Dead in Antares is a turn-based survival management game with RPG elements from developer Ishtar Games, set on an alien planet called Antares Prime. Earth is dying, and in a last desperate effort ten highly trained specialists are launched into space to find resources that might save humankind. After being swallowed by a wormhole that should not have been there, their ship crashes on an unknown world. They survived the impact — now survival is their only option.
Keeping this crew alive means managing every interconnected system pulling at them: food, water, exhaustion, mental health, all deeply linked, all demanding attention. The wrecked ship holds vital resources that can be salvaged and repurposed into a functioning camp. Players assign tasks, repair advanced equipment, optimize energy use and scavenge whatever bits and pieces the crash site offers. What begins as a simple spaceship wreck can grow into a full exoplanet outpost through building and upgrading work stations, preparing the crew for whatever Antares Prime throws at them next.
The planet itself is hand-drawn in 2D art, stretching across lush jungles teeming with life, scorching volcanic deserts and eerie crystal forests. Beneath those landscapes lie dangers and questions. Whether the crash was bad luck or something more deliberate is one of the threads running through a story filled with tough choices and multiple endings. Two alien factions inhabit Antares Prime and have been warring for countless generations. One are children of the land, adapted to its ecosystem, their graceful exoskeletons shaped by the wind. The others fell from the sky millennia ago in an ancient spaceship, clinging to their traditions and attempting to subjugate what they saw as lesser species through brute force and forgotten technologies — with moderate success.
Hostile forces lurk across the planet, and combat plays out in turn-based tactical encounters where positioning and decisions carry weight. Each of the ten playable characters brings a unique Power Surge, an ultimate skill that can shift the momentum of a fight. Outside of combat those same characters carry their own pasts, ambitions and secrets. Pairing crew members together unlocks over 135 unique relationship dialogues, ranging from professional respect to far deeper and more complex bonds. These relationships shape strategy and bring unexpected warmth to a world that wants the crew dead.
Dead in Antares is published by Nacon and scheduled for release in February 2026. Player choices shape friendships, rivalries and even betrayals, ultimately determining the fate of the crew across multiple endings. Whether you hold them together or watch them fracture is yours to decide.