Games
The creators of PS4 classic Resogun are going back to the drawing board with their latest multiplayer epic.
Finnish studio Housemarque have been active since 1995 and can list classic titles such as Super Stardust HD, Outland and – perhaps most famously – PlayStation 4 launch title Resogun on their enviable CV, the latter of which was bombarded with rave reviews back in 2013. The company are renowned for their tight and compelling arcade-style experiences, but last year they were forced to make a drastic change. "Arcade is dead" proclaimed an open letter from Housemarque to their fans; poor sales of the critically-acclaimed Nex Machina forced the firm to rethink their strategy, but the message was ultimately a positive one – new gaming frontiers were waiting and Housemarque were rising to the challenge.
Now, we're finally witnessing this bold new beginning for one of Europe's most beloved game studios. Housemarque recently lifted the lid on Stormdivers, a multiplayer shooter with a wide range of influences. "The original concept was born three years ago in our internal 'pitch day' event," explains Mikael Haveri, Housemarque's head of publishing. "The game has been in production for two years, first with a smaller prototyping team and then with more people after our other projects got released last summer. It was inspired by the TV series Lost and many other mystery and action-centered movies. We really want to bring a multiplayer experience that’s tight, but also keep adding filmic events that take things to new heights."
Despite breaking new ground for the studio, the game's online focus is a refinement of Housemarque's previous multiplayer outings, says Haveri. "For a long time we've had multiplayer elements and now we want to focus on bringing a very tight online experience. All of our Housemarque flavour will still be there to define it further." As for what makes this unique when compared to the many other online shooters currently competing for the attention of players, Haveri confidently lists three main points. "Really tight gameplay, as any Housemarque game should have. Visual spectacle that no multiplayer game really has yet, and our 'secret sauce'. We will absolutely deliver on our core competencies; everything else is for the players to let us know about, but gameplay they shouldn't worry about."
The title can be taken quite literally when it comes to breaking down Stormdivers' setting, and verticality plays a huge part in the game. "There will be a freaky storm and you will be diving into it," explains Haveri. It would seem that the 'storm' part of the name also has plenty of significance, although Haveri refuses to be drawn when it comes to explaining what that might be. "Whether it will or whether I won't, it all depends on the weather – it seems to have a mind of its own," he retorts with a smile. "We will be posting small hints and background story teasers all the way up until release."
Watch the Stormdivers trailer:
Of course, it's impossible to discuss online shooters in 2018 without mentioning Battle Royale titles like PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds and Fortnite – two games which have captured the hearts and minds of millions. Will Stormdivers slot neatly into this popular genre, as many have speculated based on the short teaser trailer above, or offer something entirely different? "Stormdivers hopefully goes beyond genres, but it should feel familiar to anyone who is actively playing these types of games," replies Haveri. However, he stops short of confirming if the game will feature a Battle Royale mode. "We don't aim to define it as a single thing, as it will evolve to where we and the players want to take it."
Stormdivers is Housemarque's second game built using the Unity engine, after last year's Matterfall. "We started with Matterfall as our first Unreal Engine 4 title, so we had some practice," explains Haveri. "There's always a period of learning, and taking a moment to really get the most out of your new tools. Currently, we are very happy and are actually adding a lot of custom layers to the engine, focusing mostly on creating stunning new visual effects – hence the 'Housemarque VFX engine' logo that we put in our last trailer. It's simply there to communicate that we are going above and beyond, especially in this area." But what will this in-house engine provide? "Particle effects, fog, mist, eye candy in general," Haveri says. "We have a great team working on just that. Actually, two of them have won separate Academy Awards for special effects in movies – for Hugo and Jungle Book – so we expect the visuals to be quite explosive."
With its unique setting and online gameplay, is there any danger that Housemarque's new game could end up alienating the very fans who made the studio a success over the past two decades? "We still love all the great titles we've made, and now we are just getting to experiment with new things again," Haveri replies. "Hopefully our fans find the Housemarque soul still remains. In the end, this change of pace has been a long time in the making and is also due to the market for arcade titles becoming a lot harder to sell games in."
Haveri explains that Stormdivers isn't totally confirmed for any particular gaming platform as yet, but the company is "open to signing deals for anything from a microwave to a space rocket," so there's certainly potential for a console release. He's also unable to comment on speculation that Stormdivers could adopt the same free-to-play approach seen in PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds and Fortnite. He is, however, able to reveal that the game isn't the only thing that Housemarque is working on currently; another "unannounced AAA project" is also in development as we speak.
Despite the Finnish company's enviable experience in games development, Haveri has a hard time concealing just how excited he is about the company's future. "It will be a new beginning, one of many that we've done in the past," he comments. "We used to be known as the 'Snowboarding Games' company in the early 2000s, and then we had the golden age of arcade. Hopefully, this latest change will be the biggest yet, and will allow us to do more things and with the financial ease that all companies wish for. Let's see how it goes."
