Preview: Evolve (PS4)

Evolve Hands-On: Why Left 4 Dead's Spiritual Sequel Is One Of The Most Intriguing Games Of The Year.

Like an inverted take on Left 4 Dead's Versus mode married to the world's best Robert Muldoon-from-Jurassic-Park simulator, Evolve is an interesting take on a genre growing increasingly stale. Like Respawn with Titanfall, Evolve represents its developer, the reformed Turtle Rock Studios, growing beyond the confines of a hit title and delivering a spiritual successor that feels like a natural extension of the core concepts it created years ago.

"[Evolve has] been in Turtle Rock's minds [since] before Left 4 Dead" explains executive producer Matt O'Driscoll. "It's kind of been there and simmering for a long time. Turtle Rock had made Left 4 Dead, and proved its credentials, in the coop side of things."

Now, the developer wants to take the co-op play that it has mastered and also cater for those lone wolves out there. Hence the 4v1, humans against monster setup that is at the core of Evolve.

The mode I played was dubbed Hunt, which co-founder and art director Phil Robb describes as "the game mode we feel best defines the Evolve experience." Each round began with four human players airdropped into a large, arena-type environment that mixes dense jungles (and the associated wildlife) with a large industrial presence. (Running on PC via CryEngine3, it looks as incredible as you'd expect. But don't just take my word for it, check out the video below.)

As in Left 4 Dead, the 'story' mostly is told through the environment and your actions within it. Each of the four team members is there to hunt down a specific monster: in this instance it was 'Goliath', a supersized version of Left 4 Dead's Tank infected type. The person in charge of the monster has to keep the humans at bay for long enough to feed on the fauna and evolve into something far more formidable.

Taming the beast requires teamwork, and as each member has a different skill set. Of the four, the assault and medic classes are closest to being standard, respectively bringing substantial firepower and area-of-effect or direct healing to the party. That said, the Medic does more than just heal the team: she's armed with a tranquiliser gun that slows and marks the monster for all to see, as well as an anti-material weapon that exposes any tagged point of Goliath to more damage from other players.

Mixing things up further are the support and trapper types. The former is able to call in airstrikes, as well as deploy a portable shield to provide cover for the others. He's also able to go invisible for a certain amount of time, a buff which extends to others nearby. Finally, the trapper is one of the most important players on the field: his arsenal contains a harpoon-like tether that will stifle the movement speed of the monster, which has to be broken before full movement can resume. He can also use sound spikes to detect movement and, most importantly, drop a 'mobile arena' - a large, timed, impenetrable dome - to contain the monster and enable the other players to bring their respective skills to bear on it.


It's a setup that makes for a large emphasis on co-ordinating tactics, and players will need to be on their toes from the second they enter the fray. The monster has a head start on them, and it is vital that whoever is in control of it moves quickly. Until they feed on enough wildlife to grow larger and be able to stand toe to toe with the hunting party, they're vulnerable.

It gives the experience an excellent dynamic. Whereas in Left 4 Dead the mission was simply to get from A to B, here there are a number of vastly more complex, interlocking systems to acknowledge, interpret, and exploit. In the early going, the hunters have the edge: although the Goliath does have abilities other than Hulk-smash (including a pounce move, fire-breathing and rock throwing, among others), it's susceptible to heavy, potentially fatal, damage. By the first evolution the monster, now bigger and more powerful, can stand on its own. By stage three it's a killing machine. The short game favours those with guns, the long game those with claws, especially as each evolution brings with it the chance to change which ability the monster can use.

Both factions will have to make good use of the environment as well as their respective buffs. As Goliath, I found that crouching while moving disguises your tracks, as does leaping from cliff face to cliff face. Choosing where and when to feed, and on which animal type, is key to winning. Consuming larger beasts fills your evolution meter faster, but takes longer. Levelling up also takes time, meaning that knowledge of the topography is vital: you'll need to be well-hidden while you try and even up the odds.

The playing field is just as treacherous for the human element. The hunters can't climb as high as their prey, but do have jet packs that can be used to navigate the dangerous multi-levelled environment. The downside is that if they run out of fuel mid-leap they'll sustain significant fall damage.

Hunters also have to watch out for the stronger wildlife that inhabits the field. I was killed by a gigantic space-crocodile after being led into a creek by a clever monster player. Likewise, I outwitted an entire human team by creeping around, scaling a rock face and hiding on top of it. The hunters were used to direct conflict, and by using the environment and their own presumptions against them, I was able to evolve in peace and win the round easily.

Each of these elements combine to make Evolve one of the most interesting multiplayer shooters I've played in years. It's not stuffed with unlocks and rank-ups and twanging guitars and attachments: instead there's a steadily-growing appreciation of your strengths, weaknesses, and your environment that all feed into something that feels subtly different each time you play it.

"How we keep it fresh is unpredictability" O'Driscoll tells me. "'What is that guy going to do as that monster? Which abilities has he taken at the start, how has he changed his abilities? "[Right] now you're playing as these four, but there are going to be more hunters in the game, so he's going to ask 'who am I up against, what weapons and techniques do they have?'"

Evolve is already looking impressive, and with more modes, more hunters, and more monsters to be unveiled, it should get better still. It's also a title that, for the developer, represents a chance to gain the wider recognition it should have attained years ago. Not many people know that it developed Left 4 Dead: Valve's acquisition of the company meant that most of the plaudits went to Gabe's company.

"We are the creators of Left 4 Dead, but a lot of people think it's a Valve game" says O'Driscoll. "We are kind of coming out there and saying that this is a new game by Turtle Rock with 2K, but we created Left 4 Dead in the past. I think it's kind of important to remind people of that, when we're talking about this game."

Evolve is all Turtle Rock, and it's doing a great job so far.

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