RetroSpace Stealth Guide: Light, Noise and Going Undetected
RetroSpace is built on the Thief model of stealth. Dev Blog 09, “The Sneaky Way”, names the two things that decide whether you are seen: light and sound.
Light
- The light indicator. Your helmet HUD has a light meter inspired by Thief. It shows partial light too, not just lit or dark.
- Kill the lights. Lights can be switched off, shot out or broken by throwing things at them. The developers’ deep dive: “We can turn off or shoot out light sources, creating comfy dark spots to hide in.”
- Flashlight discipline. An in-game tip: “A flashlight is one of your best pals. Just know that if you flash it around, you’ll definitely be noticed.”
- Not every enemy uses eyes. Dev Blog 09 warns that some opponents do not rely on sight.
Sound
- Crouch. Crouching makes you silent (“The janitor and silence are the best of pals”). The default crouch key in the recordings is C, as a toggle.
- Running is loud. Sprinting makes noise that enemies react to.
- Use sound against them. Dev Blog 09 describes distractions and fake trails. The Unicellular Mutamod creates a decoy clone, and Bat Ears lets you sense enemies through walls.
Reading enemies
Enemies show a state marker above their heads: peaceful, scouting or attacking. If it clutters the screen, the July patch lets you switch it off in the menu. A Mothmanaut that runs off mid-fight is going to heal at a light and is vulnerable while it does.
Turrets and traps
Flipping a section’s turrets with its override code turns a hazard into a guard that fights for you; codes are on the door code list. Electric puddles, explosive barrels and barricades let you deal with enemies without being spotted; see environment tricks.
How much stealth do you need?
On Classic Horror, ProRogueBear found he could largely ignore stealth with the ammo he had. On harder difficulties, with fewer resources, sneaking becomes the main tool. Two achievements reward it: Never there (finish without being detected by any enemy) and Clean hands (finish without killing anyone, robots and turrets included). Both are planned in the achievement planner.
Thanks, janitor. Logged for the next shift.