Posted in: Games, Movies, Video Games | Tagged: Evolve, games

Getting Hands On With Evolve

By Dan Celko

For the sake of my wallet, I have been trying incredibly hard to not get excited about all the games coming out by the end of 2014. But then I go ahead and get hands on with games at SDCC and it all goes out the window. I'm looking at you Evolve!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=faJvim3AIMY[/youtube]

The first time hearing what Evolve is about, it is very easy to confuse it with another game. You are a group of four players trying to survive while fighting against a monstrous force that is controlled by another player. That description sounds suspiciously like Left 4 Dead which doesn't sound farfetched seeing as how it is from the same creators. However, that same place where the similarity begins is right where it ends. Rather than fighting to escape to safety, you are fighting for supremacy of the wild. Yes, it is only four against one….. but that one is an extremely powerful and ticked off behemoth just biding its time until it stomps on your lifeless corpse.

To have any hope of meeting such a gruesome end, the entire team must make full use of their abilities. There are four classes to choose from and each class has different characters whom have their own unique skill sets.

A perfect example of this is the character I played during my time with the game. Medic seemed to be the natural choice for me since it is the role I generally take in first person shooters that involve classes. Something was different about this though. I couldn't find any healing weapon on my character. Yes, I did have an emergency healing burst for those around me but nothing that could put out any sustained heals. It was then that I came across I bulky glove thingy(Also known as the Lazarus Device). When I tried using it on a dying teammate they…. well they still died. At this point I the happiest of accidents took place and I found the true purpose of my character: TO RAISE AN ARMY OF UNDEAD! That bulky glove thingy was actually a badass glove thingy that let me bring dead players back to life(Hence being named the Lazarus Device). This changed the entire approach I had to take. Instead of sticking with my team and trying to keep them alive through the toughest parts, I had to wait and watch for the right time to dip in with my cloak and pull someone back from the afterlife. I have to admit this really spiced up the role to which I have become so accustomed to.

Even with that experience under my belt, there was still one more thing that makes Evolve stand out for me: The hunt. Before you can kill the beast, you must find it. You start off jumping out of a ship with no clue of where the monster is and the longer it takes you to figure it out, the tougher it will be to take it down. First of all this speaks to brilliant map design of Evolve to be able to hide a creature so large. Secondly, the tools they give you to track down the monster are just perfect for the situation. They aren't so vague that your only hope is to stumble upon it but aren't so over powered that you can head straight for it. The final and best thing about the hunt though is the sheer thrill of it. Without that build of tension before the fight by listening for birds being scared away or trying to follow tracks, the game would feel incomplete.

Overall, the game is superb. The mechanics of the players and the monster are extremely well balanced. Each character is wonderfully unique in play style. The game takes full advantage of the next gen technology to deliver stunning visuals. The game shows promise to be a blast whether it is you first hunt or your millionth. Heck, Evolve is even going to be available on PC instead of just consoles. With all this I can't find a reason why I'm not going to get Evolve and become a master of the hunt.

Dan Celko is a geek by birth and a nerd by choice. After years of keeping his friends up to date on what has been going on with video games, he has decided to put his skills to good use. Now he is one half of The Dedicated Server, a gaming news show for Bleeding Cool which can be found on YouTube. You can follow him on twitter @RadicalDann

Enjoyed this? Please share on social media!

Stay up-to-date and support the site by following Bleeding Cool on Google News today!