Survivor’s Dread: Platform 8 – Last Train to Nowhere

“The train keeps moving. Every carriage promises freedom. Every anomaly promises erasure.”

The Setup

Platform 8 is the companion nightmare to Exit 8. Same rules: walk, notice anomalies, survive. Miss them and the world resets. Only this time, you’re trapped on a subway train that never stops. Played on the Steam Deck with Loop = Life: every reset is a dead survivor. Only one makes it off the train. Like Exit 8, this was my very first time playing — learning the rules on the fly, with resets as my only teachers.

The Diary

First survivor: Reached the end of the carriage and saw a figure standing at the exit. I didn’t realise you’re meant to move when the lights flick on. The lights came, the figure moved faster than me, and I was erased.

Second survivor: This time the exit door stood wide open, platform beckoning. I trusted it. I stepped toward freedom. The world snapped back to the first carriage, and so did I. Survivors don’t get second chances for gullibility.

Third survivor: Red water pooled in the aisle. The right move was to sprint. I didn’t. Instead, I shut the door on the carriage like that would help. The reset came anyway, cruel and quiet.

Fourth survivor: I let curiosity win. Instead of spotting the anomaly, I pushed through to the next carriage just to see what would happen. The answer: reset. Straight back to carriage one, another survivor erased for being too nosy.

Final survivor: Paranoia sharpened me. I ran when I had to, stopped when the lights demanded it, and turned back from lies. At last, the train gave up its prisoner. I stepped onto the real platform, escaped the loop, and lived. Luck played its part too. Some of the anomalies repeated from earlier failures, familiar traps I finally knew how to dodge. That memory, plus paranoia, was enough to carry me to the platform.

The Video

Here’s the full successful run, captured on Steam Deck:

Survivor’s Thoughts

The corridor in Exit 8 felt endless. The train in Platform 8 feels worse — claustrophobic, restless, each carriage identical until it isn’t. Four survivors erased before one finally broke free. That’s the real distinction: Exit 8 is a test of attention, Platform 8 is a puzzle box. Both erase you for mistakes, but in different ways.

Continue the Journey

See where it started with Exit 8 – Lost in the Corridor, or browse more nightmares in the Survivor’s Dread Hub.

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Prologue: Go Wayback – Joined the Playtest

“Because clearly I don’t already have enough survival games trying to freeze, starve, or otherwise humiliate me.”

I’ve just joined the Prologue: Go Wayback playtest on Steam. It drops you into a massive, freshly generated wilderness with nothing but your wits, a map, and the eternal hope you can light a fire before hypothermia claims you.

I’ll be playing this on my Steam Deck, so when the first impressions post goes live I’ll not only talk survival mechanics, but also how it runs in handheld mode. Portable chaos, as always.

Want In?

I’ve got three extra invites to hand out. If you’re a friend of mine on Steam (Survivor Incognito) and want to try Go Wayback for yourself, give me a shout. First come, first served.

More Info Coming Soon

Once I’ve had a proper session in the woods, I’ll be back with a full write-up — controls, survival systems, Steam Deck performance, and whether the fire-making is as fiddly (and satisfying) as advertised. Keep an eye on the blog if you want to see how gloriously wrong it goes.

Useful Links

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Calm in Life, Chaos in Games

Describe your ideal week.

A balance of real calm and digital chaos. In real life: quiet mornings, good coffee, and no surprise blizzards. In games: just enough wolves, zombies, and survival disasters to keep the stories interesting. My ideal week is one where I can relax, play, and then laugh about how badly things went in the write-up.

(Plenty more ideal weeks ruined by wolves at Survivor Incognito.)

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Endurance in Real Life vs Survival Games

Name the professional athletes you respect the most and why.

Endurance athletes. Marathon runners, ultra-cyclists, mountain climbers — the ones who push themselves to the limit and keep going. In survival games, I’m exhausted after jogging across a frozen lake with a backpack full of sticks, so I have huge respect for people who do the real thing without a pause menu.

(For digital endurance tests — usually ending worse — Survivor Incognito has the stories.)

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Survival Games Are My Spa Day

How do you relax?

By doing the exact opposite of relaxing: playing survival games. For some reason, dodging wolves, zombies, and blizzards calms me down more than meditation apps ever could. If I can unwind while starving in The Long Dark, real life feels positively restful.

(Plenty more questionable relaxation methods at Survivor Incognito.)

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Snowrunner Survival: The Permagear Diaries – Day Eight: Flips, Fuel, and a Double Rescue Mission

Red goes rogue in Smithville Dam, flipping twice while chasing a Watchtower. Frank clears a blocked road, performs a double rescue, secures an engine upgrade, then hauls fuel back to Black River to set up tomorrow’s delivery for “The Essentials.”

📜 Series Hub: SnowRunner Survival: The Permagear Diaries Main Hub

🛠 Rules: SnowRunner Permagear Rules

💡 Why Permagear Works: Read the reasoning behind the challenge

Missed Day Seven? Find it here.

