Three years after the initial date of issue, Splitgate is finally releasing its version 1.0 on September 15th. Although in a surprising twist, the launch will mark the end of a consistent support cycle for the game as 1047 Games moves on to its next project.
Splitgate launched in 2019 to a lukewarm response before successfully relaunching in 2021. The game was originally supposed to receive its 1.0 release last summer, but 1047 Games delayed the launch. Since then, the developer has consistently added new modes to the game, as well as updated its art style from the inside out, one map at a time.
Given how devotedly 1047 has supported the shooter, today’s news may come as a shock to fans. Splitgate will be introducing a free “infinite” battle pass that will be active alongside the 1.0 launch, which will feature 100 new cosmetic items and then pay out random item drops after that. The weekly playlists will continue, and 1047 Games also plans to do some standard in-game bug fixing, but that will be the bulk of the work on Splitgate after 1.0 it goes live.
The developer says it’s a handshake Separate1.0 is launching this way to allow the team to move on to their next project, which will be a game set in the same universe being built on Unreal Engine 5. In an exclusive interview with Digital Trends discussing the move, 1047 Games founder Ian Proulx notes that the project will still be a portal shooter, but emphasizes that it won’t be “Halo meets Portal” — a common moniker used by fans Splitgate which the developer hopes to move away from.
“Specifically, we’re trying not to be ‘Halo meets Portal,'” Proulx tells Digital Trends. “That’s another reason why we want to move away from this. We want to create a new art style. You saw something with Abyss and Forgone, but we felt we had to play it safe because it has to fit into the game. So now we want to go do our thing. Give us a blank slate and let me show you what we can do.”
For fans wondering why the decision was made and what the developer’s next game will be, Proulx shed some light on everything going on with Splitgate
So why do you do this step with Splitgate?
It’s something that’s been on my mind since the fundraiser. We have all this money and talent and brand recognition. Does it make sense to keep repeating existing things when there are so many things we can make bigger and better with more tweaks? There are things we want to repeat because we learned a lot. There are things we want to change because we think we can do better.
With each beta season we’ve run, we’ve learned more. I think we’re at a point now where we feel there are enough things we want to do differently that it’s time to turn around and work on the next game. That’s the game in Splitgate space and it’s a shooting game with portals. We won’t make the next one Land of sweets.
What it really allows us to do is take our time, keep doing what we do well, but really focus on building something that’s special. Not just something that’s a really successful indie game, but a massive AAA game with a budget, with a team.
Image used with permission of the copyright holder
What things did you want to repeat?
When I look Splitgate, it is undoubtedly a very fun game. The reviews reflect this; the hype we had when we first launched the beta reflects that. I honestly love the game. But I think that when you look Splitgateit’s not a game that’s primed for long-term success.
There are little things like, hey, we can make better art, we can make better graphics. We can do everything about it at a better level. But his formula isn’t necessarily set up for long-term live success. I don’t think there’s anything I’m ready to share about what the next game will do differently, but that’s a big focus of ours. We’ve done market research, surveys, looked at data, talked to our community. There are a lot of things we want to change to make sure we have a game that stays relevant long term
We want to get to a state where we can do quarterly seasons, significant big updates, constantly keeping things fresh. It partly changes the formula a little while we do what we do well. But partly it just takes time to build a team the right way.
Did the player in the game factor into the decision?
It definitely was. We’ve always felt like we’re not overly concerned with the number of players because we definitely feel like we have a budget where once we get big, we’ll get a look back. We just need to make sure that when we get him back, we’re in a position to hold on.
A fun game is not enough.
We have a small number of players now — it’s still a large number of players, but it’s small enough that slow and steady growth isn’t going to get us where we want to be. I think the next game, no doubt, will be significantly bigger than Splitgate. We know that when we go back there again – and we want to make sure that when we do go back – we have a product that can sustain the player base and grow from it. And we want to give ourselves every chance at that homerun.
Was there pressure from investors to do something new?
No way! The investors were a real support. This is actually something I brought up to some of them in December. I think the consensus with all of us was, hey, we want to keep doing this because there’s more to learn.
If we had made this decision six months ago, we would have been much more blind and ended up with a worse next product than what I think we will get.
Image used with permission of the copyright holder
Are you worried about how the game’s community will react to the news?
Everyone we’ve talked to so far has been really supportive and understanding. It’s definitely a concern. We do not take this decision lightly. There will be people who will not be happy about this. But I think it will be better for the community and the company in the long run. Our community wants more players and the best game possible, so in order to provide that, this is what we have to do.
Splitgate it started as a student project and was then launched and relaunched. What lessons have you learned from this game’s unusual life history?
The first few lessons I learned were that a fun game is not enough. You have to have a fun game, but there’s a lot more that goes into a successful free-to-play business than just “oh, this is a really fun game.”
The first thing we learned is how important onboarding is. Now we have really good onboarding. Our short term retention is world class. I think what we’ve also learned – and that’s why we keep going – is that you have to have meaningful content on a regular basis. You have Fortnite they’re having their Dragon Ball Z event right now, which is awesome. There are always new things with these games and it’s different every time you play them. I mean with Splitgate right now … it’s really fun and people love it, but after a month or two, they’ve experienced everything there is to experience and probably left their positive reviews. But they also probably ran out of things to do and it got old.
We’re fighting an uphill battle right now partly because of the lack of resources and partly because of the formula we have. A certain level of change is required.
This isn’t just the same thing with better graphics; this is a new game.
What would you do differently if you started Splitgate today?
That we started Splitgate like the exact same game, with the exact same timeline as us, but the difference was that we already had $100 million and we already had a back-end with servers that could handle the scale and we already had a team of 150 people ( that is the goal of what we want to achieve) — if we had all these things in place, I think we could maintain what we have.
The view here is A) let’s make sure that when we launch, we have all these pieces in place, and B) while we’re at it, we’ve learned a lot in the last five years! All the things we wanted to improve? Let’s make things better! Let’s keep doing the things we do really well, and let’s improve, of course, but let’s put all those pieces in place. We are going to mass launch our new product, but we are going to make a new product. This isn’t just the same thing with better graphics; this is a new game.
It’s in the Splitgate universe. He has a weapon. But it is different. It will be a different experience and I think it will be a much better experience that will be able to sustain and grow. We’re really shooting for the moon here. We have very, very high ambitions.
Do you have a timeline in mind for when you want to start the next game?
I have an internal timeline. I can tell you that it won’t be in 2023!
The interview has been slightly edited for clarity.
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Source: newstars.edu.vn