Evolve: Alien Dogs, Robots, Mini-Guns and Megamouths
We evolved robots with British accents first, Turtle Rock.
I think my favourite thing about Evolve is its logo. It's intricately designed, simple genius. Those of you laughing, or perhaps suggesting that says more about the game than the logo, can all shush. Turtle Rock's Left 4 Monsters sits squarely in the middle of familiarity and originality for me, taking a co-op formula I appreciated and placing it in a more attractive sci-fi sphere. Changing from a long trek through swarms of undead to a single, flowing battle against one foe appeals more to me too. There's a new trailer with details on the latest four additions to the good guys and the newest map below.
What is worrying is the lack of information about differing opposing forces. Since we last heard from them Turtle Rock have been fully shtum on what variations there might be from the Goliath seen here and, well, everywhere else in their media so far. L4D extended its playtime with the massive selection of maps, modes and scenarios that could be constructed with its many small moving parts. The key difference is how powerful Evolve's individual characters are in comparison, which skews the algorithm. If the monster can clear buildings in a single bound, the exact intricate details of those buildings becomes much less relevant. Equally, if it can be tied down by numorous special powers, the geometry of nearby areas when it comes to choke points and open clearings becomes less relevant.
According to all reports, Evolve's already more than enough for a few hours at a preview event. The next stage is to ensure it can hold our attentions for the weeks, months and years that multiplayer titles require. Titanfall is currently battling that conundrum despite being one of the most hype-filled releases in recent memory. There's potential in Evolve, Turtle Rock just need to leverage it. Nathan'll have some more impressions in the near future.