Ex-Blizzard Boss’s Wildgate Plays Like The Star Trek Game I’ve Always Wanted

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Initially, my hands-on introduction to Wildgate – an early production from Mike Morhaime’s Dreamhaven studio – filled me with concern due to its ambitious nature. The pre-preview briefing highlighted a multitude of features all at once: 20-player multiplayer, space exploration, two forms of combat, worlds that are randomly generated, and more. If any one of these aspects falls short, the overall experience could be negatively impacted significantly.

In an impressive manner, Wildgate manages to pull off the final move successfully so far. Its knack for smoothly transitioning between exploration and combat is noteworthy, and the progression feels genuinely earned rather than compelled. The game’s structure encourages a variety of strategies depending on who joins you on your expedition. After playing several matches against both AI and human adversaries, Wildgate is demonstrating significant potential as the next major multiplayer adventure.

https://www.gamespot.com/videos/wildgate-official-gameplay-reveal-trailer/2300-6465816/

In this game, called Wildgate, five teams consisting of five players each are placed onto an expansive 8×8 grid filled with open space. The objective for every team is to locate a powerful artifact known as the Artifact and successfully carry it through the Wildgate to claim the grand prize. However, if a team manages to survive as the last one standing at any point during the match, they can also emerge victorious.

In every map, you won’t find identical layouts since each one guides you to distinct locations for exploration and treasure hunting. Initially, the five teams begin their journey in various sections of the map, ensuring enough space for each team to embark on their own adventures. This setup is one of the most exciting aspects of the game so far: resource collection.

Absolutely correct! Exploring Wildgate is quite thrilling. When you discover a deserted vessel or space station, you and your companions can simply jetpack your way through the entrance. Once there, you’re free to roam, engage with hostile NPCs, solve quick brain teasers to gain access to valuable loot, and generally make yourself at home.

The loot you acquire comes with fresh weapons for your vessel, which you can instantly use, and enhancements that can be strategically placed throughout the ship for additional benefits. However, the challenge lies in the fact that each player can carry only one item at a time; if there’s not enough time to gather everything, tough choices will have to be made swiftly.

This situation presents the first genuine test for every team: What should we prioritize bringing back? Should we focus on gathering more weapons and ammunition to enhance our defense, or are there essential upgrades we must not overlook? It’s an intriguing predicament that could significantly influence the course of the game without the teams fully realizing it.

In the vast expanse of space, there’s also the task of mining resources. During a game, you can gather two essential items: ice blocks that help maintain engine temperature, and fuel cells that enable your ship to move faster with its boosters. Balancing these resources is vital because running out of either could lead to disastrous consequences; our team lost a battle once as we were trapped between two enemy groups and couldn’t escape fast enough without the necessary boost power.

Just like how you can tour real-time ships and stations, you can jump into space combat dogfights with other teams as soon as they get within range. Each spaceship has protective shields that can be breached by accurate shots, leaving a clear path to attack the enemy vessel directly. Keep inflicting damage, and the ship, along with its five crew members, will be removed from the game.

Even though elimination may seem inevitable at times, the defensive team still holds significant power in preventing that outcome. The ship, representing our situation, can continue functioning despite taking damage, and it’s up to each player to use their versatile tool effectively. This tool serves multiple purposes – extinguishing fires, healing the ship, and even patching holes or fixing malfunctions. For instance, a hole in a window calls for aiming and quickly applying a patch, while an overheated engine requires pressing a button that consumes ice to cool it down. Each engagement presents numerous plates spinning simultaneously, and your team’s reactions will significantly impact the outcome – either leading to success or potential defeat.

https://www.gamespot.com/videos/wildgate-official-deep-dive-trailer/2300-6465815/

In Wildgate, conflict doesn’t only occur on ships – your crew has the ability to disembark and search for treasure, but they can also board enemy vessels at will, causing chaos. A tactical move could be to send some crew members to disrupt the enemy ship while others continue firing from afar. The decision is yours, making each confrontation in Wildgate an exciting and immersive test of strategy.

At the start of every game, players will choose from several distinct characters, each possessing exclusive skills and histories. Although the process isn’t as complex as hero selection in Overwatch, it does provide various strategies that allow you to play according to your preference by choosing a character and related attributes.

In a single game, I opted for a character with an ability to spot any adversary who approached my vessel even though they were hidden behind walls, within a specific range. To enhance this, I picked skills that allowed me to extinguish fires swiftly and boosted my ship’s attack power slightly. Moreover, whenever my team discovered an unoccupied ship for exploration, I would always be on lookout duty. This setup meant that if the enemy team managed to surprise us, we still had some level of defense ready.

Once the preview was over, I was genuinely amazed by what Wildgate has on offer. The smooth transition between various aspects of a match – exploration, direct confrontation, naval combat, and so forth – is truly impressive, and each region’s expansive landscape provides ample chances to experience all these elements. To top it off, despite its extensive scale, each match concludes within 20-40 minutes, making it an appealing choice for those seeking a quick yet immersive gaming experience. Wildgate appears as if it combines three distinct games into one multiplayer adventure, but the way these separate experiences blend is remarkably effective.

There’s no definite date set yet for the launch of Wildgate, but if you’re eager to get a sneak peek, simply sign up on its official website. You’ll have the chance to join a community preview playtest from April 10th to the 14th!

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2025-03-25 22:09