Shattered Horizon - Zero gravity multiplayer FPS (from the makers of 3Dmark)

Aerothorn on 3/11/2009 at 15:02

On one hand, I agree that this looks pretty awesome and fresh.

On the other, the trailer did raise a few concerns:

1. Didn't really seem like there was much variety in the action or visuals. Will the game get dull after the novelty of the zero-grav wears off?

2. We only see a single weapon in the trailer. Given that the game is supposed to release tomorrow, that seems a little strange to me.

Volitions Advocate on 3/11/2009 at 16:49

I'd say that post could easily fit into the game intro thread as well. It was just a trailer after all. Why spoil the fun? We still haven't seen anything about Xen from the BMS guys. Not really the greatest comparison but you get what I mean.

catbarf on 3/11/2009 at 18:05

Unfortunately Aerothorn is correct on both counts.

Aerothorn on 9/11/2009 at 11:02

Yep. From Big Joystick:

"Futuremark has made the actual combat simple to learn. One of the reasons is a lack of available weapons. You have an unlimited ammo-based machine gun (you have to reload every 60 rounds) that has a sniper alt-fire. Don't use the sniper mode while floating; Futuremark makes the recoil bounce back very severe. You need to attach yourself to the surface in order to effectively use it. You also have three different types of grenades; an explosive concussion version, an EMP grenade that can slow down your opponents and a "ice" grenade that the game's equivalent of a smoke grenade; it obscures vision pretty well."

That's it, one gun.

kidmystik101 on 9/11/2009 at 11:35

Hm. I actually like the idea of one gun. Means the game comes down to skill, not who got the rail gun first.

catbarf on 9/11/2009 at 11:50

It gets boring very, very quickly. Every player has the same weaponry, no classes or specialties to differentiate them. The only thing that ever changes is the map. It's fun, that's for sure, but you could play it in a weekend and get bored.

Volitions Advocate on 9/11/2009 at 23:56

I guess they better get some comprehensive DLC in there soon then.

Koki on 10/11/2009 at 07:31

Or are aiming at hardcore progaming scene.

NamelessPlayer on 14/11/2009 at 07:10

Nifty idea for sure-I haven't seen much in the way of zero-G, 6DoF gaming since the Descent series and Heavy Gear II's space levels. (And then there's the Ender's Game Battle Room comparisons...)

Futuremark also gets bonus points for actually explaining WHY you hear sound in space, and how that explanation can be disabled either manually or by staying too close to an EMP grenade detonation, along with inertial compensation and some other suit functions. (It's a computer-simulated sound system designed to enhance situational awareness. Same explanation I'd use.)

However, while I do have a system that can run it, my 8800 GT being a MINIMUM requirement is a bit of a concern, lack of US$20 to spend notwithstanding. I'm not making any graphics card upgrades before Fermi/GT300 hits the market, which will probably be several months. (And, going by 3DMark03, Futuremark knows how to be BRUTAL on hardware-that old benchmark can still hammer my Athlon XP 3200+/1.5 GB DDR-333/6800 Ultra build to unacceptable FPS levels, and that's 2003/2004-era hardware!)

Bakerman on 23/11/2009 at 09:05

This looks really interesting. Props to them for going the independent route. And they really do know what the PC gamers like to hear (@Koki ;P). I might pick it up if I get some spare change. But I'll probably wait to see if any more content is released first.