This is definitely the thought going through the mind of Jan Dolski, a miner who's made many bad choices which have led to the nightmare he is stuck in; crash-landed on a hell-world, everyone else is dead, and the lack of atmosphere means the sunlight emits enough radiation to burn through the toughest shelters humanity has ever constructed, forcing him to outrace a wave of nuclear hellfire on a mobile base that is physically impossible to staff alone.
This situation has become the worst possible outcome of all possible Jan Dolskis.
But Jan has found a miracle that has let him meet these other Jan Dolskis.
The planet Jan has crashed on contains a strange substance, Rapidium, which somehow interacts with alternate universes, but only by interacting with something from the current reality. The base's quantum computer crunches up a ridiculous solution: by using Rapidium, Jan can clone alternate-universe versions of himself, each of whom made different life choices and thus gained the skills he needs to accomplish his goals.
"What if I did things differently?" has now become "What can the me who did things differently do for me?"
But it's not all sunshine and rainbows. Each Alter of Jan is their own person. Their skills and insight are also accompanied by baggage and trauma, and as the mission to escape the planet worsens, these issues will devolve into arguments and infighting. Your bravest lieutenant is also your angriest. Your smartest scientist is also a pathological narcissist. Your wisest bio-engineer is fuming mad that you brought him into a world where his beloved wife doesn't love him back.
Can you guide Jan to survival? And if not, will the sun roast your team to nothingness, or will they do each other in first?
The Alters is an upcoming survival video game developed and published by 11 Bit Studios. It is scheduled to release in 2024 on Windows, Playstation 5, and the Xbox Series X.
- For Want Of A Nail: Each of the Alters is created by using Rapidium to make a clone of an alternate version of the user - who made a distinct choice in their timeline that defined their differences from the Prime Jan.
- Me's a Crowd: Jan clones alternate timeline versions of himself to create a full crew that can staff an entire mobile base.
- Monowheel Mayhem: Your mobile base is literally a gigantic wheel with a misshapen command center in the middle.
- Unobtainium: Rapidium may be the key to conquering the universe, as it lets a user see alternate timelines and can be used to create an entire army of clones. It's also found on a Death World where the sun quickly destroys anything that could constitute a functioning permanent mining operation.
- You Lose at Zero Trust: As the mission drags on, your alters will argue with each other. If you don't find a way to hold morale, eventually someone will snap and do something counterproductive - or even lethal.
