Once Human’s Isles of Abyss expansion is live now on PC, mobile, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S, and it costs nothing: it arrived with the October 21 (PT) update, which started at 4:00 PM PT (23:00 UTC) and was scheduled to take about three hours, so servers opened in the early hours of October 22 UTC. It is a separate PvE survival scenario set on an ocean archipelago, with five new regions, a ship you build from a raft into a mobile Sea Fortress, diving, naval combat and an endgame boss called the Sunken Lord.
This guide covers how to get into an Isles of Abyss server (including with friends), what each region does, how the Sea Fortress and its cannons work, and the dates that matter over the next month. Everything here comes from Starry Studio’s official patch notes and dev blog on Steam and the PlayStation Blog post by lead game designer Vincent Tao. Facts were checked on October 22, 2026 at 18:30 UTC.
Table of Contents
Quick answer
- Price: free. Once Human is free-to-play on every platform, and the expansion is a free update.
- Platforms: PC (Steam), iOS, Android, PS5/PS5 Pro and Xbox Series X|S, with cross-play.
- Type: a new PvE scenario with its own servers; there’s also a separate PvP map, Isles of Abyss: RaidZone.
- How to start: make a new character and pick Isles of Abyss under Other Scenarios, or sign up through Menu – Scenario – Go to Sign Up once your current scenario is in its Rest Period.
- Length: about 21 days across two phases; a permanent server is expected on November 18 (PT).
- Login gift: claim the celebration supply (new Legendary weapon and armor blueprints, 10,000 Starchrom, a 30-day Meta Pass trial) from your mailbox until November 8, 2:00 PM PT.
Fragrant Cape, the starter island where every Isles of Abyss run begins. Image: Starry Studio / NetEase Games
Isles of Abyss release time and download size
The patch notes list maintenance for October 21, 2026 at 4:00 PM PT, “expected to last about 3 hours”, with the caveat that the actual opening time may differ. That puts the launch at roughly 02:00 UTC on October 22, which is why the PlayStation Blog gives the date as “October 22 (October 21)”. The update is large because it carries both the new scenario and the new RaidZone ocean map:
| Platform | Launcher download | In-game download |
|---|---|---|
| PC | about 26.28 GB | about 751 MB |
| PS5 | about 12.29 GB | about 76 MB |
| Xbox Series X|S | about 20.39 GB | about 82 MB |
| Android | about 4.8 GB | |
| iOS | about 5.7 GB | |
Starry Studio warns that on Steam, a delayed platform push can cause a duplicate download. On PC, the store page still asks for 100 GB of free space and strongly recommends an SSD.
How to start Isles of Abyss
Isles of Abyss is a scenario, like Once Human’s earlier seasonal worlds. You join it on dedicated servers rather than sailing out from your current one. There are three routes, according to the official server announcement:
- Keep your current scenario, start a new character. Create a character, skip the New Player Experience, then open Scenario Selection and choose Other Scenarios – Isles of Abyss.
- Move an existing character. If one of your characters’ scenarios is in its Rest Period, use Menu – Scenario – Go to Sign Up. That character’s level and supplies are settled and reset. Account-wide data (cosmetics, Blueprint levels and Mod levels) carries over.
- Play with friends. Agree on a server name and pick it under Scenario Selection – More Servers, or form a Scenario Squad on the team-up platform (Menu – Scenario – Sign Up) so the squad leader’s sign-up puts everyone on the same server. If a server is full, a friend already inside can give you their Special Invitation Code from Player Info.
The first wave was four servers for North America and Europe (Isles_Abyss-X0001 to X0004) and two each for South America, Japan, Korea, Southeast Asia and HK/MO/TW, with more opening as servers fill. Each server has 12 worlds. Xbox players can also invite friends straight from the console friends list. Starry Studio says that feature is still in development for PS5.
Your blueprints and Mods come with you, but the gear rarity you can craft and the number of active Mod attributes are capped by your Tech level in the scenario. Characters start at max level, and the Cradle system is switched off.
Once Human Isles of Abyss on PS5 and Xbox
Once Human came to PS5, PS5 Pro and Xbox Series X|S on August 25, 2026, so this is the first big expansion console players get on day one, at the same time as PC and mobile. The console FAQ says you don’t need PS Plus or Xbox Game Pass Core to play. Subscribers only get extra membership cosmetics. On PS5, the PlayStation Blog says the expansion supports DualSense haptics (waves, storms and hull impacts in naval combat) and adaptive trigger resistance on ship cannons and grappling lines. If you already play on PC or mobile, link your console account to the same NetEase account to keep your progress across devices. Console players also get their own RaidZone server, tagged [Console].
