The science fiction shooter The Cycle is like Battle Royale meets the shooter Destiny 2. Currently, The Cycle is still in Early Access but is making significant progress. Two employees from the German developer Yager explain to MeinMMO author Benedict Grothaus about the game and its future.
The Cycle was announced back in 2018 but has since received little media attention. However, it has been known since its announcement that The Cycle aims to be a unique mix of PvE and PvP, a kind of battle royale with special features.
Since Gamescom 2019, The Cycle has been playable in free Early Access, which you can easily download via the Epic Games Launcher on PC.
As part of “Find Your Next Game“, I joined the developers for some rounds of the sci-fi shooter. My colleague Christian Fritz Schneider from GameStar YouTube was also there.
In the process, I, as a complete newbie, got to know The Cycle, as well as being one of the first to see and play the new features of the upcoming Season 3. I also took the opportunity to extract some information from the developers regarding the future and development of the game.
Instead, you complete tasks that appear in the world. With your “Prospectors”, as the characters in the game are called, you collect crystals, fight against aggressive species on the planet, or collect specific items to secure points. You play in groups of four players, in duos, or solo with a total of 20 players in the lobby.
If you encounter opponents, you can kill them, but you don’t have to. It’s also possible to form alliances with opponents and break them again. After a “death”, the player can re-enter the game and get a second chance – they are not truly killed but sent back to the ship. Only upon their second “death” are they permanently out.
At the end, a storm closes in, harming all players within it, with a rescue ship waiting in its center. At least one player from the team must reach the rescue ship for the points to count.
The Cycle played – Battle Royale differently
This is how a round goes: Before our first match, my more experienced teammates explain to me that we do not drop onto the map like in a battle royale. Instead, we land, like all other teams, at the edge of the map.
The flow of a round always follows a roughly similar structure:
- Complete tasks to earn points
- Kill NPC opponents or open chests to gain currency
- Buy new weapons that can be obtained at any time from a shop
- Kill opponents, as long as they are in the way
- At the end of the match, reach the rescue ship and escape
There is no ever-closing circle. Instead, there is a time limit of 20 minutes, during which a storm grows and creatures become more aggressive and stronger. In the end, the storm becomes so strong that you can only survive for a few seconds. Then it’s time to reach the rescue ship and flee.
Opponents do not necessarily have to be killed. Especially towards the end, it can even be useful to work together with them to clear the landing zone. In solo mode, you can form pacts with others if they agree. To me, it sounds similar to the idea of Scavengers – only that The Cycle is already playable for free.
What makes the game special? The rounds and the special events and tasks that must be completed distinguish The Cycle from genre representatives. Even before a round, you can see in the station what type of task is active. There are various tasks, ranging from simple monster hunting and collecting items, to holding specific points, to rescuing drones.
One of the possible tasks: Collecting crystals 
One of the possible tasks: Charging stations 
The map shows available tasks 
Which four tasks are active, you can see even before the match starts 
A breakdown at the end of the match
There are many tasks that favor PvE and some that are specifically conflict-oriented. The conflict tasks are usually events where it is displayed on the entire map that a team is currently completing and where it is taking place. Other players then have the opportunity to disrupt this team and take the points for themselves.
Additionally, you can purchase weapons from a shop that can be called up at any time during the game. You prepare your loadout in the station with weapons, abilities, and suits that you can buy from three different reputation factions and then upgrade with mods. For weapon builders and anyone who enjoys taking their own creations into the field, it’s an ideal feature – almost as exciting as the gunsmith in Call of Duty: Modern Warfare.
Aside from the fact that everyone starts with the same conditions and it’s about who is the last one to win, The Cycle really doesn’t have much in common with battle royale.
The gameplay principle of The Cycle takes elements from various genres and combines them into something completely new. Something that I personally didn’t know I would enjoy so much. This system leads to players who think they wouldn’t like the game finding it pretty cool. Florian tells me this in an anecdote:
At the fairs we attended, whether at Gamescom or at MAG in Erfurt, we had many people say: “Oh no, that’s not my type of game, but… I’ll give it a try anyway!” They were then totally excited about the approach that they could say: “We focus on PvE, gather as many points as we can, and then disappear again.” That’s part of our player base that doesn’t want hardcore gaming.
The Hosts: Florian Rohde has been working as Community & Player Support Lead at Yager and The Cycle since October 2019. He has been gathering experience in the gaming industry since 2014 when he worked as a Game Master at Aeria Games. Lena Klein has been working at Yager since February 2019 and is now responsible for networking with content creators, especially on Twitch. Previously, she worked for four years at NDR.
Season 3 brings more features, even from Destiny 2
The main reason the developers invited us from MeinMMO to play is the upcoming Season 3. This is expected to start on July 8, 2020, with update 16. While playing, I was the first to see some of the new features. They enhance the gameplay of The Cycle in many areas, but completely change it in others.
The tests for Season 3 are currently under an NDA. We have received exclusive early insights in Germany. Therefore, here you see images of the new season and the features that The Cycle will receive.
With the launch of Season 3, players in the Epic Games Store will also receive a free bundle of cosmetics. Anyone who wants to start or who is already playing should take advantage of that.
The Cycle receives a social hub with Season 3, the station
These are the new features: The biggest new feature with Season 3 is the station, where you hang out when you are not in a match. Up until now, the station has simply been a menu. With Season 3 it will become a real social hub – like the Tower in Destiny 2.
There, you can meet other players, buy new weapons, customize your loadout, or just spend some time in the bar and look for interesting places and Easter eggs.
