The official Week 251 announcement for ICARUS, published on Steam on September 24, 2026, introduces a tameable Kiwi that can become a companion. The animal stands out mainly for its nighttime talents, while the associated changelog reduces its offensive performance and fixes several effects related to its bonuses.
How to capture and tame the Kiwi in Icarus Week 251
The process starts at the Ranching Station, where you can craft the snare trap, or Snare Trap, along with the specialized Kiwi bait. The trap must then be placed in the forest with the bait attached.
- Craft the snare trap and specialized bait at the Ranching Station.
- Place the trap in the forest.
- Attach the bait, then wait until night for a Kiwi to arrive.
- After capturing it, feed it fresh carcasses to gain its trust.
The Kiwi remains dangerous until it has been tamed. The announcement does not specify the taming duration, success rate or exact amount of resources required. The method is therefore known, but its cost and the time it will take cannot be estimated from this publication alone.
A useful companion at night
Depending on its specialization, the Kiwi can receive an aura that increases carrying capacity. Another talent improves nearby mining and logging yields during the night. These bonuses give it a clear role in gathering activities, especially when a session continues after nightfall.
The announcement presents two main paths: a domestic helper around the base or a nocturnal predator. The Kiwi therefore does not have a single role to fill. Its usefulness depends on the talents developed and the place the player wants to give it between logistical support and combat.
The comparison with the wolf nevertheless sets an important limit. During the day, the Kiwi is described as weaker and slower than comparable combat tames. Conversely, the announcement says that a Kiwi developed for combat becomes fiercer than the wolf when the sun goes down. This difference remains qualitative, as no figures are provided to measure the gap between the two animals.
Version 3.0.29 reduces its health and damage
The 3.0.29.157838-rel-DangerousHorizons changelog states that the health and damage of the tamed Kiwi have been reduced by roughly half. The final tier of its combat bonus was also fixed so that it only works at night.
The same version adds statistics and virtual calculations for several of the Kiwi’s nighttime bonuses, including those related to melee, mining yield and logging yield. However, the publication does not include the detailed aura values or the statistics before and after the adjustment.
The trade-off is therefore clear: the Kiwi can support hauling and gathering or become a combat companion specialized for nighttime, but its combat performance has been reduced. The announcement does not specify the exact deployment time or a possible end date for this addition.
Other Week 251 fixes
The changelog fixes an issue involving the Rimetusk: ice should no longer be cooked when it is butchered with an obsidian knife.
Another fix concerns crafting experience. Some crafting actions using resources did not always grant experience, including the Polymeriser when it was operating with oil.
The announcement also states that the Great Hunts Elysium content is still in its final testing and polishing cycles, with external testing underway. This status concerns that separate content and does not provide a deployment date for the Kiwi. Since the publication is a Steam announcement, its availability on other platforms is not specified there; no price, edition or currency is listed.
To make use of the new companion, you will need to craft the trap and its bait at the Ranching Station, then organize a nighttime capture in the forest. The Kiwi can subsequently strengthen gathering or combat at night, with reduced offensive statistics in version 3.0.29. Find the latest gaming news on JEU.VIDEO.
