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SOE spills details on post-apocalyptic MMO H1Z1 heading to PC, PS4
Sony Online Entertainment's post-apocalyptic massively multiplayer online game, H1Z1, is heading to PC first and PlayStation 4 later, SOE president John Smedley said on the latest Game Talk Live episode, and will be available in 4-6 weeks via Steam Early Access for $20.
H1Z1, where players to take on the role of an apocalypse survivor in a world swarming with zombies, was first revealed earlier today when details of the podcast were teased. The game will be a free-to-play title with microtransactions but it won't be pay-to-win and nor will it require a subscription.
"The H1Z1 virus devastated mankind and left nothing but death and destruction in its wake and a world nearly empty of human life where the remnants of humanity are in a fight against extinction against those infected with the virus," Smedley revealed. "It's been 15 years since H1Z1 was first encountered and what's left of the world before it is overrun with the Infected. Humanity has been reduced to hiding in the shadows, searching desperately for food and water and anything that can help to survive even for another day. But the Infected aren't the only dangers in the world. Everyday life in the Apocalypse means dealing with all kinds of wild animals and the brutality of other survivors, as well as finding your next meal and a safe place to sleep."The MMO title is set in "Middle America" or an "anywhere and everywhere" town, Smedley explained, which SOE will expand over time "until we have our own version of the U.S. after the death and destruction brought on during the H1Z1 epidemic." The open-world will feature various environments "all connected seamlessly" ranging from urban cities and desolate wide open places.
H1Z1 will be different from other survival zombie games because of the various features and its use SOE's current generation MMO Engine, Forgelight, that can support up to 2,000 players in a single instance.
"First off, it's a persistent MMO that can hold thousands of players on servers we host (yes there will be multiple servers with very different rule sets)," Smedley said. "Why is that a good thing? It means a thriving economy (oh yes... there's trading). It also means you have potential allies in the all-out war on the Infected... and many an enemy as well."
The game offers a sandbox style of gameplay with a character progression system, scavenging and access to a "very deep crafting system," allowing players to make a variety of weapons such as firearms, Molotov cocktails, explosives and "other fun surprises." Players will be able to build shelters from resources they scavenge from the world and work with other players to construct fortresses "complete with weaponry to help defend against both the Infected and other players.""The main thing that differentiates H1Z1 from the other great games in the genre is the emphasis we are putting on player ownership and building," Smedley added. "We want you to be able to form roving gangs that are headquartered out of an abandoned warehouse that you've taken over... or a house you've built from scratch after having cut trees down and secured the resources to make it. We are giving players the tools to make their own towns, camps and defenses, and they can decide how to set up their base (which is in the world btw... not instanced)."
SOE's goal is to offer emergent gameplay and allow players to interact with the world as they want to. From a farmer raising crops to a gun-toting killing machine, "we're going to make sure your zombie apocalypse fantasy is complete," Smedley said.
"To use a simple reference I'm sure everyone interested in this game will get... we want our players to make Woodbury from The Walking Dead if they want to," he said. "Or take over a prison. Or fix an old car so you and your friends (yeah we have multiplayer vehicles) can run zombies and players over mercilessly, and revel in the sheer delight of hearing a zombie scream as you light it on fire, or craft a gun to take down your friends and enemies alike."
H1Z1 will include social features included in other SOE games, such as grouping, proximity voice chat, voice chat for gangs and more. It will also support Player Studio creations, allowing players to use player-created items in-game. SOE plans to develop H1Z1 from the ground up using input from players by employing a design process similar to PlanetSide 2's Roadmap System, where it communicates what features are in development and when players can expect them.
You can check out early footage of the game below in the Game Talk Live video that was recorded with Smedley in January. Smedley talks about vehicle repairs, looting, raids, the day-night cycles and the ability to set things and other players on fire.
"But here is something you're gonna be able to do that you can't do in these other games: Light Things on Fire," Smedley explains. "We are in the middle of putting that in so you are gonna be able to burn down trees, burn down stuff and thats gonna be a lot of fun. The idea that these players building these forts and all the sudden these other guys coming in lighting it on fire and waiting till they come out of the fortress...is awesome."
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Another zombie game. Yay?
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the idea of dayz was about the most exciting thing we had coming...unfortunatly that was like a year ago and we still dont have a finished game. now anytime i see one of these game i dont care about them one bitComment
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Sony Online Entertainment wants to eat DayZ's lunch, and that's great news [Opinion]
DayZ and Rust are already massive hits, and the huge number of sales have come before either game is finished. They are both early access games in the truest sense; neither game feels close to being finished, and large changes are coming at a steady pace.
