Icarus has always been a good-looking but deadly environment, but now it will kill you faster.

Working with our friends at NVIDIA we have upgraded Icarus to support DLSS 3.0. The result was a 2.6X on average increase in performance enabling max setting, ray-traced gameplay on many GeForce RTX 40 Series systems.

If you are running Icarus in Direct X 12 mode and have a GeForce RTX 40 Series GPU, turn on Frame Generation in the Graphics Settings to take advantage of the improved frame rate.

NVIDIA DLSS 3 is the next revolution in neural graphics. Combining DLSS Super Resolution, all-new DLSS Frame Generation, and NVIDIA Reflex, running on the new hardware capabilities of GeForce RTX 40 Series GPUs, DLSS speeds up frame rates while still providing image quality similar to native resolution.

Benchmarking in NVIDIA’s labs found a that DLSS 3 boosted Icarus’ performance by 2.6X on average.

...

Read more

AUCKLAND, New Zealand — 24 August, 2023 — Icarus: New Frontiers, the relaunch of the popular survival game developed by RocketWerkz, is available now on Steam. New Frontiers is a major expansion set in Prometheus, a merciless new region where terraforming has failed and hostile alien lifeforms abound. Players are challenged to solve a sinister mystery while establishing a base in the open world and fighting simply to survive.

“This is our original vision for the game,” says gamerunner Dean Hall. “By combining the mission-based gameplay with a huge open world and the aliens that the community has been asking for, New Frontiers is a tense and thrilling survival experience.”

 

... Read more

 

        Top-selling survival game relaunches in a brutal open world swarming with alien lifeforms

AUCKLAND, New Zealand — 24 August, 2023 — Icarus: New Frontiers, the relaunch of the popular survival game developed by RocketWerkz, is available now on Steam. New Frontiers is a major expansion set in Prometheus, a merciless new region where terraforming has failed and hostile alien lifeforms abound. Players are challenged to solve a sinister mystery while establishing a base in the open world and fighting simply to survive.

“This is our original vision for the game,” says gamerunner Dean Hall. “By combining the mission-based gameplay with a huge open world and the aliens that the community has been asking for, New Frontiers is a tense and thrilling survival experience.”

... Read more

Our partnership with NVIDIA has been integral to Icarus’ development, and we’re excited to bring NVIDIA Reflex to the game. NVIDIA Reflex improves games’ responsiveness to inputs, reducing latency and delivering a better experience for all our players using NVIDIA.

When enabled in ICARUS, NVIDIA Reflex reduces system latency by up to 49%, giving you the edge over the hostile creatures resisting your exploitation of their planet.

Have a look at the comparison analysis from NVIDIA’s lab, showing the improvement in latency with NVIDIA Reflex enabled.

... Read more

As a thank you to our players and fans, RocketWerkz has made its new DLC Map ‘Styx’ available.

This new 64km² map doubles the size of Icarus’ playable area. With it come new missions, new creatures and fresh regions of Icarus to explore.

What to expect:

• An entire new 64 square km map
• 16 new missions
• New creatures including crocodiles, Komodo Dragons, Kea parrots with more to come
• The entire map unlocked and able to be explored including locations such as The Wall, Ring Lake and The Great River
• Missions that effect the map and unlock shortcuts to new areas

 

This new territory is centered around a long braided river which prospectors named Styx, after one of the rivers of the underworld... Read more

Watch the 20-minute documentary ahead of Icarus’ launch this weekend

RocketWerkz has released an epic twenty-minute long documentary-style short film “Icarus: Fatal Sky,” blending live action and game footage to welcome players to the universe of its sci-fi survival game Icarus.

Icarus launches on Steam this Friday 3 December at 2pm PST or 10pm UTC.

You can watch “Icarus: Fatal Sky” on YouTube here.

Developed by DayZ creator Dean Hall’s studio RocketWerkz, Icarus takes a session-based approach to survival games. Players take limited-time drops onto a terraform-damaged pla...

Read more

Watch the 20-minute documentary ahead of Icarus’ launch this weekend

RocketWerkz has released an epic twenty-minute long documentary-style short film “Icarus: Fatal Sky,” blending live action and game footage to welcome players to the universe of its sci-fi survival game Icarus.

Icarus launches on Steam this Friday 3 December at 2pm PST or 10pm UTC.

You can watch “Icarus: Fatal Sky” on YouTube here.

...

Read more

Dean ‘DayZ’ Hall’s new survival game launches on Steam on 4 December

 

RocketWerkz’s session-based sci-fi survival game Icarus is confirmed to launch on Steam on 4 December (UTC).

Originally scheduled to launch in August, Icarus instead opened a series of Beta Weekends for players who pre-ordered the game. The beta became Steam’s top-selling game during its first beta weekend and has had over 200,000 pre-orders and beta test players. The game has resided among Steam’s Top 10 Most Wishlisted games since August 2021.

“After three months of beta testing and feedback from one of the most engaged gamer communities I’ve ever seen, Icarus is ready for launch,” says gamerunner Dean Hall.

“We believe the key to making a great survival game is listening to community feedback and being able to rapidly iterate. We deliberately built our architecture so we ...

Read more

Everyone who has pre-ordered Icarus on Steam will gain access to our Beta Weekends, which happen every second weekend. In between these weekends you won’t be able to access the game. To play, look for the Icarus Beta app in your Steam Library (this is different to the Icarus app which will unlock for our full launch).

