The German development studio Yager has made a name for itself with the space game Dreadnought and now wants to shake up the online shooter market with the game “The Cycle” (PC).
The Cycle will not be a battle royale shooter and will not follow in the footsteps of Destiny, but will aim to take the genre in a new direction. However, this could also become somewhat problematic.
The Cycle – PvP meets PvE
Treasure seekers against treasure seekers. In the distant future, you find yourselves on a space station orbiting the planet Fortuna III. On this world, valuable resources are disputed by several factions. You belong to one of these factions and are a freelancer who regularly goes to the planet to find resources and bring them back to the space station. This helps your party gain more power.
PvE meets PvP. You begin each mission alone. During the mission, you encounter other players who can join you or whom you can help. Currently, there are about 20 players per match.
However, you can’t really trust anyone. Every player is trying to complete their mission and get to the resources. This leads to a competition for the resources. Once someone has managed to snag the resources, they should watch out for the other players.
This means that PvP is possible at any time and anywhere. A firefight between players can suddenly break out. Even if you manage to secure the resources, you are still not safe. You first have to bring them back to the space station.
The developers explain that there will be a kind of race in which you try to reach the station, but other players can attack you and want to take the resources.
Fairness in Open PvP?
Open PvP with quests – Can that go well? Many players will certainly be horrified at the thought of being constantly attacked by others during quests. Games have shown too often that this potentially opens the door for players who enjoy constantly attacking others.
The developers are aware of this and want to implement some gameplay mechanics to minimize this effect:
- You will not receive rewards for attacking other players
- There is no leaderboard for kills of fellow players
- There is a leaderboard that shows which players progress particularly effectively in the missions
- Players should be encouraged to primarily want to complete their missions and only fight against other players in emergencies
- You have only one life per match. If you are eliminated, you will no longer participate in the round. Therefore, everyone must proceed cautiously
- A matchmaking system will group peaceful players together and let the aggressive players play among themselves
- There are indications of whether you can trust a player. For example, a bounty may be placed on a player who has cheated others
- Players who constantly attack others will get branded and hunted
A little bit of Battle Royale, but with more options. The Cycle does not want to completely distance itself from Battle Royale. For example, it is possible to fight on the map until only one player remains. This player would win because they are ultimately the one who can get the resources to the station. Additionally, you will be brought to the planet by dropship, which somewhat resembles the parachute jumps from Fortnite or PUBG. Still, you will have more options:
- You can team up and try to advance together
- It is possible to reach your goal alone
- You can bypass all enemies
Gamescom and Alpha: At Gamescom in August, The Cycle will be showcased in more detail. The online shooter will even be playable. Additionally, an alpha will soon start, for which interested players can already register now on the official website. The Cycle is expected to be released at the end of 2018 for PC.
