Silica is an immersive blend of first person shooter and real time strategy, each true to its respective genre. The game allows players the freedom of choice, without forcing them to play as both.

In Silica, players can choose to play either as a Commander in RTS mode, or as an Infantry soldier who gets to control all units and vehicles along with their arsenal in FPS. Their mission on this seemingly barren planet is simple: locate and harvest Balterium, an element with a tremendous amount of untapped potential that can power up the human civilization for generations to come! Silica is the first title born in Bohemia Incubator – a new label of Bohemia Interactive aimed to help indie game makers develop and introduce their dream games to a global audience.

If you prefer sand-filled boots, bullets whizzing overhead, and menacing alien jaws closing in, the infantry role is for you. Not limited to merely foot-based soldiers, you can also take control of any available vehicles, including the colossal Harvester, the speedy Light Quad, or the insidious Siege Tank, just to name a few. Or, if chewing metal is your niche, then the hive-mind, insect-like aliens are your faction of choice. Shift your consciousness between creatures such as the stealthy Crab, the nimble Hunter, or the armored Goliath.

For those who'd rather command their forces from a distance, the esteemed role of Commander awaits you in the relative safety of orbit. Deploy Harvesters to silica crystal fields, hiding the valuable resources you're after. Construct and place immense structures to produce and dispatch units that will dominate the battlefield.

The game offers variety in terms of game modes. Strategy is the flagship game mode of Silica. In this mode, players battle for dominance by building, harvesting, and striking the enemy. Strategy mode seamlessly combines both RTS and FPS elements and is playable in any combination, up to a 3-way conflict between factions. Prospector mode acts as a tutorial for Silica. It is offered as an FPS, which can be played in single or multiplayer mode. Players start off near a landing pod and are tasked with exploring the area in search of a Balterium field. They will encounter enemy forces along the way and must complete all the objectives in order to make it out alive. The third mode - Arena - introduces a fun and crazy environment where players select their favorite unit and face off in an unbalanced FPS free-for-all.

We are officially announcing that Silica will leave Steam Early Access on November 3rd.

Word from the lead developer:

"Hello everyone!

I hope you are all having a wonderful week. We are quickly approaching Silica's 1.0 release, and I could not be more excited. The campaign has shaped up nicely, and I trust you will all enjoy a story-driven trip to the desert world (free tickets to Centaurus and Earth included).

Before we get there, I'd like to extend my deepest, most heartfelt THANK YOU to every one of you who has believed in us, supported us, and been there even when times were tough (looking at you, 2025).

This game is about YOU. Your feedback shaped it, and for that I am truly grateful. A special thanks to everyone who joined us on Lycan's and Lucho's streams every now and then, to the phenomenal hosts of the Prime Battalion servers, and to all of you who shot me dead in-game :D

Take care, everyone. Peace, and see you on the surface. It has been quite a ride.

Kind and most sincere regards,
Martin Melicharek
Project Lead"

Now let's talk about what's actually going to change in the 1.0 version of the game and what's about to happen next.

Centauri Campaign

The biggest news: the Centauri story campaign is here, playable right from the main menu.

• A cinematic start: the campaign opens with a fully voiced intro.
• A living war map: between missions you follow the war on a 3D globe and watch territory change hands as you advance.
• Fully voiced: mission briefings and in-mission dialogue bring the story and its characters to life.
• New vehicle: the fast Centauri Jet Bike.

Saving Your Progress

• Save anywhere: save and load at any point, even mid-mission, with a picture preview of each save.
• Checkpoints save your progress automatically as you play.

Commanding Your Army

• New orders: fire at a spot on the ground and drive vehicles in reverse.
• Line formation: drag to place your units in a line facing the direction you choose.
• Faster selection: double-click to select every unit of the same type on the map.
• Smarter units: your troops spread their fire across enemies instead of all shooting the same target, and vehicles no longer get stuck in each other.

Sandbox Improvements

• Easier building: better tools for placing, moving and scaling objects when you create your own scenarios.
• Steam Workshop: share your scenarios and download ones made by other players.

Multiplayer & Stability

• Matchmaking: jump into an online 1 vs 1 match quickly, without browsing the server list. Pick your faction and ban maps you don’t want to play.
• Smoother online play: fewer disconnects and more reliable dedicated servers.
• Team-killer detection to keep matches fair.
• Lots of bug fixes, such as the commander getting stuck in a unit that was just destroyed, and missions failing to load on some language settings.

1.0 Game Modes

• Strategy
• COOP Strategy with difficulty settings
• Campaign
• 1 vs 1 matchmaking (Can play against the same faction!)

Key Features

• First/third-person shooter with vehicles
• 6 unique locations
• 3 engaging game modes
• Singleplayer and multiplayer options
• 5 infantry classes
• 11 distinct vehicles
• 8 alien creatures
• AI control for both commander and units

Silica is coming to PC (Steam) on November 3, 2026 at $24.99.