When are the Beta Weekends?

They’re every two weekends and unlock new content each time:

• 28-29 August – Forest
• 11-12 September – Storms
• 25-26 September – Arctic
• 9-10 October – Mission
• 23-24 October – Desert
• 6-7 November – Mission
• 20-21 November – Community

We’ve structured our Beta Weekends to add more content each time so you can give us clear feedback on each new feature. Once each Beta Weekend is over, we listen to community feedback and do our best to work on any critical fixes before the next Beta Weekend or before our full launch!

Some features wi...

Read more

 

RocketWerkz has announced that its highly anticipated session-based survival game, Icarus, will officially open beta gameplay on 28 August with the first of several “Beta Weekends” and that the full game will launch afterwards in November. The company will roll out brand new features and content every two weeks for players to test out (see the schedule above). Anyone that has already pre-ordered Icarus, or pre-orders the game during August, will be able to play in the beta.

Icarus is a uniquely session-based PvE survival game for up to eight co-op players. Set on an  Earth-like planet where terraforming failed, players explore, craft, build and survive against the elements as part of an interstellar goldrush. Initially equipped with nothing, players drop to the planet for missions lasting from hours to weeks, before returning to orbit to progress their character and tech for the next drop. ...

Read more

New gameplay trailer and pre-orders available now

AAA survival game Icarus is available to pre-order now on Steam. Players who pre-order can also access the Beta Weekends from 28 August 2021. 

Icarus is a uniquely session-based PvE survival game for up to eight co-op players. Set on an  Earth-like failed terraforming planet players explore, craft, build and survive against the elements while searching for exotic matter. Players return the exotics to orbit to craft more advanced tech and progress their character for the next drop. 

The Standard Edition is available to pre-order now for USD $29.95 with a 10% pre-order discount.

A Supporters Edition is available for USD $99.95 and includes Icarus’ next two DLC chapters New Frontier and Dangerous Horizons, an limited-edition First Cohort envirosuit, plus two additional Outpost maps. This edition also has a 10% pre-order discount.

Chapters...

Read more

RocketWerkz is opening up development of its upcoming survival game Icarus by publishing Episode 1 in the Making of Icarus series.

For the past 18 months a videographer has been embedded in the studio filming early game development, design decisions and team meetings to provide a behind-the-scenes look at what goes into making a AAA PC survival video game.

RocketWerkz CEO Dean Hall is keen to embrace open development with the game’s community via the Making of Icarus videos, Discord and Steam communities. “One of the strengths of the DayZ mod was the commu...

Read more

RocketWerkz has released an eight minute long documentary-style trailer “Icarus: No Rescue” combining live action and game footage to introduce players to the world of its unique sci-fi survival game Icarus.

Developed by DayZ creator Dean Hall’s studio RocketWerkz, Icarus takes a session-based approach to survival games. Players take limited-time drops onto a broken planet in search of rare exotic matter, which fuels advanced tech and player progression in the game’s gritty sci-fi universe.

Filmed in a vivid documentary style with live actors, Icarus: No Rescue is told from the perspective of the earliest prospector...

Read more

Privacy Policy

Your Privacy

What data do we collect about you, and why?

We collect and store personal data from people who have expressed interest in our games.

We store the following information: First and last name, email address and region (for the purpose of improving our game server distribution plans). These are stored securely on third party email servers. We only hold personal information such as address or phone number if you are close friends or business associates.

Who are you?

RocketWerkz Studios Limited. We’re a games studio who make video games for entertainment sold on various digital storefronts. We’re based at 12 Wharf St, Dunedin, New Zealand. NZBN: 9429041553206

Who is your data controller?

Jared Hart, contactable via the email address ...

Read more

Dean Hall reveals new survival game Icarus

Dean Hall, creator of influential survival game DayZ, has unveiled a teaser trailer for his next sci-fi survival game Icarus.

Icarus is a multiplayer co-operative survival game set on an Earth-like alien world with persistent metagame progression.

As a prospector in the near future, players drop from orbit into areas called prospects that they can explore in search of valuable meta-resources to mine. Players must balance surviving the harsh environment, crafting resources and shelter, locating resources and trusting other prospectors while not provoking the local wildlife.

However, the orbital station only passes overhead at certain times and players must return to their dropship or be left permanently behind. Back in orbit, the resources players gather can be used to manufacture advanced technology for the next drop.
RocketWerkz founder and CEO Dean Hall wants to build on the lessons from previous ...

Read more

Brian Hicks and Dean Hall team up again

Two of the godfathers of survival games have reunited to work on Icarus.

Dean Hall, the creator of the original DayZ mod, has been joined by Brian Hicks, the former Creative Director of DayZ standalone. Dean is now the CEO of RocketWerkz, based in Auckland, New Zealand and Brian will join as Executive Producer on Icarus.

The pair first met following the success of the original DayZ mod for Arma 2, when Brian organised the popular Twitch.tv Hunger Games tournaments (eventually Survivor GameZ). These have been credited with popularising the Battle Royale genre and influencing hit games like PUBG and Fortnite.

Dean and Brian worked together on the standalone version of DayZ at Bohemia Interactive and Brian took over as Creative Director when Dean stepped down in 2014 to form RocketWerkz back in his native New Zealand.

Until recently Brian was a Creative Director at inXile Entertainment, an Xbox Game Stu...

Read more