This is the Hell Galaxy production team, and we’re pleased to welcome you to the December edition of our dev diary. In recent entries, we’ve focused on worldbuilding and storytelling, showcasing some of the perilous and sinister locations in our galaxy. Today, we’d like to continue that theme by diving into one of the core concepts behind Neterun's worldbuilding: space corruption. Please keep in mind that the material we’re sharing is still a work in progress.
One of the central pillars of our aesthetic, and of our IP as a whole, is the post-apocalyptic theme. We’ve chosen to depict this through the corruption of the environment surrounding the raiders. This environmental corruption parallels the raiders’ own fate: former prisoners condemned to transformation and perpetual exile, stripped of everything they once were or possessed.
Many environments in the Galaxy of Neterun reflect this theme. Alien parasites infest mysterious structures, spreading in clusters that invade the landscape and corrupt the minds of those who traverse them. Yet, in some cases, raiders construct places of worship to resist the creeping corruption, even as the boundaries of their own sanity fray. These sanctuaries are mental abysses, where distorted perceptions obscure the difference between safety and peril.
In the concept phase, we decided to reinforce the raiders' sense of eternal exile not only with the humanoid-shaped structures showcased in previous dev diaries, but also with pervasive organic elements. Bulbous growths infect walls and altars, as alien substances crawl and take root. This design choice enhances the eerie atmosphere of Neterun while serving as a visual metaphor for the raiders’ own transformation into biomechanical hybrids. The environments mirror their internal corruption, becoming progressively darker, more hostile, and more hazardous as players advance through the galaxy.
This approach also ties into the player’s sense of progression. As you venture further into the Galaxy of Neterun, corrupted environments become more prevalent. Raider outposts, once safe havens, diminish into isolated refuges within the interstellar void, surrounded by ghosts and predatory creatures. Our aim is to evoke a sense of disorientation, with the transforming landscape reflecting the raiders’ gradual detachment from their humanity.
We hope you found this dev diary insightful and look forward to sharing more in the next one.
Farewell, raiders!
