SCUM October Update: Patch Notes, Fishing Overhaul and Server Wipe News

The SCUM October update (version 1.3.4.0) went live on 5 October 2026, and it brings the Into the Wild season to a close. Gamepires has overhauled fishing with fish that fight back, tiered Fishing Quests and a server leaderboard, brought crows and seagulls back to the Island, added clothing crafted from Mutant Animals, and opened the Apex Hunt arena for Deathmatches.

Two hotfixes have followed in the same week. Here's everything in the SCUM October update patch notes, what the hotfixes changed, and what Gamepires says is coming next, including controller support, tattoos and a partial wipe of official servers.

SCUM October update at a glance

What's new in the SCUM October update?

This is the final Into the Wild update, and it rounds off a season built around hunting, fishing and surviving off the land. According to Gamepires' official patch notes, these are the main additions.

Fishing overhaul, quests and leaderboard

Fishing is the biggest change. Larger fish now pull harder from side to side, and how fast you reel decides whether you tire a fish out or give it time to recover. Bait and equipment choices matter more, and an updated HUD makes line tension and bait condition easier to read.

There are now three tiers of Fishing Quests, tracked in the Journal, which reward Fame, cash and, for some quests, extra fishing gear. A new server leaderboard shows who has landed the biggest catch.

Birds return to the Island

Crows are back inland and seagulls along the coast, joining the free-roaming wildlife that returned earlier in the season. They fly, perch and gather in flocks, and they react to noise. Make too much noise near a flock and it may take off, which gives your position away to other prisoners. Birds circling a corpse or a busy fishing spot are also a clue that something is nearby. You can shoot them, too, and skin them for cookable meat and feathers.

Mutant Animal clothing

Mutant Animals are among the rarest and most dangerous targets on the Island. Materials recovered from mutant kills can now be crafted into new clothing, so there's finally a reward for those hunts beyond the Master Hunter quests.

Apex Deathmatch arena

The Apex Hunt arena inside the TEC1 Research Facility has joined the Events system as a battleground for Deathmatch and Team Deathmatch. You can join through the Events menu.

Image: Gamepires

SCUM October update patch notes: key fixes and balance changes

Alongside the new features, the SCUM October update has a long list of fixes. The most important ones are:

• Cleaner clothes: clothing now gets dirty much more slowly, 5% per hour instead of 20%, and only looks dirty once it reaches 30% dirtiness. Rips only show when clothing drops below 70% durability.
• Server stability: fixes for server crashes when players join, and for connection problems caused by Secret Bunker records, large numbers of quests and slow-loading bases.
• Disappearing items: items stored in damaged clothing no longer vanish when you unequip it or log off.
• Exploits closed: including the turret-limit bypass, the Sector respawn cooldown bypass, the backpack "magic pocket" and a way of safely killing mutant bears in the Apex Facility.
• Apex Facility loot now refreshes properly after a server restart, and keycards last a standard 24 hours.
• Proximity voice chat now reaches its full 80 metres, instead of around 40.
• Server owners get three new custom zone settings to control NPC damage to vehicles separately from player damage.

There are also dozens of fixes for weapons, vehicles, base building, clothing clipping and the map. The full list is in Gamepires' official patch notes on Steam, linked in Useful links.

What did the SCUM hotfixes 1.3.4.1 and 1.3.4.2 fix?

Gamepires released two hotfixes in the days after the SCUM October update:

• Hotfix 1.3.4.1 (October 7): fixed frame rate drops and hitches when changing field of view, including when aiming down sights. It also closed an exploit that let players skip much of the fishing minigame, fixed fishing reels missing mouse-wheel input at high frame rates, and stopped lines being cast through buildings. The Specialist Angler Pack now includes the yellow waders shown in its images, and the green version is free for everyone.
• Hotfix 1.3.4.2 (October 8): an urgent fix after processing Radioactive Carp produced far too much Depleted Uranium, letting players earn much more money than intended. Gamepires said it couldn't wait for the next update because of the impact on the in-game economy. It also fixed a radioactive-zone fishing spot that never switched off, and headlamps making players visible in the dark when switched off.

One known issue remains: pulling a fish ashore while walking backwards can still snap the line. Until it's fixed, Gamepires advises against walking backwards when landing a catch.

Watch the SCUM: Into the Wild trailer

Is there a SCUM server wipe with the October update?

No. Gamepires confirmed there's no wipe with the SCUM October update. Instead, a partial wipe of official servers is planned for the next update. When it happens:

• character stats and gold will carry over;
• bases, gear and supplies will be cleared;
• partial wipes won't be enforced on private servers.

Gamepires says it will confirm the release date and wipe timing before that update. The temporary Awareness and Archery progression boosts also stay active until then, and any skill progress you've already earned is kept.

What's next for SCUM after Into the Wild?

The next release won't start a new season. It will be a standalone update, and Gamepires' current plan includes:

• Tattoos: a new tattoo system with expanded placement, and more than 40 starter tattoos for everyone. Two optional cosmetic tattoo packs are also planned.
• Controller support on PC.
• Free Photo Mode: Photo Mode will leave Supporter Pack 2 and become free for all players, and existing owners get replacement tattoos.
• The partial official server wipe described above.

Gamepires also said the tattoo packs will be the last paid DLC released in 2026, after some players felt there were too many packs during Into the Wild. Work on the next season is already under way.

What is SCUM's Survivalist ruleset?

Many players have asked for a return to version 0.6, when the Island felt scarcer and less predictable. Gamepires' answer is an optional Survivalist ruleset built on the current version of SCUM. It would remove or heavily restrict traders, make powerful loot harder to find, and retune puppet and horde pressure, metabolism, sickness and wildlife for a harsher game. The plan is dedicated official Survivalist servers alongside the existing ones, plus a preset for private servers. It isn't tied to an update yet.

Gamepires is also reworking puppet spawning, using the free-roaming wildlife system as a base, but there's no date for that either. Mod support remains a longer-term plan and won't arrive in 2026.

What's in the SCUM Specialist Angler Pack?

The optional Specialist Angler Pack launched alongside the SCUM October update for £4.99 / $5.99. It unlocks a rod, reel, waders, boots, a backpack and three angler emotes, which you can craft or buy from the Fisher Trader. It also includes a starting supply of bait and tackle, which each character can claim from the trader once per server. Those consumables aren't exclusive: every player can find or craft them in normal play. Steam lists the pack as non-refundable because it contains consumable items.

Is SCUM worth playing in 2026?

SCUM is an open-world survival game for up to 80 players per official server, set on a prison island where you hunt, loot, build bases and fight other prisoners. It left Early Access with its 1.0 release in June 2025 and is available on PC through Steam.

It has a Mostly Positive rating on Steam from more than 127,000 reviews. At the time of writing it's discounted to £15.99 / $17.99 (60% off). With the fishing and hunting systems now complete and a harsher Survivalist mode in the works, it's a good moment for survival fans to jump in, though returning players should keep the coming partial wipe in mind before building anything big on official servers.

More survival games on iGame Magazine

• SCUM's journey from Early Access to 1.0 – how SCUM got here
• DayZ 1.29 update – the other big hardcore survival sandbox
• 7 Days to Die 3.0 Dead Hot Summer update – another major survival game update

SCUM October update FAQ