Gamers will have a feeling of danger and isolation

Apr 14, 2014 12:05 GMT  ·  By

The development team at Sony Online Entertainment says that it is currently planning to launch its upcoming H1Z1 with a huge map that can then be quickly expanded to cover more areas as the studio understands what kind of content players want to experience.

John Smedley, the leader of the company, writes on Reddit that his company has learned a lesson from the development and launch of Planetside 2, where it implemented continents that were too big before the player community had a chance to test the core game features.

He explains, “When we open up the Early Access there will be a massive map for players to enjoy. Over time (very quickly) they’ll magically just be able to keep going further than they’ve gone before. It’s a very unique way of doing it, but we actually think this is a better way to go.”

The Early Access version of H1Z1 will be offered soon for 20 dollars or Euro.

The big map in the MMO is necessary because the development team at SOE wants to create a game that emphasizes how lonely survivors of a post-apocalyptic event can be.

Smedley adds, “Your first instinct needs to be to hide. If there are 20 players in your view it’s not a very convincing Apocalypse. So, not to worry: Zombie Apocalypse isn’t going to be any fun if it’s like Disneyland on Spring Break and super crowded.”

The new MMO project capitalizes on the current survival horror trend, seen in titles like DayZ and State of Decay, but Sony believes that it can deliver more quality and variety than the indie developers that have tackled the genre so far.

H1Z1 will be entirely free-to-play when it exits beta, will be supported via microtransactions that will only affect the cosmetic elements of the game and will have no impact on the gameplay.

Smedley has also said that using the new Player Studio, all gamers will be able to contribute their own unique creations to the MMO’s world and maybe even earn cash when other players buy them.

Sony Online Entertainment has said that H1Z1 will soon be playable, which probably means that the beta will be offered before the end of the year.

It’s unclear whether the company has any plans to also launch the experience on the PlayStation 4 from Sony, which currently does not have access to any zombie survival titles.