Battle Royale’s are the current big fad when it comes to online gaming, and when you look at series like Fortnite and PlayerUnknown’s Battle grounds you can certainly see why. The question is, however, with so many new variations popping up how do you stand out from the rest? The answer, according to Mavericks: Proving Grounds is “Bigger is Better”.
The trailer shown at E3 this year, while action packed, didn’t actually show off the full scope of gameplay which they aim to achieve – a playing stage of 16x16km with over 1000 players. The actual size of the Battle Royale stage is set to be a little smaller, measuring at around 10x10km, which is still larger than that of PUBG’s 6x6km map. This still doesn’t detract from the trailer, which shows us a number of locales all varying in geography and full of places to hide, ambush, and attack from.
Mavericks: Proving Grounds will focus the story around a post-World War 3 version of the British Iles where a corrupt and domineering government rules with an iron fist and forces those who rebel to fight to the death. According to Automoton Games’ CEO James Thompson, Mavericks will be a “player driven narrative” that encourages players to fight back against the autocratic administration.
Players will also be able to utilise a central social hub, known as “The Capital”, to meet, trade and team up with other gamers before heading out to complete missions. The Capital will also contain, within it, the overreaching central tower, a large building emblazoned with the letter “M”, as seen in the tailer. Not only will it enforce the gaming worlds oppressive feel, but it will also act as a constant compass, since the building will always be able to be located on screen, even in the background.
Mavericks: Proving Grounds will also be soft launching a closed beta later in the year around August/September 2018. They will be using the Battle Royale template to test the server load and technology behind it, and will accommodate 200 players, before moving up to 400 soon after, according to Thompson. By December they will be aiming for the full 1,000 player version to be available for beta testing, before rolling out the full version in 2019 onto PC
About the Author
Kieren Munn
A typical gaymer, I enjoy most RPG's, Platformers, and Fighting games. I started gaming early with Sonic the Hedgehog, Mortal Kombat and Alex the Kidd on my Sega Mega Drive. This started a "healthy" obsession that has spanned 5 generations of consoles, and I won't be stopping anytime soon.