The five Isles of Abyss regions and Haywire Zones
You wake up on a starter island. After that, according to the PS Blog post, you can explore the other four oceanic regions in any order. Each one has a “Haywire Zone” weather anomaly that changes the survival rules, and each anomaly is also a source of a crafting resource you need:
| Region | Terrain | Haywire Zone effect | What you farm there | Counter-item |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fragrant Cape (start) | Flower fields, coconut groves, shipwrecks | None listed | Basic supplies, shipwreck loot | – |
| Reefshadow Bay | Cold tundra, reef cliffs, floating ice | Mist of Deceit: cold, and your view shrinks as your HP drops | Mist of Deceit Wicks (cannonballs, electricity) | Mist Core Clarity Soup, Blaze Core Lantern |
| Misty Marsh | Giant trees, toxic swamp, fungi | Black Tide: rising Stardust contamination, Sanity drain | Black Tide Clots (diving items, water facilities), Stardust Ore | Black Tide Protective Mask |
| Spring Valley | Mangroves, waterfalls, giant crocodiles | Time Rain: faster Energy/Hydration loss, gear loses durability, crops grow faster | Bottled Raindrops (farming, breeding) | Time-Reverse Cookies or Raincoat |
| Falling Ember | Volcano, lava, hot springs | Skyfire: meteors damage players and buildings, heat rises | Skyfire Gold (alloy hulls, auto-gathering) | Cooling Patch, All-Weather Stew |
The trade-off runs through every region: the more of the anomaly’s penalty you can tolerate, the more you get out of it. In the Mist of Deceit, a wider field of view earns more exploration rewards, and in the Black Tide, higher Sanity yields more clots. So it pays to cook the matching dish before you go in rather than after.
Falling Ember, the volcanic region where Skyfire meteors drop Skyfire Gold. Image: Starry Studio / NetEase Games
Sea Fortress: how ship building works
Your ship is both transport and a floating territory. You build it in Build Mode from hull, gunwale, bow, deck, handrail and bulwark pieces in wood, iron, steel or alloy, and you can save a design to place again later. Once you own a ship, the summon-vehicle shortcut or the Relocation option places it. Propulsion moves through tiers: manual, sail, fuel and electric. Boosters and side thrusters improve turning, and Auto Cruise sails a marked route for you. On-board respawn and cross-world return to your ship are in from launch.
Ship cannons are where most of the build choices are. Here’s how the official notes describe the launch set:
| Cannon | Best against | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Harpoon Cannon | Marine creatures | Fast projectile and reload; penetrates the water surface |
| Long Cannon | Decks and buildings | Bonus damage to structures |
| Rapid-fire Cannon | Calamity Tower weakspots | Lower damage per shot, faster fire and projectile speed |
| Shotgun Turret | Enemy ships, patrol boats | Wide spread |
| Frost / Corrosion Cannon | Support | Slows targets / raises the damage they take |
| Rocket Launcher, Oil Drum Launcher, Repeating Shotgun Turret, Freezing Cannon | Phase II threats | Unlock in Phase II; the Repeating Shotgun Turret hits Voyagers very hard |
You can swap cannons from the Wheel mid-fight, ram at close range, or lay traps with a Naval Mine Launcher.
Hull shapes built from the new ship components; designs can be saved and placed again. Image: Starry Studio / NetEase Games
Diving, fishing and the first things to craft
Below the surface there’s a separate exploration layer: shipwrecks, sunken buildings, coral ore and underwater laboratories (look for glowing algae on the surface above them). Deeper water means more contamination and nastier creatures, so the dev blog recommends starting with shallow wrecks. Key early gear:
- Basic Diving Suit plus Fish Oil Paste for basic contamination and temperature resistance; the later Shark Diving Suit adds protection and swim speed.
- Oxygen Tank (auto-refills oxygen when it runs out), Inflatable Float for an emergency ascent, and a Spear Gun for underwater fights.
- Trawl Net on your ship catches fish while you sail; Tidal Cages breed fish, and a Drilling Well pumps abyssal sea oil.
Watch for Giant Squid that grab your hull and stop you dead (shoot the tentacles and it flees), sharks that track you, and jellyfish that shock swimmers. Bubble Fish refill oxygen and Anglerfish lures shield you from water contamination.
