During the keynote for the survival MMO H1Z1 last night in Las Vegas, the team from Sony Online Entertainment presented a new feature: planes visibly drop special equipment. The team expects that there will be a real slaughter around these air drops.
These days, alongside the Gamescom in Cologne, SOE Live is also taking place in Las Vegas. The MMO studio Sony Online Entertainment is showcasing the individual games and projects, including the survival MMO H1Z1. Last night, it had its big appearance.
SOE’s president John Smedley briefly summarized the game’s backstory: the idea was born just in December. During a production break, while working on another game, they experimented with some prototypes until the idea for a survival MMO like DayZ or Rust fully clicked and excited the entire team. This team is comprised of zombie fans who never miss an episode of The Walking Dead. Initially, they were just playing around with the Forgelight engine to see what was possible with it. The Forgelight engine is also used in Planetside 2, and most elements in H1Z1 come from this game. This explains why they already had a game a few months after the idea was conceived, which is now continuously being refined.
Early Access only when SOE loves the game, not just likes it
The fact that Early Access is still awaited was explained by Smedley: “At the moment, we really like the game, but we want to put it into Early Access only when we love it. And we are getting closer to that stage all the time.” This is not just flirting. They are not pretending here; they want to bring H1Z1 to the public only when they are completely convinced of it.
“Deeper, deeper” is the motto – H1Z1 should be complex
During the panel, the main members of the H1Z1 team responded to fan questions from the audience. One attendee wanted to know whether the individual elements of the game interacted with each other, meaning if one could shoot the tires of a jeep with a pistol or ignite something with a gas canister. The developers answered that such interactions are indeed part of their plan. Smedley constantly encourages them to make the game deeper and deeper. This is precisely their goal. However, for Early Access, they want to initially bring a kind of cross-section of the game to life, offering a bit of everything so that fans can provide valuable feedback.
When asked what distinguishes H1Z1 from other zombie games like DayZ, former FPS pro gamer Jimmy Whisenhunt mentioned SOE’s MMO experience. They are an MMO company; that’s what they’re specialized in, and they can do that extremely well.
The Bunny Hat question and the issue with Pay2Win in H1Z1
The question of how looting works is one that both developers and fans are concerned about in H1Z1. The developers reported that they had met for a “Bunny Hat” conference to discuss whether players could loot a cosmetic item from a defeated player that they had in the shop, like bunny ears. The answer: yes, this will be possible. The player who originally bought the ears will lose that expenditure; however, they have acquired the blueprint for this item in the shop and can craft the bunny ears again. Meanwhile, the murdering thief will still have obtained them. However, nothing purchased in the Station Shop should be able to be directly lost.
The issue of “Pay2Win” is closely monitored by fans. When a special item was announced as a reward for SOE Live attendees, alarms rang in social media that SOE was distributing weapons that would give others an advantage. However, SOE immediately reassured: this is just a skin for a club, and there are no effects on the game.
Guilds, as known in other MMOs, are called communities in H1Z1. Special challenges will be introduced in the game for player unions. Because large communities also bring corresponding risks in H1Z1. Those who rush through a city with 30 people are, after all, the most attractive target for all zombies on the server, the developers explained. They also do not want to make finding friends too easy because that is part of the adventure of a zombie apocalypse. Simply spawning next to a buddy would hardly fit this threatening atmosphere.
Greed leads to slaughter in H1Z1 – The Air Drop
At the conclusion of the event, they presented the “Air Drop” as a new feature. A loud propeller plane circles in the sky, dropping a large box full of valuable equipment somewhere. Players see this, run towards it, and try to get the box under their control. In the example video, a situation arises reminiscent of The Hunger Games: in a kind of “Battle Royale,” the H1Z1 players battle for the valuable equipment until the last survivor secures the precious look into the box.
