Curious about the current state of PlanetSide 2? TotalBiscuit recently traveled to Sony Online Entertainment's San Diego headquarters for some hands-on time with the upcoming MMOFPS. What he saw was pretty impressive (we know this because we saw it too, thanks to his video, which we've embedded after the break).
While the game is still in early alpha, we think there's plenty to be excited about, judging by the 23-minute clip. We get a good look at night-fighting, ground and air combat, and an interesting tank vs. foot-soldier matchup that doesn't turn out like you might expect.
PlanetSide 2 has but one real game it must live up to, but if you consider the unique elements that its predecessor brought to the table, that's still a tall order. A recent interview with the game's creative director, Matt Higby, highlights the ways that the game is being designed to fulfill the requirements of an engaging MMO and an engaging FPS. That means giving characters plenty of progression without locking out new players who just want to shoot things.
The game's overall progression path is meant to be one of options, not straight power. That's the case for classes as well as advancement; Heavy Assault characters will play distinctly from other classes, but they'll have a variety of unique abilities that players can choose among. The interview also sheds more light on what players can expect from the game's overarching persistent elements, which set the game and its factions apart from standard FPS fare. The game still has a long way to go in development, but what's been shown thus far is definitely an encouraging start.
In PlanetSide 2, wars are not won by infantry alone. Sometimes you've gotta bring in the big guns, and sometimes you've gotta attach those big guns to even bigger tanks that can turn unwitting enemy foot soldiers into a fine crimson smear on the ground. For those times, Sony Online Entertainment has announced the latest Nanite Systems vehicle, the Lightning.
The lightning is a lightweight 75mm tank that uses its mobility and obscene rate of fire to rain havoc upon the battlefield while avoiding enemy counterattacks. The one-man tank can fire up to six rounds in under three seconds, "allowing the driver to quickly adjust [his] aim after [his] first shot." The modular turret can be swapped out for a variety of other turret types for those times when you just want to mix it up a bit, and the Lightning's Skyguard turret is "the most effective ground-to-air weapon on the battlefield, as it's fitted with 40mm cannons with an elevation range of 80 degrees." To top it all off, the Lightning is one of the fastest ground vehicles, which makes it just as useful for tactical retreats as it is for vehicular manslaughter. The vehicle will be available to all three factions, so no matter which side you're fighting for, you can rest assured that you'll have some speedy firepower at your disposal.
A user named Nax has cut together a two-minute clip and posted it on both YouTube and the PlanetSide Universe forums. The short makes good use of the alpha video as well as some pre-existing teaser trailer footage in order to showcase PS2's frenetic action and large environments. We also get a stirring soundtrack compliments of Thomas Bergersen (one half of the prolific trailer-music duo known as Two Steps from Hell).
"For me, it's such a compelling genre for anybody who's played it," SOE Creative Director Matt Higby said about PlanetSide 2's niche. "But that's the thing. There's not a lot of people who have played a MMOFPS, but the people who have are addicted."
Hibgy sat down with us at PAX East to promote SOE's upcoming sci-fi shooter, saying that it scratches two itches with one bird (or some other mixed metaphor). "I'm a competitive player; I love shooters," he said, "but I'm also a very social player and love the progression aspect of MMOs."
It's not as if the MMOFPS field is going to remain wide-open for very long. Competitors are rushing to mine this largely untouched market. Still, SOE has an advantage above the rest: It launched one of the first of its kind and has years of experience managing such a game. While we anxiously wait for word on PlanetSide 2's beta, we listened to Higby tell us why this title will continue the company's reign over the genre.
Planning on playing for the New Conglomerate faction in PlanetSide 2? If so, you'll want to check out the new video we've got for you after the break.
Sony Online Entertainment has put together a three-minute piece detailing the NC's Scope 4X (and no, we're not kidding -- it really is a video about a rifle scope). While the 4X may seem like an odd choice for a dev diary clip, it's actually indicative of the amount of work SOE is pouring into its open-world MMOFPS.
SOE senior artist Patrick Ho steps us through the complete design process, and we get a long look at thumbnail sketches, 3-D modeling, painting, and the fine details that typify PlanetSide 2's gear.
Want to see some new PlanetSide 2 gameplay action? We do too, and fortunately Gametrailers has a bit of it in the form of a new video. We use the word "new" loosely here because the footage was filmed earlier this month at GDC, and there's not a whole lot of info contained therein that fans of the game didn't already know.
Still, three minutes of gameplay is nothing to sneeze at, and we get a decent look at ground combat, air combat, and various forms of vehicular combat (as well as all the requisite UIs). The clip is narrated by PlanetSide 2 creative director Matt Higby, who provides a layman's introduction to the massive world of Auraxis as well as all the customizable gameplay that Sony Online Entertainment is building into its MMOFPS sequel.
Don't take our word for it, though. Check out the full video after the break.
If PlanetSide 2's recent Infiltrator class reveal didn't grab you by the throat and say, "Play me with very last, dying gasp in your rapidly-turning-blue body," then SOE would like to try again with the Engineer. PS2's Engineer got a promotion from his old duties as a wrench monkey, opting instead for blowing enemies up with high-yield explosives and creating tough-as-nails fortifications to protect his teammates.
