Beyond the Fringe

Beyond the Fringe is a third-person shooter that follows Elijah Shaw, the son of a military colonel and a renowned scientist. You travel through Population Zones (PZs), fighting enemies, solving puzzles and searching for the truth about a threat beyond the fringe.

The galaxy

Humanity began on a planet in the Inner Rim and later explored the Outer Rim, where people formed relationships with indigenous peoples. As their home planet began to die, the Galactic Council sought worlds that could be terraformed and negotiated with native leaders to settle there. Under the treaties, humans could terraform only small areas to limit disruption to each planet’s environment. These settlements became Population Zones, or PZs, and more than twenty were eventually occupied, each with its own ecosystem and social structure.

For a time, humans and indigenous peoples lived together in blended communities and used portals to travel between worlds. Conflict over how humanity should be governed led MilCorp to break away and declare war on the Galactic Frontier Republic (GFR). MilCorp recruited indigenous fighters, and violence destabilized the PZs. The GFR eventually drove MilCorp back into the shadows, but tensions remain as people rebuild and continue moving citizens and resources from humanity’s dying home world.

Fight and scavenge

Combat is mainly from a third-person perspective, but you can also use stealth kills and melee attacks. You face MilCorp soldiers, sand worms and other enemy types with varying levels of combat, and have over ten weapon types at your disposal. You collect weapons from fallen enemies to sell to Nomad Traders for credits or keep in your inventory to upgrade at one of the five crafting tables in each PZ. Loot boxes are plentiful and can turn up in unexpected places.

Explore the zones

The game takes you through handcrafted worlds with distinct biomes and atmospheres. You brave the sandstorms of Sarhana1, see the vibrant colors of Avathem and fly through the canyons of the Grasslands. You can also explore caves in the PZs, fight bandits and mine rocks for valuable crystals, which you can sell or use to craft high-tech gadgets.

Once you unlock a flight suit, you can craft or buy flight components and stamina boosts to improve your flying. You can also pledge allegiance to any of four factions, complete their side missions and earn rewards.

Puzzles and progression

Puzzles test your hand-eye coordination, memory and patience as you unlock doors and hack computer systems. You gain experience by interacting with the world, from talking to NPCs to defeating enemies. Increasing your stats unlocks benefits such as store discounts and vision abilities.