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The Altersgives a pretty comprehensive list of all the reasons you wouldn’t want to be stranded alone on a planet light-years from Earth. Starvation, radiation. and a hostile environment are just some of the more mundane risks that Jan has to face every day in his bid for survival; as it turns out, though, the planet’s unique properties also mean there are strange Anomalies to contend with.
Anomalies become more common the further you progress in the game, and there are different types that can hinder your progress. Some are even lethal. Here’s everything you need to know to deal with them.
Anomaly Basics
Even before you’ve researched the tools necessary for actually dealing with Anomalies,Jan’s suit will give a warning signalif one is nearby. The faster the alarm pings, the closer the Anomaly is; if you look carefully, you can seespatial distortionsthat indicate where they are.
Taking Damage From Anomalies
Walking into an Anomaly will cause it totemporarily disperse, but Jan will suffer a large burst of radiation - about a third of his overall meter. This means that if you’re not careful, or if you’ve already been irradiated by other hazards, hitting an Anomaly could knock you out.
If Jan is knocked unconscious by radiation poisoning,an Alter must rescue him. The Alter will gain some irradiation as well, and you’ll be forced to move on to the next day no matter what time it is. If it was late in the day, you may even lose some morning hours.
If no Alter is able to rescue Jan, due to being incapacitated by injuries or other factors,he dies and you’ll have to load a previous save file.
How To Destroy Anomalies
Once you encounter Anomalies for the first time, you’ll be able toresearch them after talking to the Scientist.Follow this event chain to unlock theLuminator, a piece of equipment that makes Anomalies more visible and, critically,lets you destroy them.
With the Luminator equipped, you canaim at Anomalies to make their core(s) visible.Fire its beam at a core until it’s destroyed; most cores move within the Anomaly, soyou’ll need to follow it with the beam.
Firing the Luminatorquickly drains your suit battery, so be sure to have extras ready!
ALX
When all of an Anomaly’s cores are destroyed by the Luminator, it vanishes permanently,dropping some ALX to pick up.ALX can be processed intoOrganics, Metals, or Mineralsin the Refinery, provided you’ve researched the appropriate technology to do so. It doesn’t do anything else, so it’s a good idea toassign an Alter to the Refinery and consistently process the ALX that you findto prevent it from piling up in storage.
On the other hand, ALX is useful precisely because you may convert it into whatever you need. If you need to free up storage space, an easy way is toturn ALX into Organics, since they’ll go into the fuel tank rather than back into storage.
All Anomaly Types
Each type of Anomaly behaves a bit differently, and you’ll need to adopt a different strategy to deal with them.
Static Anomaly
Static Anomalies are the most common, and as their name suggests, theyremain in one placeuntil they’re destroyed. Many can simply be maneuvered around if you don’t want to take the time or battery power to deal with them, but in many cases they’replaced as inconveniently as possible, forcing you to use the Luminator.
Where there’s one Static Anomaly, there are several, and often other types as well. Trydeploying a Fast Travel Pylon nearbyif your network reaches your current location for quick recharges, orresearching Fast Craftingto make new batteries in the field. In the latter case,just be sure not to burn through your supply of Organics too quickly.
Following Anomaly
Following Anomalies willslowly move toward youonce you move within their range. If you’re standing still but your suit’s alarm is getting faster, it’s a sure sign that one or more Following Anomalies are coming your way.
Following Anomalies also make a low-pitched thrumming sound as they approach.
When you encounter a Following Anomaly,back away from it while firing the Luminator at it.Their cores are larger than most, and they’ll head straight toward you, so they’re the easiest targets in the game, but if you run out of battery or let it get too close it’s very easy to get zapped.Researching Luminator Densitymakes it much easier to dispatch these Anomalies quickly, before they can reach you.
Pulsating Anomaly
Pulsating Anomalies are the reason you can’t get careless while exploring new areas. Their effect areaexpands and contracts, covering a wide area before shrinking to about the size of a regular Static Anomaly. Worse, Pulsating Anomalies don’t just hit you with a single blast of radiation - youcontinuously accumulate heavy radiation as long as you’re within the Anomaly.
If you find a Pulsating Anomaly,stand backuntil it contracts, then run in and destroy both of its cores as quickly as possible. If it starts to expand again,back off and try again. The second core is usually hard to spot, but it willlight up bright greenif you hit it with the Luminator Beam, so it can be worth wasting a little extra battery to find it.
ResearchingLuminator Rangemakes it a bit easier to hit the cores of a Pulsating Anomaly.
Time Anomaly
Time Anomalies first appear in Act 2, and while they aren’t dangerous on their own they can waste a lot of time, potentially forcing you to deal with night radiation or hastening the arrival of a Magnetic Storm or even Sunrise before you’re ready for it.
Time Anomaliescover a wide area, usually denoted byparticles floating in the air.While you’re inside one,the in-game clock moves much faster;it’s possible for hours to pass in seconds even if you’re able to destroy a Time Anomaly very efficiently.
Time speeds up more the closer you get to the Time Anomaly’s center. If you can’t destroy the Anomaly,attempt to stay near the edge.
Time Anomalies only have one core, but itmoves over a large area, usually above your head, toward the center of the Anomaly area. The only way to find it is torun into the Anomaly, losing time, to find and destroy the core as quickly as possible.Having a fully upgraded Luminatorand a full battery can be a tremendous help for this purpose.
Prism Anomaly
Like Time Anomalies, Prism Anomalies aretechnically harmless, but can potentially waste your time. When you’re inside of one,the game’s visuals refract, making it extremely difficult to tell where anything is or to aim with tools, including the Luminator. It’s not impossible, it’s just a lot harder, to the point where you probably can’t get any work done in the Anomaly area until it’s dealt with.
Other Anomalies can appear inside a Prism Anomaly.
Prism Anomalies havethree cores, each hidden somewhere within their large effect area. The visual distortion makes tracking them down extra hard; since it’s so easy to get lost in a Prism Anomaly, it can be a good idea topick a direction and walk until you’re out,then get your bearings and go through again. Keep passing through the Anomaly, watching for cores on each trip, until you’ve covered all the ground and cleared it out.