🛣️ Crossing the Dam (and the Line)

With most of Black River mapped and missions cleared, I decide it’s time to see what Smithville Dam has to offer. Red’s fired up and we set “The Essentials” as the main task — one item in Smithville, the rest in Black River. Easy on paper. Reality had other plans.

🚧 First Roadblock: Literal Roadblock

After finding the Smithville garage, I immediately hit a blocked road needing Service Parts. Luckily, there’s a depot basically around the corner. I pencil that in for after I grab the nearby Watchtower.

🔄 Red Goes Rogue (Twice)

I point Red up the Watchtower track and—whoops—he flips onto his side. Full turtle. There’s only one truck for this kind of drama: Frank.

I transport Frank into Smithville, pick up the Service Parts, clear the roadblock, and roll out to rescue Red. Frank rights him like the dependable legend he is… and Red immediately repays the kindness by rolling over again. Cue rescue mission #2. Frank handles it without breaking a sweat.

🔍 Watchtower Found, Upgrade Secured

With Red back on his wheels (twice), we nab the Watchtower and ping a nearby upgrade: an engine that fits both Red and Scout. Whether it’s actually better is a question for the next garage visit — I’ll compare stats when we’re back under a roof.

⛽ Frank Hauls, Like a Pro

While Red takes a breather, Frank gets back to business. He grabs Fuel for “The Essentials,” hauls it over to Black River, and calls it a night — textbook veteran move.

📅 Tomorrow’s Mission

Fuel staged, Frank is ready to finish “The Essentials” delivery tomorrow. Red? He’s on probation until he proves he can stay upright for more than ten minutes.

Want more SnowRunner? Day 9 link coming soon.

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The Survivors’ Book of Grudges

Are you holding a grudge? About?

Yes — against every wolf, cougar, and zombie that’s ever ended one of my permadeath runs. Do I forgive? Eventually. Do I forget? Absolutely not. Those pixelated ambushes live rent-free in my head, and probably always will.

(Plenty more grudges, respawns, and survival stories at Survivor Incognito.)

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Surviving the Milky Way: An Elite Dangerous Survival Diary – Day 2: The Rustbucket Rises

Day 2 – The Rustbucket Rises

“These are the voyages of one unprepared Commander. Their mission: to break in a second-hand Adder, deliver mail faster than expected, and discover that cargo pickups can crash more than just your ship.”

From Scraprunner to Rustbucket

The ISS Scraprunner got me this far, but when I spotted an Adder for sale, I couldn’t resist. A few credits later and some questionable tinkering produced the ISS Rustbucket, registry RBT-01. Upgrades included a new Frame Shift Drive, thrusters, fuel scoop, more cargo racks, and an extra weapon. The one thing I didn’t touch? Shields. Whether that’s wisdom or hubris, time will tell.

Courier Life

The mission board offered one contract labelled high threat. I decided exploding wasn’t on today’s agenda and picked safer jobs instead:

  • A data delivery to Marius Relay in the Col 285 Sector AM-R b19-4 system.
  • An agricultural supply run—which bizarrely meant transporting six units of personal weapons—to Wesker’s Pride in the Col 285 Sector BV-E a41-1 system.

On the way to Marius Relay, I got a message offering a bonus for quick delivery. Challenge accepted. The new fuel scoop kicked in automatically, topping up my tank as I skimmed stars. Docking complete, data handed over, and I even ranked up to Peddler. Not glamorous, but it’s better than “galactic stowaway.”

The Cargo That Wasn’t

Then it hit me—I hadn’t actually collected the weapons before leaving. Back to the station I went, already dreading the 20+ jump route ahead. It would at least be a good test for the Rustbucket’s scoop, or so I told myself.

Ten minutes of fiddling with menus later, I finally thought I’d sorted the cargo pickup. That’s when the game crashed. Server connection lost, mission abandoned. The Rustbucket sat waiting, but my courier career ended in digital silence.

Rustbucket Status Report

  • Ship: ISS Rustbucket (Adder)
  • Upgrades: FSD, thrusters, fuel scoop, cargo racks, weapons
  • Untouched: Shields (future-me will regret this)
  • Rank: Peddler
  • Mood: Triumphant → Confused → Disconnected

Next Time

With the Rustbucket ready and the galaxy waiting, I’ll try again. Hopefully the servers stay awake long enough for me to actually deliver cargo. Otherwise, I’ll just become the Milky Way’s most overqualified data courier.

Continue the Journey

← Day 1 | Day 2 (You Are Here) | Day 3 →

Surviving the Milky Way: Series Hub

The Rules of the Stars

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A Safehouse Without the Wolves

What does your ideal home look like?

Honestly? Somewhere between a safehouse in The Long Dark and a base in Subnautica. Warm, stocked with supplies, maybe a decent view — but without the constant threat of wolves, blizzards, or flooding. Basically, four walls, a roof, and the comforting knowledge that I don’t need to boil my drinking water.

(Plenty more questionable housing choices at Survivor Incognito.)