The station – Like the Tower in Destiny 2 
The view of the planet from the station 
There’s even a terrarium 
NPCs further enliven the station 
A preview of offers in the cash shop 
The bar in the station: The Lucky Leafman 
The interior of the Lucky Leafman 
Here Prospectors land after being defeated – but only visually 
The station for the Battle Pass 
A tribute to Satisfactory 
The new faction shops – Here from Korolev
Another significant adjustment is the elimination of crafting materials. Previously, you needed to bring certain resources from a match to unlock your weapons and mods. Starting with Season 3, there will simply be a single currency, which is intended to ease the entry significantly.
In the rounds themselves, there is a new task: a moving train. This train travels across the map and can be taken by players. As long as you own it, it passively earns you points, and you don’t have to pay attention to it. However, opponents can steal it from you at any time. This creates a new dynamic over whether to protect the train and ignore other tasks or to take the risk that others might take the train from you.
Preliminary patch notes for Season 3 show exciting changes
Overall, there are supposed to be several pages of changes and fixes. I have summarized some of the most important additional changes here:
- All weapons and mods have been adjusted; gunplay has been overhauled
- Anyone who dies can now repeat their “Recall Beacon” from the place of their death to regain their entry
- The queues will get “skill-based matchmaking” (SBMM)
- A new battle pass with new prospectors
- An “invite-only” game mode for tournaments – for the esports community
- The ping system will be contextual, like the highly praised system from Apex Legends
One of the new prospectors: Primetime, a streamer 
Revised weapons in the new menu 
Cosmetics: A “Foam Position” in the Battle Pass 
Cosmetics: A “Foam Position” in the Battle Pass 
Cosmetics: An emote in the Battle Pass 
Some of the rewards in the Battle Pass 
The new customization menu for cosmetics and prospectors 
The new prospector Ronin 
The new prospector Primetime
How good are the changes? I only really started playing The Cycle after testing Season 3. However, my impression is that the game is becoming significantly more enjoyable and polished with the new features.
The overview with the individual places in the station is improved, and the huge collection of dozens of different materials is replaced by a single currency. For newcomers, Season 3 is ideal.
Some of the changes, however, are more of a “nice to have” – like SBMM or the new mode for the community. However, these are things that players have been very eager for, as Florian and Lena tell me.
Steam, PS4, Xbox One? The future of The Cycle
What features are still coming? Some of the features originally planned for Season 3 had to be scrapped for now. However, they are expected to come later, likely by the end of July. These include:
- A 10vs10 player mode
- Statistics and achievements for players, such as a statistic about kills with certain weapons
- A new career, the “Prospector Levels”, to have progress with the entire account
Additionally, The Cycle is expected to receive several limited-time events with special event modes, like egg collecting at Easter. This will keep the game fresh in the long run.
The material now being removed from the game with Season 3 could also return in the future – for example, to craft legendary weapons. The game’s story will also receive additional missions to draw you deeper into the narrative.
After Season 3, The Cycle will get a third map and new weapons. However, Florian and Lena couldn’t tell me when exactly that would be.
When is the release of The Cycle? So far, there is no specific date for the release. Florian and Lena explain that this depends a bit on how well the bug fixes are progressing.
In the course of 2020, the exclusivity contract with Epic will also expire. When asked whether the release of The Cycle coincides with a release on Steam, both laugh and respond, “Possible.”
What about PlayStation and Xbox? The focus of The Cycle is currently fully on PC. However, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One are “interesting” for the developers. If or when this gets underway, versions for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X would be “a good plan.”
Who is The Cycle suitable for?
Anyone who has any interest in shooters should take a look at The Cycle – even if they think this type of game wouldn’t appeal to them. The unique concept offers a way for almost every type of shooter player to enjoy the game.
- Do you just want to collect points? Complete tasks and avoid contact with other players – you can almost always escape.
- Are you into PvP? Target your opponents and eliminate the squads in front of you.
- Do you like tactical gameplay? Choose the tasks that cause conflicts and collect points with them, or split up to do more tasks simultaneously.
The system that The Cycle follows is quite frustration-free. Since you at least receive some reward even if you don’t make it out alive, a defeat is easy to bear. In the worst case, it’s even enough for one person in the team to escape to secure the points for everyone.
And since there are many PvE activities and the TTK is relatively high, conflicts are manageable, and a fight doesn’t lead to me quickly tossing the mouse away in annoyance. I am usually a rather competitive player and tend to get a bit tilted when I fail in other shooters. The Cycle is significantly more relaxed.
The fusion of PvE and PvP in The Cycle has been remarkably successful. So successful that I hope more games will orient themselves to this system and that more ideas will come up.
However, anyone who already knows that they only enjoy realistic hardcore shooters or who generally can’t get into shooter games, won’t find The Cycle to be for them either.
I expected Battle Royale and got something much better
The Cycle attracts with a system that everyone knows since Fortnite and does everything differently than one would expect.
The PvE content that is essential for a victory loosens up the system of fighting to the last man. It ensures that the now almost overused battle royale elements are broken up. Meanwhile, the content remains varied and challenging – in our rounds, we even died a couple of times from NPCs. Moreover, there’s always the danger that other players might ambush your team.
Everyone starts with the same conditions, and at the end of a round, it’s still about having the most points and surviving. The path to get there, however, is entirely different than in PUBG, Fortnite, or Warzone.
This makes The Cycle interesting for anyone who enjoys competitive shooters and wants to match up against others without being seemingly hopeless if they land without gear. Instead, there’s even the opportunity for teamwork – or for heated battles over the last points you need for victory.
I have only played a few hours so far, but I see the potential that this genre could engage me more than other sub-genres of shooters. With Scavengers already in development, which follows a similar approach, I hope for a potential new trend after Battle Royale. Perhaps The Cycle will be able to spark this trend. I think: The chances are good.
Benedict Grothaus
Freelance writer at Mein-MMO