Barrels of ink have been spent trying to figure out why these ultra-hardcore and often punishing games appeal to such a large audience, but a new genre has been born, and that attracts big companies with big budgets.
It’s not surprising that Sony Online Entertainment is swooping into this brand-new territory with H1Z1, a game that seems to ape much of what of makes games like DayZ so interesting. You’ll be exploring an open world set after the zombie apocalypse, and of course other players will be just as dangerous as the walking dead. You’ll be able to trade items in a working economy, or grab and defend safe houses.
H1Z1 is a game that promises much of what games like DayZ and Rust could eventually become, and the game will launch on Steam’s early access program for $20. It will ultimately be free-to-play, which means that players will seemingly pay more for the ability to play an early, unfinished version of the game.
We’ve reached the point where we’re paying companies to test their games instead of the other way around, but it’s hard to blame SOE when this approach has proven so popular with players, and helping to guide the course of development through your playing can be attractive as well. When players begin to wave money at their screen, it seems silly to get mad at companies who are willing to take it.
WHY THIS IS IMPORTANT
Sony has long been a more nimble company that Microsoft in the gaming space, and that ability to adapt has paid off in the current generation of consoles. Releasing a game on early access, making the development iterative and inviting players to share their feedback and help guide the features and even create in-game items are all things that we’re used to seeing from smaller studios. SOE is even promising different servers with "very different rule sets."
It's also worth nothing that the game is coming to the PlayStation 4, where it has no competition in open-world survival games.
This is all more evidence that the landscape for online games is changing, and a movement away from scripted content into more open sandboxes where other players create game play and conflict, without charging a monthly fee, makes games like The Elder Scrolls Online seem even further behind the curve. The revenue earned by DayZ and Rust have legitimized this approach, but companies as large as SOE moving in that direction will make the ruts in that particular road a bit deeper. Expect others to follow.
The opportunity that’s in front of Sony with this game depends on the company’s speed. It’s unknown whether there is brand loyalty towards DayZ or Rust, and the game’s development can often feel like it’s moving at a glacial pace. If Sony can move ahead of both titles by offering a game that scratches the same itch while delivering an experience that’s more polished and closer to a retail game, especially if they’re able to add features and improve on graphical fidelity, the possibility of eclipsing both games is certainly there.
There’s also the danger that players burnt out on both existing games before they’ve even been properly released, and fans could be ready to move onto something that could offer more game play options and improved stability.
DayZ and Rust haven’t had to do much to keep their player base, since they’re the only games offering this sort of experience on this scale, and the two titles are drawing apart in terms of scope and game play dynamics. It shouldn’t upset anyone that SOE is moving in to provide more competition, and potentially force both games to compete on features and, above all else, polish.
Sony Online Entertainment has been attracted by the huge sales of existing open-world survival games, but that’s not a bad thing; many games in this industry have been improved when a company moves into a genre and does it better than the team that created it. An aggressive push into open-world survival by a company with the know-how and infrastructure to provide a more polished online experience is exciting, and will only make everyone fight harder for the existing user base.
This is all hypothetical, as very little real-world content for H1Z1 has been shown. It could launch with the same issues and frustrating glitches as its competition. On the other hand, if its able to match Dayz and Rust in features, if not exceed them, while feeling like a more finished game, SOE could have a very big hit on its hands.
Is SOE swooping in now that smaller companies have proven the genre? Sure. But I don't mind anything that could make the development of DayZ move just a bit faster. The field just got a bit more crowded, and I'm happy to have bigger companies fighting for my open-world survival dollar.
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They have live chats going on with the devs from time to time where they use input from the stream viewers to design areas in real-time.
The devs are also very active here http://www.reddit.com/r/h1z1
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I'm glad that this game is focusing on gun play. I thought Dead Island was a cool concept but having really nothing but melee weapons grew old quickly.
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Is anyone else playing the early access alpha on Steam?
I decided to purchase it today and I'm having a blast. I'm loving the crafting system. I haven't played DayZ yet, so I can't really compare the two.
Man, after losing good supplies a couple of times, you learn real quick how careful you need to be. Patience, patience, patience and always scope places out lol. I'm finally making some progress with my current character. Made it to one of the bigger towns, found a backpack, I have plenty of food... have a ton of arrows and even found some .45 ammo... but I'm currently without any weapons (besides a stick lulz) b/c I haven't found much cloth yet to finish my bow. Luckily I have a nice vantage point in this town and tomorrow I'm going to go over and search the homes for shirts.
Completely sucked into this game so far.Comment
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