Sci-fi survival game Once Human's got a new set of dangerous creatures, and one will haunt my nightmares for weeks

I’ve encountered all manner of enemies in my time playing games, but some really stick with you for just how unsettling they are. Monster Hunter’s Khezu, complete with its silent soundtrack. Bloodborne’s lurching, squelching Brainsuckers. That horrifying baby from Resident Evil Village. Well, Once Human just made the list with the introduction of its biomechanical Devourer, although fortunately it’s also accompanied by a couple of much more adorable (if still dangerous) foes.

While Once Human doesn’t pull in the hundreds of thousands of players that it attracted during its launch peak, the free-to-play sci-fi survival game has kept a consistent audience for the past year with regular updates and some particularly inventive twists on the formula, such as the gravity-twisting Starfall Inversion. For its latest upgrade, developer Starry Studio reveals a trio of new, “never-before-seen” threats, and after looking too closely at the Devourer I’m starting to wish it stayed that way.

“The internal rail transit vehicles on Nalcott Island range in height from 2.88 to 3.68 meters and in width from 2.6 to 2.9 meters,” the update reads. An oddly specific statistic, you might think, but one with good reason: “Any rail vehicle outside these dimensions is a potential hazardous entity.” That’s right, the giant Devourer is a biomechanical creature that loves to disguise itself as a subway train, but is actually a giant worm stretching up to 45 meters in length.

The good news is that the Devourer is mostly docile and won’t generally attack humans or animals. The bad news is that it feeds on Stardust-enriched ores, making it a serious threat to any operational workshops. The worst news? It does so by rearing up and exposing a vast, fleshy maw that pulsates and writhes as it sucks up anything that’s not sufficiently tied down. Also it has arms, because why not. After Final Fantasy 14’s Doomtrain, I’m starting to believe that’s secretly how all trains are.

If you’re feeling bold, you can feed minerals to the Devourer, then attempt to deal enough damage to it that it spits them all back out again, at which point you’ll find they’ve been randomly upgraded. Fail to do so before it decides it’s satisfied, however, and it might just burrow underground and take all your materials with it.

Elsewhere, we have the Hoarder, a “symbiotic fusion of mannequins and supermarket carts under Stardust influence.” This creature is basically a shopping cart on walking arms, and loves to scuttle around grabbing any items and resources it passes. Track its movements and you can find its nest, where between three and five Hoarders will stock their collected treasures. Naturally, attacking one or attempting to steal from its stash will draw its ire, and as cute as it is I’d rather not be on its bad side.

Finally, we have the Sonivore, a “gel-like mixture of nanoscale magnetic particles and Black Water.” This manifests as a translucent blob with a core of dark, magnetic fluids. It’s also out for resources, with a particular affinity for sound and a taste for high-value supplies. Should one choose to turn its attention to you, it’ll suck you into its body, where you’ll need to struggle to break free before you’re absorbed. Because it navigates by audio clues, however, you can use thrown objects and explosions to lure it away.

Along with these new foes, the new Once Human season introduces two more weapons, the fire-based EBR-14 rifle and the TEC-9, along with a fresh gear set and some extra mod affixes. Even more intriguing is the inclusion of the Deviant Sprout upgrade path, which promises ways to transform your own being using Deviant parts and adopt their powers as your own.

The Once Human Aberrant Progeny update launches Wednesday January 21. You can play for free on Steam. Do so here if you’ve decided that the best way to put this terrifying train-demon out of your mind is with some full-on immersion therapy.