The Alters gets a 20-hour story expansion this July
Polish indie studio 11 Bit is expanding its breakout 2025 survival game The Alters with a full story DLC called Last Variable, arriving July 13 on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S. The expansion runs roughly 20 hours — comparable to the base game itself — and takes a sharply different narrative direction. If you bounced off the original's relentless survival loop, this one is designed to feel less punishing.
A different kind of Jan
Last Variable picks up 20 years after Jan Dolski leaves the unnamed planet at the end of the base game. It's built around one specific outcome: the Jan Scientist route, where that clone chooses to stay behind rather than escape. The planet, it turns out, has changed considerably in the intervening decades.
The expansion introduces underground base-building and a terraforming loop focused on creating habitable "oasis" zones. Four new specialist alters — Geologist, Biologist, Chemist, and Physicist — each bring a distinct philosophy of science to the table, and the DLC uses their competing worldviews to drive the story forward. per TheSixthAxis Last Variable reveal, the expansion is structured as a standalone narrative — you don't need a completed save from the base game to jump in.
Context: a studio on a winning streak
The Alters was a genuine commercial hit for 11 Bit. It accounted for 35.6% of the studio's total revenue in the first half of 2025, per 11 Bit financial H1 2025, with the US market alone driving over 78% of sales. The game launched day one on Game Pass, which helped cement its console presence quickly. That success gives the studio a real reason to invest in a substantial follow-up rather than a token content drop.
There's one piece of baggage worth noting. In June 2025, 11 Bit acknowledged undisclosed AI use in a small portion of the base game's localization — around 0.3% of text — and issued an apology alongside a patch. No similar concerns have been raised ahead of Last Variable.
Pricing hasn't been confirmed yet; 11 Bit has said details will come closer to launch. Last Variable releases July 13, 2026 on Steam, Epic Games Store, GOG, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
