Everything old is new again, or at least old enough to be a throwback while being new enough to engage FPS gamers. That’s probably the strategy of Hi-Rez’s Prophecy Games as the team vs. team shooter Tribes 3: Rivals made its way into Steam early access this week.
Early access has kicked off with some goodies for alpha testers and founder’s pack buyers, while everyone can enjoy an introductory 10% discount on Steam for the next two weeks. The studio has also put out a roadmap of updates that reach into the second quarter of the year, including balance adjustments, new weapons, new maps, and new class abilities. There are patch notes for the early access build that offer more granular update details.
The run-up to Tribes 3’s return has been steady but somewhat muted. Readers will remember that Prophecy Games revealed plans for the shooter last year and promised it had learned from the monetization mistakes of the earlier released – then maintenance moded – Tribes Ascend.
Several playtests ran ahead of early access, which were initially met with some lukewarm reception, though as of this writing Steam user reviews sit at “Mostly Positive,” with many appearing to be delighted that the series is back while also pointing out “bare bones” game modes (ie there’s only CTF right now) and the game already trying to hawk annual cosmetic skin passes.
