The “secret” project underway at Epic Games that is not Gears of War 3 has been confirmed as Bulletstorm.
It’s a shame that secrets can’t seem to be kept in the videogame industry anymore. Epic’s Cliffy B really wanted the reveal of Bulletstorm to be a surprise, but it was unveiled early as the game on the next cover of Game Informer. Today, Epic officially announced Bulletstorm and told the world what the deal is with the Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and PC title scheduled for 2011.
Though it was basically already known, Bulletstorm was confirmed to be coming out of Epic Games studio People Can Fly, creators of the Painkiller FPS series. Bulletstorm is also a FPS that will use Unreal Engine 3, and by the sound of it introduces a system that rewards players based on style. Players will “kill with skill” using the “skillshot” system that rewards creativity and introduces what Epic describes as “yell-inducing satisfaction.” Executing a good skillshot will award points that can be used to upgrade characters and unlock weapons. Also mentioned were “outrageously large guns,” which are never a bad thing.
Bulletstorm follows Grayson Hunt and Ishi Sato, members of a mercenary band called Dead Echo that exists to protect a futuristic confederation. Hunt and Sato are betrayed by their commander and exiled to an abandoned planet inhabited by mutants and cannibals that they must escape with all their fingers and toes attached. They probably wouldn’t mind putting a bullet between the eyes of that commander either.
EA is calling Bulletstorm “an entirely new experience for shooter fans,” and these early details make it seem at least partially that way. It would be welcomed if People Can Fly and Epic can introduce some fun, new mechanics into the FPS genre.
Image via Game Informer
