One of Pearl Abyss' biggest surprises to come from G-STAR 2019 was the announcement of their first shooter, PLAN 8. Helmed by Counter-Strike co-creator Minh Le, this sci-fi shooter suits up players in a wide variety of exosuits that you can check out in the screenshots below.
Built on Pearl Abyss' new proprietary engine, PLAN 8 is the studio's first attempt to create a next-generation shooter. Joining Technical Advisor Minh 'Gooseman' Le on the development team for PLAN 8 is Lead Producer Seungki Lee, the former Environment Art Director for Black Desert Online.
Today, the developers have shared new gameplay details.
Genre Defining
Pearl Abyss is striving to create a next-generation shooter that combines the best elements of the MMO genre to create an entirely new experience unlike any other shooter game on the market.
A vast open world and profound worldview will be important to PLAN 8.
Though Pearl Abyss describes PLAN 8 as a shooter, it is difficult to confine the game to a single genre. The project aims to create a unique shooter title with MMO gameplay elements.
Gameplay
PLAN 8 is defined as an exosuit MMO shooter. The exosuit is a robotic device that the player can wear, offering amazing abilities.
A key feature of PLAN 8 is finding and equipping different Gears to the player’s exosuit, opening up gameplay experiences never-before-seen in any game.
Exosuits
Exosuits allow players to exercise superhuman power, granting wearers extraordinary strength and capabilities.
Every exosuit has its own special abilities. When an exosuit meets another on the battlefield, they can counter each other depending on their compatibility. This allows for complex strategic gameplay through advantages and disadvantages among exosuits.
Player can use exosuits in many different ways. For example, an exosuit with enhanced arms will help them climb up and down walls, while one with enhanced legs will help them jump over high walls and buildings.
Firearms
Firearms play a very important role in the world of PLAN 8. Like exosuits, firearms can be enhanced or modified using various parts that players can choose.
Enhancement and modification of firearms doesn’t follow a standardized format. Players can customize their firearms based on their own creative ideas.
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Did you miss the first reveal of PLAN 8 during Pearl Abyss Connect 2019? Not to worry, we have you covered with the official announcement trailer below.
No dates for PLAN 8 have been announced by Pearl Abyss as of yet. It might be safe to say this is one title we'll be hearing about for a long time! PLAN 8 is currently in development for both PC and consoles (no target platforms announced).