Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak Announced and Dated

Blackbird Interactive and Gearbox Software have just announced that an upcoming addition to the Homeworld universe is coming in just one month.

In development for several years, the studio intends to release Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak on January 20 for the PC.

The game takes place some time before the events of Homeworld and is set on the deserts of Kharak, where an anomaly has been discovered. Led by chief science officer Rachel S’jet, the Coalition of the Northern Kiithid sends an expedition deep within enemy-controlled territory to investigate the finding, which could forever alter the fate of humanity.

“When we signed this project in front of the crowd at the 2013 PAX Dev, Randy [Pitchford] spoke about Gearbox's commitment to quality entertainment and taking risks, and they have fully delivered on that message,” said Rob Cunningham, chief executive officer of Blackbird Interactive. “All of us at Blackbird are super proud of Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak, and we owe it to the outstanding team at Gearbox. Words fail to describe how exciting it is to be releasing a new Homeworld game, deepening the story for both existing fans and a new audience alike."

“After more than a decade-long hiatus for Homeworld, it is an immense honor in the last year to launch two new entries in the Homeworld franchise: an incredible, critically acclaimed remastering of the original Homeworld games and now the all-new, ground-based, real-time-strategy game called Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak,” said Randy Pitchford, president of Gearbox Software. “This revival of Homeworld is possible not merely because of commitment within my studio at Gearbox Software, but is due to Rob and his crew at Blackbird, along with other key members of the original Homeworld team, who have come together to deliver a modern spin on the ground-based roots of the strategy genre with an epic story that takes us back to where the Homeworld saga began.”

Unlike its spacebound predecessors, Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak is a terrestrial-based real-time strategy game. Players control fleets of land and air units to conquer the desert, fighting their way across dune seas, deep craters, and vast, hostile canyons.

More information about the game can be found on the official site.