The Short Answer
Once Human's 2.4.2 update went live on June 10, launching Season 4: "The Riftwalker Descends," the game's biggest mechanical swing yet. The headline feature is zero-gravity combat across newly added floating islands, capped off by a fight against a colossal aircraft-sized Deviant. The patch also shipped a new Season 13 Battle Pass, a limited return of older Battle Pass cosmetics, and a Pioneer test for an entirely new First Person Mode. Two weeks later, patch 2.4.3 layered a Custom Server Anniversary event and an economy rebalance on top, rounding out one of Once Human's busiest content stretches since launch.
Zero-Gravity Combat and Floating Islands
Once Human resets its world with every new season, and Season 4 leans on a setting twist rather than just a new map skin. The Riftwalker content opens up floating islands suspended above the usual ground-level zones, and fighting up there strips away normal gravity rules. Movement, dodging, and aim all behave differently when you cannot rely on solid footing, which is a meaningful departure from the grounded combat in earlier scenarios like Manibus and Way of Winter.
The set piece for the new content is a battle against a colossal aircraft Deviant, a boss-scale encounter built specifically around the zero-gravity space rather than retrofitted into it. It sits alongside the existing roster of Great Ones, like the Treant and Arachsiam, as one of the more dramatic fights the game has shipped.
New Battle Pass and Returning Cosmetics
Season 13's Battle Pass, "Indigo Mystic," runs from June 10 through August 25, giving players roughly eleven weeks to clear it before the next reset. Alongside it, Once Human brought back a limited-time set of Season 3 Battle Pass cosmetics under the name "Sailor's Spirit," giving players who missed that earlier season a second chance at the look. A limited Lightforge Loot Crate, "Vipers Lunge," rounded out the cosmetic additions for the patch.
RaidZone Team Function Gets a Comprehensive Upgrade
The patch notes singled out a "comprehensive upgrade" to the RaidZone Team function, the system that governs how groups coordinate inside Once Human's instanced raid content. While the studio did not break out every change individually, the framing suggests broader quality-of-life work for squad play rather than a single new feature, which tracks with Once Human's pattern of quietly polishing its co-op tools alongside flashier seasonal content.
First Person Mode: A Pioneer Test
The most unusual line in the 2.4.2 notes is the start of Pioneer testing for First Person Mode, paired with a new survival scenario called Isles of the Abyss. Once Human has been an over-the-shoulder shooter since launch, so a first-person option, even in early testing, is a real shift in how the game can be played. Pioneer tests are opt-in trials rather than full rollouts, so treat this as Starry Studio gauging interest rather than a confirmed permanent mode. If you want to try it, look for the Isles of the Abyss scenario specifically, since that is where the test is scoped.
Two Weeks Later: The Anniversary Patch (2.4.3)
On June 24, patch 2.4.3 followed up with a Custom Server Anniversary celebration and a meaningful economy adjustment. The headline change for regular players is that selling items to merchants now yields more Chips, a direct buff to the RaidZone economy that makes grinding loot runs more rewarding without requiring a new build or scenario. The patch also added:
- An upgraded supplies distribution system for the anniversary event.
- A limited-time Desert Oracle Lightforge Loot Crate.
- Collectible storage, giving players a dedicated place to keep cosmetic and event collectibles instead of clogging general inventory.
- General build logic optimizations aimed at performance.
What This Means for Your Season 4 Run
If you have not logged in since Season 3, expect a meaningfully different game on the floating islands specifically, even if your ground-level loop with Deviations and base automation is unchanged. The economy buff in 2.4.3 also makes this a good moment to push merchant sales for Chips you have been sitting on, since the conversion rate is better than it was before June 24.
New to Once Human entirely, or coming back after a long break? Our Once Human beginner's guide covers scenario choice, Deviation priorities, and the first hours of survival, and the Once Human tier list ranks the best Deviations and Great Ones if you want to optimize your loadout before tackling the new aircraft boss.
FAQ
Do I need to start a new character for Season 4? No. Once Human resets the world state each season but your account progression, including unlocked recipes and most cosmetics, carries forward.
Is First Person Mode available to everyone? Not yet. It is in a Pioneer test tied to the Isles of the Abyss scenario, which is an early, opt-in trial rather than a full release.
What changed in the economy on June 24? Selling items to merchants yields more Chips than before, a direct buff aimed at making the standard RaidZone loop more rewarding for regular players.
