Following the success of Destiny and the hype behind Tom Clancy's The Division, another challenger in the online shooting space is vying for your attention.
The game is a third-person shooter and MMO hybrid Warhammer 40,000: Eternal Crusade, which has been in closed alpha testing for months, and is finally getting a release window.
According to publisher Bandai Namco, the MMO will be available for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC in the summer of 2016.
Eternal Crusade is no typical challenger, however. It's based on the highly popular "Warhammer 40,000" setting, which has been used for graphic novels, a collectible card game, and a string of successful video games such as Warhammer 40,000: Dawn of War and Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine.
"Warhammer 40,000: Eternal Crusade appeals to a wide variety of players, bringing a massive playerbase along with third-person shooter elements," says Eric Hartness, vice president of marketing at Bandai Namco. "In Warhammer 40,000: Eternal Crusade, players will join their favorite factions and embark upon fierce large-scale battles set within the rich Warhammer 40,000 universe."
The game has just landed in Steam's Early Access program as well. Here are some of its features listed:
Massive Battles
Behaviour Interactive promises huge battles between the game's four factions/races. Player-versus-player skirmishes, for instance, will pit two factions against each other, with up to 30 participants on either side. Think of it as an MMO version of Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine, except with Eternal Crusade, the encounters are more chaotic. Plus, you can flatten foes with tanks.
Cooperate To Survive
Whether you're fighting other players or AI-controlled cannon fodder, you'll have to work together with your squad to succeed in combat. That's because the skirmishes in Eternal Crusade are too large for one person to dominate, much less survive by themselves. While you can play solo, it still involves finding and joining battles.
Create Your Unique, Perfect Warrior
Eternal Crusade has about 20 different sub-factions to choose from, and each has its own color scheme. You can further customize your character with an assortment of accessories, armor, and weapons, all of which are based on nearly three decades of Warhammer lore.
You can play Eternal Access in Steam right now for $39.99 until Feb. 2. Subsequently, access to the game would cost $49.99. Bear in mind, however, that being part of the Early Access program means the game is still unfinished, and not all features planned for the retail version are currently included.
Check out the new Warhammer 40,000: Eternal Crusade cinematic player below.
