As I make my way through this pathway of trees, I will look over this cliff coming up to see if I can see anyone I can get an easy kill. And boom, just like that, I was shot in the back by another player and I was left spectating until the next match had begun. The Darwin Project: Early Access via Xbox Live Game Preview, it may seem slow at first but if you are listening carefully to your surroundings or playing with a top of the line Turtle Beach headset to hear those footsteps then you are a goner and you will lose every time.
I personally would not recommend playing this game with the sound off because you don’t want to wake up your girlfriend or roommate down the hall, screw it, wake them up because your life is on the line here and sleep is for the weak. From the looks of the game, you’d get the feeling you were playing Fortnite: Battle Royal, but after playing Darwin Project: Early Access, you will realize it’s different and has similarities to less than a handful of mechanics similar to Fortnite as a whole.
After watching the game trailer, I was intrigued because it seemed to be an escaped convict who was trapped somewhere with zombies and I’m all for that but little did I know what was creeping behind that corner, a player with an exclusive game made, Ski-Bow and Arrow to lay me right on my back. Also, just a piece of advice, you have to be quick with that thing, these kids have been waiting for this game since its PC days.
The Darwin Project is setting its stage differently from others once your character changes his appearance and you began your journey, you are placed in a donut-shaped room. In this room, you are given a certain amount of time to just get a little practice in before you are dropped right in the game. Now be aware those kids I talked about earlier, they have equipped those special bows and they will shoot you at lighting speeds and your body will fly like an eagle. Or if they want to be a little petty, they will take they’re not regular size shovel and smack the fire out of you with it. This is a very fun room once you master the basic fundamentals.
One thing I wish they had was a practice room or course of some kind. Call me old fashion, but with every new game, I love to have that option available just in case I’m not used to some of the weapons being implemented into modern games. This would be a really cool feature to have for newcomers to Darwin Project. One aspect of the game that separates them from other games like PUBG is that the game lobby only holds 10 players per game.
For me, that is 50/50 because the game map is on the larger scale if you are trying to find your way around for the first time and the map in the bottom corner only alerts you if materials are available. But on the flip side, it gives you a different experience to the game. And what I mean by that is you must battle the elements while trying to get your next kill. For example, you must gather materials in the game to start a fire to keep warm. If you don’t start a fire at the designated time you will die. Personally, I have never died from the cold conditions, someone always kills me while I am looking for materials. The screen will get “frosty” around the edges and you start to lose sight of your total view.
Working behind the scenes as the Show Director is actually more fun than it sounds, believe it or not. A show director in the game basically is the one who makes the game interesting. An example would be in the movie, Tron: Legacy, when he was battling with his duel disc the playing field they were playing on changed each time a player one against another player. The same works for this game. You have whats called a power deck and you are tasked creating a playing field for these players. In the game, you can close zones to force players to fight one another sooner than they wanted. You can also provide aid to the underdog with things such as health, invisibility, and even
I would not make this a “party” friendly game. I say that because the matches are only 10 people strong. Once those team slots fill up then it’s onto the next round. This is just like a free-for-all on Call of Duty, no parties, no private chats. It’s every man or woman for themselves.
If the developers do allow parties outside of Team Duo’s, I would say only allow up to three players and that being the absolute max because it’s not random. If that’s the case, then I would recommend creating private or custom matches. That way you and all your 10 online friends can kill until your hearts give out. But personally, I would not allow parties into such a small room of people already, I would just allow private matches.
Play The Darwin Project: Early Access while you can and also leave comments or send your issues to help the developers fix all the bug and kinks. Early Access for this game is available for Xbox. This game is also available on PC via Steam Early Access. Darwin Project is expected to reach a full launch by the end of the year.
About the Writer:
Tyvon J. Hunter is the latest member of the crew. He brings to the table a unique take on video games and sports. He brings an unparalleled sense of inspiration through his sheer excitement to the team as well as those around him. Also, he likes to build theme parks and a lot of them in his spare time.