Last week, Spanish studio MercurySteam announced a new game, Raiders of the Broken Planet. Described as an "online multiplayer asymmetric adventure", it seemed to suggest a major departure from the usual story focus of their previous games, from Jericho to the Castlevania: Lords of Shadow trilogy.
This caused the initial disappointment of many fans. However, MercurySteam tried to explain via many different messages that Raiders of the Broken Planet is not what people have imagined until now.
The official Twitter account of the studio explained that it will have a huge story, while co-owner and Games Designer Enric Alvarez explained that it is fully enjoyable in single player too.
@SameerMonier Story on this is huge and you can play single player if you want. Don’t worry more info soon 🙂
— MercurySteam (@mercurysteam) April 18, 2016
To all those worried with our new game "Raiders..." being only multiplayer, rest assured it is fully enjoyable in single player mode too
The team then replied to a fan saying that it looked too similar to Battleborn by saying that he couldn't be more wrong, and added that Raiders of the Broken Planet is neither a MOBA nor a 3v1 game.
@TheAestivation You couldn’t be more wrong!
— MercurySteam (@mercurysteam) April 18, 2016
@PCenital Ni es un MOBa ni un 3v1 tampoco 😉
— MercurySteam (@mercurysteam) April 18, 2016
Even a former employee of MercurySteam who worked on the game wondered in a Neogaf post why MercurySteam didn't showcase Raiders of the Broken Planet for what it really is.
Dave Cox picked up on that and said they'll try to do better in the future.
@TheAestivation @mercurysteam - No worries. We'll try to do better in future. Hoping to change some hearts and minds as we reveal more 🙂
— Dave Cox (@kiddracul) April 21, 2016
Then again, there's only a press release and some screenshots available so far. With no gameplay video or even trailer, it's very hard to judge what kind of game it will be.
We can only reiterate that you can sign up for the beta on the official website, while the full game will release later this year for PC, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
In the Lira Constellation, light years from Earth lies a Broken Planet. Long ago, its inhabitants discovered a powerful ability enhancing substance called Aleph. Today, this Broken Planet is home to the entire Universe’s intergalactic scum and criminal lowlife. All are here to wrest control of the Aleph and thereby control the Universe.
Raiders of the Broken Planet is a Multiplayer Online Asymmetric Adventure: Fight the invaders teaming up with other Raiders, or turn the tables and storm into battle with those invaders fighting at your side!
With its distinctive blend of shooting, brawling and thinking man’s strategy,Raiders of the Broken Planet is a mouth watering proposition to gamers looking for an immersive, cinematic story coupled with intense and epic action.
MercurySteam is also announcing that it will be self-publishing the game as an independent for the first time. The powerful story driven narrative will be delivered episodically, with each part selling at an extremely low and attractive price point. A company spokesman commented “We saw an exciting opportunity with this title to take advantage of digital distribution and offer the game at a much lower entry point than would otherwise have been possible. This model also allows us to work closely with gamers to create something that they can help shape too.”
With this in mind, the company is planning multiple beta programs where players can get in early and help drive the games development. The new teaser site launched today allows players eager to get involved to sign up for the forthcoming beta program and find out the latest information on the games development.