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Isolation Protocol: An Alien Isolation Survival Diary – Log 2: The Jack, the Gun, and the Monster

Isolation Protocol – Log 2: The Jack, the Gun, and the Monster

Difficulty: Medium

Optional Features: Permadeath enabled with the Three Strikes Rule

Alien Deaths: 0/3

“Axel says it’s called surviving. I’m starting to think it’s called ‘dying slower.’”

Sevastopol isn’t a space station anymore — it’s a coffin with too many rooms. The walls groan, the lights flicker, and the floor is littered with suitcases nobody will ever claim. Every corner creaks like it’s considering whether to collapse, and the stench is somewhere between fried wires and unwashed corpses.

Somewhere in this mess, I’ve decided, lies survival. Or at least the tools to fake it.

The Maintenance Jack (Switch Edition)

My first discovery is a vent leading to baggage claim. A shadow darts past, proof I’m not as alone as I thought. Naturally, I follow — because curiosity didn’t just kill the cat, it strapped the cat into a jumpsuit and dumped it on Sevastopol.

That shadow leads me to a morgue. Body bags stacked like leftovers nobody wants. And there, in a nearby room, I finally spot my prize: a corpse clutching the Maintenance Jack. He’s left behind an ID tag and a final audio log, a last will whispered into static. I take both, because apparently, I’ve become a grave robber with a side hustle in identity theft.

The Jack is clunky but glorious. On Switch, it works like this:

  • A: Grab the brace
  • Hold ZL + ZR: Apply elbow grease
  • Left Stick: Yank open the door like you mean it

With this tool, half the station is suddenly my oyster. Unfortunately, the other half is still locked behind plasma torches, ion torches, and my crippling lack of luck.

Enter Axel, Stage Left (Gun in Hand)

Just as I’m getting used to prying open doors like a budget locksmith, I find myself in a cutscene with a gun pressed to my head.

Meet Axel. His opening line is basically “don’t move.” My counter-offer is “please don’t shoot.” Somehow, we agree on a deal: he’ll help me through Sevastopol if he gets a seat on the Torrens. His sales pitch is… intense.

He mentions “a killer” stalking the station, but claims he hasn’t seen it. Which is funny, because I have — in the shadows, in the atmosphere, in the dripping dread that clings to every vent.

Not five minutes later, Axel points his gun at two other survivors. His definition of “nice guy” clearly needs work. The elevator door shuts, they vanish, and I find myself trapped in the world’s most awkward team-up.

Flashlights, Blueprints, and Sneaking 101

Axel hands me a flashlight — finally, something to pierce the gloom. On Switch: Y toggles it. Of course, batteries are rarer than honesty in a card game, so I use it sparingly.

Soon after, he introduces me to Sevastopol’s main sport: sneaking past armed strangers. Axel assures me they’ll kill us if spotted, which I would’ve figured out from the way they pace around with twitchy trigger fingers.

I crouch-walk the whole way, hugging shadows while my heartbeat plays the percussion section of a horror soundtrack. I flick the generator off as a distraction and duck into a vent, holding my breath as one of them passes inches from the grate. My first close call, and probably not my last.

On the plus side: I find a Medkit blueprint. Ingredients: 1 x SCJ Injector, 1 x Compound B, 1 x Bonding Agent, and 10 Scrap. I craft one immediately, because nothing says “confidence” like carrying your own first-aid kit in a death maze.

Death of a Guide

We work together to force open a door. Axel gets jumped. I swing the Maintenance Jack like a baseball bat, knocking the guy back. Axel overreacts with a bullet, which echoes down the corridors like a dinner bell for every hostile in range.

We run, ducking into corridors as voices shout behind us. Axel yells, “This is survival!” I yell, “This is stupid!” Neither of us is wrong.

Then: drip.

A shadow looms overhead. Axel freezes. A tail punctures his chest, lifts him clean off the ground, and throws him like a doll into the darkness. No quips. No bravado. Just silence.

The killer is real. And it spares me — for now.

Transit Terror

Shell-shocked, I stumble into the transit station. The lights flicker, the vents groan, and every sound feels like it belongs to the thing that just gutted Axel.

I hit the call button. The screen tells me the train is coming. I wait.

And wait.

Every second stretches into eternity. My eyes dart between the vents and the shadows, convinced something will lunge at me before the doors hiss open.

When the transit finally arrives, I sprint inside, slam the button, and ride it out toward the Spire. Axel is gone. The Alien is here. And I have never hated public transport more in my life.

Log 2 Key Takeaways

  • Maintenance Jack: Your new best friend (A, ZL + ZR, Left Stick).
  • Flashlight: Y toggles it — conserve those batteries.
  • Medkit Blueprint: Injector, Compound B, Bonding Agent, and Scrap.
  • Not all survivors are friendly. Some are Axel. Some are worse.
  • The Alien has entered the stage. Stealth is no longer optional.
Continue the Protocol:
Log 1 |
Log 2 (You Are Here) |
Log 3
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