Phases, the Calamity Tower and the Sunken Lord
| Stage | Length | What happens |
|---|---|---|
| Phase I | About 5-10 days (shorter as server purification rises) | Exploration, Tech, Voyager ships, story Calamity Tower challenges, Calamity Nest (Calamity Owl boss) |
| Phase II | 11 days | Calamity Tower: Abyss, Sea Calamity Zone, Drifting Greenhouses, larger Voyager fleets, new cannons |
| Endgame | At 100% server purification | The Sunken Lord raid: entrance platform, door battle, then the Core |
| Rest stage | After Phase II | Then merge to the permanent server (expected Nov 18 PT) |
The Sunken Lord is the scenario’s main reward source. It can drop the new Deviation Duet, which changes the weather inside your territory, and the two new armor Mods: Precision Load (lower body, bullet recovery on long-range weakspot hits) and Turret Enhancement (gloves, more facility damage). Heart of the Ocean, the scenario’s exclusive resource from challenges, crates and Voyager fights, opens challenge rewards at the Calamity Tower and Sunken Lord. Eight Morphed Deviations are tied to specific activities. For example, Whalepup – Don’t Get Wet and Employee No. H37 – Submarine Attitude come from Voyagers, and Snow Globe – Sunken Treasure comes from the Calamity Nest.
Isles of Abyss: RaidZone (PvP)
If you want PvP instead, switch to RaidZone mode in the top-left of the sign-in screen. The ocean RaidZone has no separate worlds: everyone shares one closed map with scarcer supplies. Ships have a total HP pool and sink at zero, and anything stored on a sunken ship is lost. Save your blueprint at the Anchor, which also raises the ship’s max HP. Otherwise you can only re-summon a basic hull. Servers reset every two weeks.
Key dates
| Date (official time zone) | Event |
|---|---|
| Oct 21, 4:00 PM PT | Isles of Abyss update and servers go live |
| Oct 22 – Nov 11 (server time) | Halloween Wonder Night, Spooky Night Check-In, candy visitors and pumpkin seeds |
| Nov 4, 3:00 PM PT | Next scheduled update |
| Nov 8, 2:00 PM PT | Last chance to claim the celebration supply from the mailbox |
| Nov 18 (PT, expected) | Isles of Abyss permanent server opens |
| To Dec 30 (PT) | Limited-time Morphed Deviation in Nalcott (fishing at sea or wilderness boss) |
One correction: the October 16 dev blog first gave November 12 for the permanent server. The October 21 server notice and the patch notes both say November 18, so go by the later date.
Known issues
The 3.1.1 hotfix on October 22 fixed several early bugs, including two Deviation gift-box picks that granted the wrong Deviation (the correct ones will be mailed within two business days). Still listed as being fixed: some trees on the beginner island can’t be felled, characters walking on a moving ship can lag or rubber-band, and the Riftwalker can’t be killed normally.
Interest is high: on Steam, Once Human was #10 on the top sellers chart at 18:25 UTC on October 22, with a 24-hour peak of 34,145 concurrent players. If you want another big survival build this month, see our Enshrouded 1.0 launch guide. For more free games, see the Epic free games for Oct 22-29 and our free weekend picks. Also out this week: Final Fantasy Resonance’s release times and editions.
FAQ
When does Isles of Abyss come out?
It’s out now. It launched with the October 21 (PT) update, which began at 4:00 PM PT (23:00 UTC) and took about three hours, so servers opened around 02:00 UTC on October 22.
Is Isles of Abyss free?
Yes. It’s a free expansion for a free-to-play game. Paid items are cosmetics and the Battle Pass, according to the developer’s console FAQ.
Is Isles of Abyss PvE?
The main scenario is PvE. The separate Isles of Abyss: RaidZone map is PvP.
Do I lose my progress if I join Isles of Abyss?
If you move an existing character, its level and supplies reset for the new scenario, but cosmetics, Blueprint levels and Mod levels are kept. To keep your current world, create a new character for Isles of Abyss instead.
Is there an Isles of Abyss map?
The archipelago has five regions: Fragrant Cape (start), Reefshadow Bay (northwest, cold), Misty Marsh, Spring Valley and Falling Ember (volcano). Smaller islands between them work as docking and supply stops.
Sources: PlayStation Blog; Once Human announcements on Steam (Isles of Abyss dev blog, Oct 16; server opening schedule and patch notes, Oct 21; 3.1.1 bug fixes, Oct 22; Console Launch FAQ, Aug 24); Once Human official site; Steam store page.
Live: Follow today’s gaming news as it happens
Featured image: AI-generated illustration
