Divergence: Year Zero

Divergence: Year Zero is a modern survival prequel to Divergence: Online, set in the world that leads to the Divergence universe. You play as a survivor cut off from the rest of America behind the Western Wall, a barrier built to contain a deadly virus. A communications blackout leaves survivors without cell phones, internet, television or radio, while earthquakes and rising seas have devastated California, Oregon and Washington.

The outbreak

The virus was designed by Silicon Valley biotech firms to kill Homo-Solitus, the first non-sapien humans to inhabit Earth in over 200,000 years. It was released before it could be perfected and limited to Solitus genetics, and now infects all humans it reaches, causing incurable psychosis, hyper-aggression and cannibalism. The outbreak coincides with the rupture of the San Andreas fault; California sinks into the Pacific, while the Cascadia Subduction Zone consumes large portions of Oregon and Washington. The U.S. government works with Canada and Mexico to contain the disease, but only a handful of cities avoid total collapse.

Survive beyond the wall

With civilization no longer protecting you, survival means contending with the elements, hunger and thirst, wolves, bears and other roaming animals. Bandits and groups of bandits may rob or kill you, while hordes of infected humans hunt for survivors to devour.

Shared world and progression

All players share one server, without sharding or instancing the playerbase. You advance through skills and can choose any number of professions, splitting your available skill points between them. Progression supports combat careers such as marksman as well as non-combat work such as scouting, ranger work and medicine. You can heal other survivors, make medicines, gather wood for fortifications or train wild horses as mounts.

Crafting and construction

Crafting lets you determine each item's stats by finding raw materials and resources in the world, so crafted items need not be identical. You can pursue professions such as weaponsmith or architect, and make crafted versions of weapons and items that also appear as loot. For example, a weaponsmith can use schematics to build a version of a found AK with different features.

Players can create multiple homesteads for themselves or their groups in virtually any location in the world. Wall strength depends on the materials used. With a subscription, you can build with Ferrocrete Voxels, the game's voxel-building and streaming system. You can also establish power grids to light your surroundings and protect your home while you are away.

Resources and vehicles

Automated harvesting rigs can extract crude oil, which you can store in barrels on your property and defend from others seeking fuel for vehicles. You can customize vehicles by bolting crafted or looted items onto them for armor or appearance, though added weight can make a vehicle top-heavy. You can also salvage vehicles, such as a tractor, and attach items such as barbed wire or wooden spikes. Crafted or looted items can be attached to vehicles, houses, camps and bases.

Wild creatures roam the world; some are aggressive and others fearful. You can hunt and harvest them, or flee. The game also lets you craft respawn and fast-travel facilities for yourself or your group, making it quicker to travel, meet up and return after being killed.