...

'' series. It is a classless system with multiple levels of customization. Base ability scores determine a character's core potential, skills represent a character's linear progression in specific skills and feats can grant new abilities, provide passive bonuses or alter a character's existing abilities. The turn-based combat system is similar to Fallout's with more options added on top of it, such as the use of special abilities, psionics and more combat utilities. The system is intended to provide many combat options and unique playstyles.

Plot

Setting

The game is set in the far future when the Earth's surface has been uninhabitable for a long time and the remaining humans live in the eponymous Underrail metro network, where conflicting factions struggle violently to survive in the harsh underground conditions. The scarcest resources in Underrail are food and living space. There is also a greater background plot concerning the nature of time, but the game is mostly about the inhabitants of Underrail, their politics, strife and the dangers of Underrail itself.

Story

The player takes on the role of a new member of one of the stations on the fringe of Underrail. The player character starts as a

blank slate ''Tabula rasa'' (; "blank slate") is the theory that individuals are born without built-in mental content, and therefore all knowledge comes from experience or perception. Epistemological proponents of ''tabula rasa'' disagree with the doctri ...

, allowing the player to develop him or her as preferred. The story is narrated primarily through dialogue with non-player characters inhabiting the world of Underrail. The player is positioned to side with different competing factions in their battle to annex stations.

Development

Game engine A game engine is a software framework primarily designed for the development of video games and generally includes relevant libraries and support programs. The "engine" terminology is similar to the term " software engine" used in the softwar ...

development for ''Underrail'' began in late 2008. The game's custom engine and development tools are built using C#, Microsoft's .NET 4.0 framework and XNA Game Studio 4.0. The game has been in full-time development since late 2009 and it was known as ''Timelapse Vertigo'' during its pre-alpha and earlier development stages. Prior to its

release on

, most of the development work including design, programming, writing and graphics excluding character models and title screen, was done by Dejan Radisic. Since its initial demo version release in 2012, updated versions of ''Underrail'' were released roughly every three or four months. The game was

crowdfunded Crowdfunding is the practice of funding a project or venture by raising money from a large number of people, typically via the internet. Crowdfunding is a form of crowdsourcing and alternative finance. In 2015, over was raised worldwide by crow ...

with early access sales providing additional funding. Character models and music of the game were created by

freelance ''Freelance'' (sometimes spelled ''free-lance'' or ''free lance''), ''freelancer'', or ''freelance worker'', are terms commonly used for a person who is self-employed and not necessarily committed to a particular employer long-term. Freelance ...

artists and while

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sound effects were used. The first

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for ''Underrail'' was released on March 11, 2013, showcasing alpha version gameplay footage.

Release

On August 22, 2012, a

demo Demo, usually short for demonstration, may refer to: Music and film * Demo (music), a song typically recorded for reference rather than release * ''Demo'' (Behind Crimson Eyes), a 2004 recording by the band Behind Crimson Eyes * ''Demo'' (Deafhe ...

of ''Underrail'' was released on IndieDB. On December 6, 2012, an

alpha version A software release life cycle is the sum of the stages of development and maturity for a piece of computer software ranging from its initial development to its eventual release, and including updated versions of the released version to help impro ...

became available on both

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and

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digital distribution platforms, and on September 24, 2013, alpha version became available as

on the

Steam Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporizat ...

store as well. The game was released out of early access on December 18, 2015. An expansion, ''Underrail: Expedition'', was released on July 22, 2019, and features a new plotline based in new locations, alongside other gameplay changes and additions. A sequel, ''Underrail: Infusion'', is under development.

References

External links

*{{Official website, http://underrail.com/ 2015 video games Indie video games Microsoft XNA games Post-apocalyptic video games Role-playing video games Science fiction video games Single-player video games Steam Greenlight games Video games with isometric graphics Video games developed in Serbia Video games featuring protagonists of selectable gender Windows games Windows-only games Early access video games Video games with expansion packs