The indie MMO Identity wants to take you into a real-life world and provide a new gaming experience. The ambitious MMO entered Early Access at the end of 2018. But where does it stand today?
What is Identity? Identity is an MMO and simultaneously a life simulation. You play in a world that aims to come as close to reality as possible and is set in a fictional American state.
Instead of orcs, elves, or other fantasy creatures, you will encounter people wandering through cities, buying houses, and going to work.
Identity sounds interesting because it has some innovative ideas:
- You can join the police or the criminals. This is meant to give the game a PvP component.
- Your character evolves over time and learns many skills, especially in crafting. As a cook, you prepare food for a city, as a drug dealer, meth and other substances.
- You start small with drug production in your garage and should work your way up to a well-known drug baron. A trailer is inspired by the successful series Breaking Bad.
- Housing is also expected to play a significant role in Identity.
Early Access since 2018
What happened to Identity? On November 30, 2018, the MMO launched as Buy2Play in Early Access on Steam. The game was in a very early phase at launch but communicated from the beginning that the game would be released in several modules:
- Module 1 was the social part, where you could explore a city, enter houses, and watch YouTube videos in-game.
- The SWAT module, which was supposed to bring PvP and additional content, was planned for 2019.
- The racing module is scheduled to be completed in 2020.
- The release is expected to take place in 2021.
How was the MMO received? Right at launch on Steam, the game received 69 positive and 111 negative reviews. The main points of criticism were:
- Poor character editor
- Technical issues
- Little gameplay content outside of exploring the city
The positive reviews referred to the potential of the game and the clear communication that the first module mainly contains social features.
2019 started well, ends without promised update
What happened in 2019 in Identity? The year 2019 began with an update that brought smaller, new content. Players can now grow marijuana themselves and explore new areas of the city.
As announced, work was done on the SWAT content. In May, the developers presented a video showing the combat system and weapons of Identity. However, these contents have not made it into the game yet.
What happened after the video? Since the release of the video, there has been almost silence. Neither on the official website, nor on Steam or YouTube have the developers commented.
Only in the game’s Discord was there a brief message that developments are delayed for financial reasons, but work on the SWAT content is still ongoing.
Identity has the problem that it is very ambitious. It has already been compared to Star Citizen. However, the financial situations of the MMOs are quite different:
- Identity raised “only” $188,000 on Kickstarter. We do not know how much was raised through Early Access.
- Star Citizen has now raised over $250 million through crowdfunding.
As early as 2018, we suspected at MeinMMO that Identity might struggle at this hurdle.
Will Identity survive 2020?
What happens in 2020? We still do not know how the MMO Identity will proceed. However, it is possible that the SWAT update will bring enough good content for the MMO to experience a resurgence.
However, the developers would need to comment and release the update. The lack of communication makes players anxious.
It is therefore also possible that Identity will not survive 2020.