Engineers are granted an Advanced Construction Engine that turns them into a walking, smart-talking factory. With this tool, Engineers can deploy anti-personnel and anti-vehicle turrets, anti-tank mines, and protective shield generators. In addition, the class will fill a vital role when it comes to repairing vehicle and suit damage
In direct combat, the Engineer will rely on a trustworthy assortment of assault weapons, such as shotguns and SMGs. SOE predicts that the Engineer will be most valuable in holding a position and starting a siege against an enemy stronghold.
Now that the glow of PlanetSide 2's GDC demo reveal is a couple of weeks back in the rear-view mirror, I've had time to digest it all and adjust my expectations of the game accordingly. Nothing I saw from Matt Higby and company dampened my enthusiasm for Sony Online Entertainment's MMOFPS opus, but a few things I didn't see are niggling at the back of my mind.
Don't get me wrong -- PS2 is still at the top of my most-anticipated MMO list, but there are a few points of contention that could relegate it to the status of fun diversion instead of zomg-must-play-every-day title.
Aside from the big GDC demo earlier this month, mass information dumps regarding PlanetSide 2 have been few and far between. Thankfully, creative director Matt Higby took to Reddit yesterday for an AMA (ask me anything) session that brought a few interesting nuggets to light.
If you're one of the game's hardcore faithful, the talk was more confirmation than revelation, but for casual or newly interested fans, there's a lot of stuff to digest. Among the more interesting bits was the fact that PS2 will use PunkBuster and the fact that all of the game's classes and vehicles will be available from the get-go.
Higby also touched on resource costs for vehicles as well as the fact that the devs want "to create the game first and then build the business model that best services the game, rather than trying to conform the game to some particular business or membership model."
If Reddit's sprawling threads and needle-in-a-haystack nested replies aren't your cup of tea, PlanetSide Universe has collected most of the relevant info on its own discussion boards.
He's the boogeyman whom battle-hardened soldiers fear and the guy whom Batman consults with on a daily basis. He's the Infiltrator, PlanetSide 2's sneaky assassin, and he won't stop coming for you until you are dead. Unless he gets lost. Planets are big.
SOErevealed the Infiltrator today as the game's stealth-user and long-distance sniper. Using advanced technology and camouflage systems, the Infiltrator can get to places that no other class can -- and do a lot of damage once there. Interestingly enough, while the Infiltrator lacks heavy armor, SOE does claim that the class' tactical advantages will prove to be just as protective as a titanium suit.
Infiltrators can use both sniper and scout rifles as well as pistols for close-quarter combat. The sniper rifle boasts the best range, while the scout rifle is better for mobile assault missions. It will, of course, be up to the player to decide whichever is the best to use in which situation.
One gets the sense that gamers can't wait for the future to get here so we can all join roving packs of pulse rifle-toting goons fighting each other for a living, like the world's most awesome paintball match. To tide us over, several studios are working hard at fulfilling our fantasies in virtual space with MMOFPS PvP titles such as DUST 514 and PlanetSide 2.
We recently got a closer look at both of these games at GDC, and it's safe to say that not only do they each come from experienced pedigree -- CCP and SOE -- but they're both highly anticipated by trigger-finger monitor mercenaries.
But we all know the sacred rule of MMOs, which is that there can only ever be one. There can only be one victor and one success -- and all the rest are doomed to languish in whatever the virtual equivalent of a compost heap is. So tell us true right now: Which will be more successful, DUST 514 or PlanetSide 2? Register your vote so that you'll be able to come back, months from now, and use this as proof that you knew better than all of the other fools out there!
This week I was fortunate enough to chat up the developers on the two biggest MMOFPS titles of the year. Exactly what year that is remains to be seen, and after hearing Sony Online Entertainment use the word "alpha" quite a lot, I suspect that PlanetSide 2 may slip into 2013. And that's not a bad thing at all, by the way.
CCP'sDUST 514, on the other hand, is surely coming in 2012. The devs will be doling out some long-awaited hands-on time with EVE's precocious little brother at Fanfest in a couple of weeks, and while DUST and PS2 share similar core gameplay, their target audiences (and the general feeling I get from each game) are completely different.
Massively Speaking Episode 189 is a special GDC edition hosted by two of our attendees, Shawn Schuster and Jef Reahard. The two assemble for a short, early-morning debriefing on yesterday's PlanetSide 2 demo, which as Shawn describes it, "pretty much blew [him] away." They compare the game to its predecessor and chat about the combat styles, immersion, interface, hype, and the massive feel of the game, even in alpha.
Stay tuned for tomorrow, when the pair will be joined by fellow Massively staffers MJ Guthrie and Karen Bryan. Our ground crew will be reporting back on DUST 514, Trion Worlds, MechWarrior Online, and more over the next few days. (And don't worry; the Justin and Bree show will return next week.)
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Our PlanetSide 2 bootcamp didn't start on the war-torn planet of Auraxis. It started on a plushly appointed hotel terrace in the middle of downtown San Francisco. Sony Online Entertainment brought its A-game to GDC 2012, and though its MMOFPS sequel is still undergoing internal alpha testing, the demo was striking enough to make us feel like battle-weary soldiers returning from the front.
Executive producer Josh Hackney kicked things off with a short spiel that touched on what made the original PlanetSide unique (truly massive combat, ambitious open-world design, and a passionate/enduring community, in a nutshell). Hackney then turned the microphone over to creative director Matt Higby and a team of SOE devs who proceeded to wow the gaggle of game journos with an hour of pure awesome.
May 17th 2012 at 2:00PM
