Sony today took the wraps off a brand-new PS3-exclusive shooter coming in 2012 called Starhawk. The game, which takes place in “the lawless frontier of space,” will support 32-player online multiplayer matches, four-player online and offline co-operative play, and split-screen gameplay. And yes, there’s a single-player campaign too.
Starhawk will be a fast-paced third-person shooter that lets players alter the battlefield by calling down offensive and defensive structures in real-time from an orbiting drop ship. There will obviously be terrestrial battles too; the drop ships are just icing on Starhawk’s shooter cake.
Starhawk will feature a host of weaponry and a multitude of vehicles for high-speed combat and intense vehicular warfare on land as well as in the air. The game’s “Build & Battle” system will let players alter the action by giving them the ability to change battlefield dynamics instantly using various base structures, all while in the midst of battle. At the touch of a button, players can deploy a number of buildings, vehicles or artillery to strategically complete mission objectives and defeat enemies.
Almost as an illustration of Sony’s intent to get PSN not only back up and running but improved, the company pointed out that Starhawk will use a host of online community features that allow players to be always connected, all the time. This functionality will include tournaments, leaderboards and clan support with additional friends list and quick match options. Players can keep up to date with the community events calendar, ticker tape updates. A Starhawk Android application will also let users keep track of friends, clan mates and stats when they’re not online via their PS3.
Starhawk includes a full-fledged single-player story mode with various missions set in a number of diverse interstellar environments. The title also boasts a strong online mode where users can battle head-to-head in epic 32-player matches, up to four-player online and offline co-operative play, and split-screen gameplay within multi-player and co-op modes, always against an endless attack of enemies
The Starhawk universe is set in the distant future, out in the far reaches of space where factions battle over a rare and dangerous resource known as Rift Energy. In this galaxy, colonies of humans, called Rifters, explore a scattering of planets, known as the Frontier, in attempt to mine this energy to make an honest living, but find their way of life threatened by the Outcast, a ruthless species of humans who have mutated into psychotic monsters due to exposure to this very same Rift Energy. Caught in the middle is Emmett Graves, a hired gunslinger ostracized from society because of his own exposure to Rift Energy, leaving him partially mutated, but still able to retain his humanity. Starhawk allows you to take on the powerful role of Graves who is drawn back to his home settlement of White Sands on the Planet Dust to face a mysterious outlaw and his war band of Outcast warriors only to discover that this job may mean more to him than he could have ever imagined. He will soon find out that his family is involved in the clash between the Outcast and the Rifters and therefore must decide between those close to him and those he swore to protect.
Starhawk is bound to make an appearance at E3, so we’ll do whatever we can to bring you more information about this new PS3-exclusive shooter coming from LightBox Interactive in collaboration with Sony’s Santa Monica Studio.
