League of Legends developer Riot Games is expanding out of the MOBA space, and one of its new titles is codenamed Project A.
Project A is still early in development, with Riot Games “going heads down for a while” before releasing more information about it in early 2020. However, in its announcement video, the developer provided glimpses of what the title will be all about.
Unlike its massively popular MOBA League of Legends, Riot Games describes Project A as “a stylish, competitive, character-based tactical shooter for PC.” The game, which is not linked to League of Legends in any way, will be set in a near-future Earth, with a roster of characters who will have unique abilities.
The early footage of Project A drew comparisons with Blizzard’s multiplayer hero-based shooter Overwatch, due to the unique skills in each character’s arsenal. Riot Games’ VP of IP and Entertainment, Greg ‘Ghostcrawler’ Street, however, explained the difference between the two titles.
While we are honored by comparisons between Riot’s Project A and Overwatch, the two aren’t really in the same genre. Project A is a tactical shooter. Lethality is high and you don’t respawn. Map control and gunplay are key. The abilities are more about utility.
— Greg Street (@Ghostcrawler) October 17, 2019
Overwatch players rely on the abilities of their favorite heroes to create advantages in matches, which are often hectic and require teamwork. Project A, on the other hand, sounds like it dials down the action in favor of strategy, with each character’s abilities to function as support to a player’s gun skills.
According to Street, Project A will compare more closely to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, another popular shooter game for the PC, just with an extra boost from the characters’ skills.
Yes closer to that
— Greg Street (@Ghostcrawler) October 17, 2019
The announcement of Project A was accompanied by Riot Games’ renewed commitment against network latency and cheaters. In the video, executive producer Anna Donlon discussed technology that will focus on eliminating cheaters to preserve the integrity of online matches, as well as resolving problems such as “peaker’s advantage,” when certain players perform better due to latency.
There are many things about Project A that remain unclear, such as its game modes, the number of players in each team, and if it will also feature a Battle Royale mode. With League of Legends lore going very deep, Riot Games will likely also craft story elements for Project A, which for now remain hidden.
Riot Games did not reveal a specific release date for Project A, but more teases will be uploaded on the developer’s official Twitter channel.
