Shattered Horizon Beta Impressions
Zero-G Combat Moondust fighting. At launch, three game modes will be present. Skirmish is a bog standard team deathmatch mode - kill the other team, don't get killed. Battle adds multiple control points to each map and whoever gets them all wins the round. Assault modifies the Battle mode by putting one side on the attack while the other side tries to defend each control point in turn. Pretty standard stuff really, and the game could have definitely used something more in this department. On the other hand, this is tried and true - all these modes are known to work from numerous earlier team-based shooters. Some persistence is added with web-based rankings that track your performance from game to game. You gain military ranks as you go and just about every little bit is recorded to your stats. It would appear that everything is there for related achievements, but we didn't see any during the beta so at this point it is unknown if Steam achievements are going to be included. All game types are easy to grasp and the challenge comes from adjusting to the full freedom and the way how movement works. While it would appear that staying on the move is beneficial, it is not quite that simple. When floating around, the accuracy at range is limited and if you do land and stay put for improved accuracy, you are also sitting duck - especially for enemy snipers. In general, fighting feels more like "maneuver to a superior position, get a kill, get out, reposition" rather than "circle strafe guns blazing". Shattered Horizon does feel a bit slower than most shooters, but the extra rocket pack boost ability does allow quick escapes and fast dashes into close quarters when it is needed. There is also a noticeable learning curve to tackle - nothing too harsh, mind you, but there is a new skillset to learn. It was funny to see how during the first day of beta, new testers were mostly fodder for those who had already played the game during in-house testing sessions. It was laughably easy to ambush people from unexpected angles as the gut reaction was to "think two-dimensionally". However, as the hardcore FPS gamers got a few hours of play under their belt and figured it all out, the tables were turned and the devs were often getting completely owned in their own game. Space, The Final Frontier Harsh sunlight and realistic space look really makes Shattered Horizon visually distinct. Visually Shattered Horizon is quite distinctive - it really goes for that real space look with bright and harsh lighting and many shades of gray dominating the scene. At highest settings there is a ton of detail everywhere and at all times you are playing against the backdrop of Earth - which really looks massive and detailed, like it should. I guess nobody expected anything other than great visuals from the guys who have worked on 3DMark benchmarks, but personally I'm impressed how true to the real space photos and videos Shattered Horizon looks. It really is a lot like what human built structures in space could look like in a few decades. Same goes with the audio. Shattered Horizon is one of the very few games that actually acknowledges that no, there is no sound in space. Okay, practical considerations mean that there has to be audio cues for fighting but they actually come from your suit that is running a simulation software. Should you get hit by an EMP and lose all your suit electronics, you get to hear what it would probably sound like in space - you hear only muffled bass from your thrusters and your gun transmitted through your suit and the sound of your breathing. FGS also added a stealthy "Silent Running" mode to the game during beta for added super-cool factor, allowing you to shut down your suit on purpose for the same effect. Your maneuverability is reduced as thrusters are working only at minimum power, but importantly your thrusters no longer light up the area as you move and you won't show up on the HUDs of other players (friend or foe), making it much easier to pull off ambushes. Very very cool.
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