Prologue: Go Wayback! is a survival adventure set in the heart of the unknown, where every decision you make determines your fate. You are dropped into a vast, wild landscape, armed with little more than an old, weathered map and the tools necessary to stay alive. Your mission is simple—reach the weather station—but how you get there, and whether you survive the journey, is entirely up to you.

The world is dynamic and unpredictable: the weather can change at a moment’s notice, forcing you to adapt to harsh storms, freezing temperatures, and the relentless forces of nature. You'll need to gather resources, find shelter, forage for food, and keep an eye on the horizon.

The map you hold is guiding you to your goal without telling you how to get there. The world is generated using machine learning technology, meaning every playthrough offers a completely different landscape.

No one will tell you where to go or how to survive. There are no hand-holding mechanics, no fixed paths, and no guarantees.

It’s a world where preparation is key, and improvisation is often the difference between life and death.

Will you find shelter and warmth? Will you have enough food to last? Will the weather turn against you at the worst possible time?

Your ability to read the environment, make the right decisions, and adapt to ever-changing challenges will determine whether you live to see the weather station—or whether the cold hand of death claims you along the way.

Prologue: Go Wayback! is the first step in a new journey for PLAYERUNKNOWN Productions which will culminate in the studio’s ultimate goal: project ‘Artemis’. Prologue combines Unreal Engine with custom machine-learning (ML) to generate maps and can generate millions of different maps with realistic terrain for players to explore. An evolution of this technology will be a highly specialized in-house game engine, 'Melba' which will be incorporated in the two games to follow Prologue, including a yet-to-be-announced title and project ‘Artemis’ — a massive sandbox world designed for emergent interactions, player creativity, and ultimate freedom.

When PLAYERUNKNOWN Productions became an independent studio in 2021, we embarked on a journey to achieve an ambitious vision for the future.

Our goal has been to develop technology that can break the boundaries of scale, which currently limit how large virtual worlds can be. To achieve this, we built a research team to develop our Melba technology and a team to develop our first practical application of our terrain generation technology: Prologue: Go Wayback!

Unfortunately I have reached the limits of how far I can continue to fund this journey in its current form. As a result, I have made the hard decision to restructure the studio. We will continue developing our Melba technology with a smaller team, while halting further development of Go Wayback.

Our immediate priority is to support our affected employees to the best of our abilities during this difficult transition.

We plan to make Go Wayback! available for free for all future players with an upcoming update. We are also investigating offering players who have purchased the game on Steam and Epic Games Store a way to receive a refund. We will have more details on this in the near future.

Lastly, I want to thank our community and everyone who has been involved in supporting our studio’s journey so far.

PLAYERUNKNOWN

Key Features:

• Explore a detailed world where emergent systems subtly influence gameplay
• Face unpredictable weather and ever-changing landscapes as you strive to escape the wilderness
• Advanced ML terrain generation ensures every session offers a slightly different experience with stunning views and diverse terrain
• Prepare: Use your environment and the tools you find to your advantage.
• Travel: Traverse the vast open world in search of food and shelters.
• Take Shelter: Shield yourself from extreme weather conditions affecting your stats. But don’t stay in too long. Use them instead to prepare for your next journey.
• Fix: Repair items and buildings you find on your way.
• Escape: Your ultimate goal is to reach the weather station and call for help.

In Prologue, you’re not just surviving. You’re exploring the wild, unknown, and trying to make it to your destination. How you get there is a story only you can tell.

Prologue: Go Wayback! is in development for PC (Steam / Epic Games Store).