DINODRIFTERS Dev Diary #8: What is a Drifter?

Hello and welcome to another DINODRIFTERS dev diary!

Why is the game called DINODRIFTERS? The 'dino' part is simple enough, being named after dinosaurs, the most well known group of prehistoric animals. But 'drifters'? Let me explain in this dev diary.

Drifters may sound like they'd play the guitar on the open, country road, but these lot don't. I mean, Aelwen plays the flute, but apart from that...

Story details ahead.

In the year 2283, the Great Catastrophe covered the world in nanomachines, consuming and destroying civilisation as we know it. In this extinction event, homo sapiens was nearly driven extinct. No country survived the Great Catastrophe. The world was wiped clean.

At some point, the nanomachines stopped eating and lay doment.

Hundreds of years later, life recovered, incorporating the nanomachines, called silverdust, naturally into their bodies. Now in 7698, a new human species, homo supertres, dominates the known world.

The effects of silverdust are part of everyday life in 7698. The nanomachines are still operational and respond to their owners drive, often manifesting as higher musculature or stronger senses. Like muscles, an individual can hone their link to the silverdust in their body through consistent and deliberate bodily activity, as the silverdust aids their biological cells adapt and improve. This is known as 'the Drift' among common speech.

One who takes this to the extreme, to the bounds of human capability, is called a Drifter.

So, the Dinodrifters are in a literal sense, Drifters who use their abilities to study and rescue dinosaurs.

This is taken from the in-game prologue cutscene. It's a work-in-progress! The Green here is generic, as their character model changes based on the player's choices in character creation.

Dinodrifters can use the silverdust in their bodies to change their physiological attributes. They can even expel and fire their internal silverdust stores to alter the world around them. Their suits are made from the silverdust in their cells; during transformation, they rise to the top of the epidermal layer and make their suits a few seconds.

In Story Mode, depending on which Dinodrifter is accompanying you on a mission, you can access to several special abilities, unique to each. As with all things, a Drifter's power is based on their personality and background. They can only be used once per mission but are exceedingly powerful and come at no cost to the player's own reserves.

The three Dinodrifters have the following powers:

1 - Crimson Casualty: Borrowing from her years as a security guard, Drifter Red blasts an animal that is going to imminently attack you, preventing a battle from taking place.

2 - Azure Alteration: Using his excellent knowledge of the gear they use, Drifter Blue unleashes his silverdust supply and  restores all your statistics to maximum.

3 - Sunny Swarm: Fielding her inner peace with the natural world, Drifter Yellow sings a song and lures wild animals to your present location.


Drifters are amazing individuals who have the highest chance at changing the world around them. They can create and destroy with equal magnitude and their limits have yet to be reached. When the malevolent Drifter Violet starts using their powers to harm, will the Dinodrifters must fight to protect the past?

Find out in Story Mode and discover what it means to be a Drifter!


Next diary, I will talk about the tranqchanger, drift cards and transforming using the Drift in DINODRIFTERS!

Until next time!