The game is set in an alternate future that diverged in 1901, when U.S. President William McKinley is not assassinated by Leon Czolgosz at the Pan-American Exposition. As a result, Theodore Roosevelt never succeeded him, and large business trusts were never broken up, leading to a hyper-corporate, class-centric society dominated by the power of megacorporations, which by the distant future have begun to colonize space and terraform alien planets, to varying results.In 2355, the Hope is discovered drifting on the outskirts of the Halcyon system by mad scientist Phineas Welles, who manages to safely revive one of the passengers (the "Stranger"). Welles informs the Stranger that the Halcyon colony has fallen on hard times due to the mass incompetence of the various mega-corporations (referred to collectively as "The Board") that govern every aspect of life in Halcyon. Due to the after-effects of prolonged cryosleep, the Stranger has substantially higher (or lower) mental and physical abilities than the majority of ordinary Halcyon residents. Welles tasks the Stranger with securing the resources needed to revive the remaining Hope colonists, who Welles believes hold the key to Halcyon's salvation.
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In the early stages of the game, the player can create their own character and unlock a ship, which acts as the game's central hub space. Though the player cannot control their ship directly, it serves as a fast travel point to access different areas in the game and acts as the player's persistent inventory space. The player can encounter and recruit non-player characters as companions who have their own personal missions and stories. When accompanying the player, the companions act as an aid in combat. Each companion has its own individual skills and special attacks, and it can also develop its own skill specialization. When exploring, the player can bring up to two companions alongside them, while the rest stay on the ship. The player can make numerous dialogue decisions, which can influence the game's branching story. They can also respond to NPCs in various ways, such as acting heroically, maniacally, or moronically. During combat situations, the player can use various weapon types such as melee and firearms, which have three ammo types: light, heavy and energy. These weapons can be customized to add elemental damage. The player can use stealth or social skills (persuasion, lying and intimidation) to avoid combat altogether.
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