We’re fresh off the press conference of Blue Dot Games, the development studio behind the eagerly anticipated '83, a tactical FPS set in the heart of the Cold War.
Spiritual successor to Rising Storm 2: Vietnam (the co-founder of Blue Dot Games is Tony Gillham, also founder of the defunct Antimatter Games), '83 promises a carefully crafted and highly realistic gameplay, but not so much as to undermine the player's enjoyment. The developer's goal, in fact, is to make the game accessible even to those with little FPS experience, while still offering an immersive and historically accurate experience.
Now a bit of historical background: the game is set in an alternative and disastrous version of the NATO exercise 'Able Archer 83' along the border of the regions belonging to the Warsaw Pact. This exercise, which actually took place, alarmed the USSR so much that the world came perilously close to nuclear war — a crisis thankfully avoided thanks to the intense and subtle work of diplomats and intelligence services.
In '83, however, the war actually breaks out, and NATO forces must confront the Soviet Union on historically accurate maps such as divided Germany, a Norway invaded by Soviet forces, and an important radar base in Ukraine.
Tony Gillham has also wished to highlight that the game will continue to offer free content to players, as was the case with the "Rising Storm" series: at Blue Dot Games, the player is central to the project, ensuring they feel heard, cared for by a thoughtfully crafted, complete, and constantly updated game. Among the hints provided, there has been mention of a new faction and other maps, but nothing more specific. We are aware, however (and I confirm as a seasoned RS2 player, who continues to receive improvement updates despite its 2017 release) that the word will be kept and the game’s longevity assured. One of Blue Dot Games’ other goals is, in fact, to please even the most fussy players, those who meticulously control weapons and vehicles to spot developer mistakes and place a “NO” label on their product, thereby winning over even the harshest hearts and building a loyal, enduring, and consistent player base.
The gameplay will be very similar to the predecessors, but with some subtle differences: teamwork will be essential to win, and all "Rambo wannabes" will seriously jeopardise their team's success; the fundamental hierarchies for proper coordination will remain in place, namely the commander and Squad Leaders, who must work fluidly together to ensure flawless artillery and player spawn; asymmetry in technology and squads, although less pronounced than in the predecessors, will be further detailed later.
There’s a lot of optimism from the development team regarding the servers: at the moment there are roughly 600 alpha testers and everything responds well and works correctly, which is very important given that we’ll be fighting on maps of 40vs40.
If I can leave a personal note as a Rising Storm 2 fan, I’d say the game includes many assets from the previous title, such as iron sights and certain weapon aspects (M16 and AK47 in particular), which, personally, I really appreciate have been carried over into the new project. We haven’t received any news regarding an eventual release date, but the roadmap seems solid and decisive: before the Early Access release on Steam, there will be a closed and open beta to allow the developers to finish those final touches that will ultimately lead to a high-quality final product.
To conclude, we left the Tony Gillham-hosted conference truly enthusiastic and curious, and can’t wait to hear more information and updates about ‘83!
Hope to meet you on the battlefield soon!
