Like so many online games have done over the years, Evolve tried to artificially pad out its content by making its progression incredibly grindy, which led to repetition, and in turn, boredom. The game’s balancing across its many maps and characters was also criticized. Most flagrant among its flaws was its progression system- new characters were unlocked at a torturously slow pace, and since the little morsels of the game’s story were tied to playing as new characters, that, too, felt slow as molasses to most who played the game. Its maps were too samey in their visual design and aesthetic, and playing as the monsters, disappointingly enough, quickly got repetitive. But it wasn’t perfect, of course- far from it. The 4v1 framework, the tense atmosphere of its multiplayer matches, the uniquely atmospheric and excellently realized setting- all of these were just a few of the game’s highlights, and Evolve was rightly praised by no few people for all of these reasons. Evolve had plenty going for it, of course. The stage was set for Evolve to take the world by storm.Įverything after the game’s launch was more complicated than its pre-release hype would have suggested. 2K, too, put its whole weight behind the project, and decided to hype it up as its next big franchise. A unique new multiplayer game offering an experience that can’t be found in many other games, all of it coming from the people who created Left 4 Dead no less- how could one not be excited by that elevator pitch? Its showings at events and showcases drew plenty of excitement as well, and pre-launch alphas and playtests suggested that the game was shaping up to be something special. Officially unveiled in 2014, for a year until it came out, Evolve generated plenty of buzz and even more hype. Thankfully for Evolve and for its developers, Take-Two Interactive ended up picking up the property, and 2K was assigned as the game’s publisher. The developer did eventually strike a deal with THQ- but THQ, of course, ended up going bankrupt. Sure, asymmetrical multiplayer titles have become quite common in today’s day and age, but that was far from true back when Evolve was starting development (or even when it first launched), and there weren’t too many publishers who wanted to take a chance on it. In spite of the studio’s pedigree, the 4v1 concept of Evolve was viewed as too niche and ambitious. Turtle Rock had a hard time finding a publishing partner who would help fund and distribute their game. But with the advent of the PS4 and Xbox One, the newly reformed Turtle Rock decided that Evolve could be the perfect debut game for the studio.ĭevelopment was- let’s call it eventful. Evolve was a concept that the studio had finalized way back in 2005, putting it on the back-burner at the time because they felt the technology of the time couldn’t do it justice. With their experience on properties like Counter-Strike and Left 4 Dead, they knew they had the experience and pedigree to make another big multiplayer game, but this time, they wanted to do something new and different. Turtle Rock Studios was re-established as an independent studio by some of its original staff after Valve shut them down, and for their first project, they decided to swing for the fences. But how did we get to this? How did one of the most exciting new releases of its time end up being the failure that Evolve is now known to be? All that promise, all that potential- all of it, gone to waste. Evolve is little more than a memory now, not even playable (unless you’re looking for peer-to-peer matches). Things progressively got worse and worse for Evolve once it had released, and in spite of the best efforts of Turtle Rock and publisher 2K, ultimately, nothing could save it from dying an untimely death. And sure enough, for a short time after the game’s launch, it was enjoying all the success that so many had predicted it would.īut that success, as we now know, was awfully short-lived. A unique idea, a cool setting, and a fascinating gameplay hook- it seemed like it had everything going for it. Developed by Turtle Rock Studio, the developers of the original Left 4 Dead, Evolve was being billed as The Next Big Thing in multiplayer games back before launch, and pre-launch coverage and impressions suggested that it would live up to that billing. Turn back the clock to early 2015, and you’ll find plenty of buzz around an upcoming game called Evolve.
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