Skip to main content

Dune beetles and other desert dwellers hunt the hunters in our latest look at Evolve

Turtle Rock Studios has something special in Evolve. That much is apparent after spending just an hour playing the game. The team still has a lot more to reveal — more maps, more monsters, more hunters — but the heart of it, an asymmetrical competitive multiplayer game that pits four player-controlled human hunters, each with a different role, against an armored alien monster, is locked in.

Our latest hands-on with the game revealed four previously unseen hunters and the same satisfying gameplay that left us impressed after our first preview.

Story/Concept

2K_EVOLVE_E3_Maggie&DuneBeetle3.bmp
Image used with permission by copyright holder

New world, same hunt. In Evolve, the monster being hunted recovers armor and levels up by killing and eating any flesh-and-blood beings it can find. Turtle Rock showed off a new map for its pre-E3 demo, and the fresh location brought with it a new bestiary to contend with.

Most indigenous wildlife can’t threaten the monster directly, but there’s one beastie on the desert map that qualifies as a competitor. The Dune Beetle is a large, insect-like creature that’s roughly the same size as the monster. It’s essentially an apex predator, aggressive to all, and with enough health to qualify as a bona fide tank. The danger isn’t so much that it can push the monster around — though it can do that too — but rather that it thins the monster’s supply of food. A marauding Dune Beetle kills and eats the same prey, which in turn slows down the monster’s ability to level up.

There are also new dangers to the hunters, such as a lumbering, hippo-like creature with a giant mouth. If one of the humans strays too close to the resting alien, it gobbles them up and keeps them trapped until health runs to zero or another teammate shoots them free. Really, nothing and nowhere is safe in Evolve; we knew that already, but the new desert environment proves that a change in setting doesn’t necessarily mean there’s less danger.

Gameplay

2K_EVOLVE_E3_NewHunters1.bmp
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Fresh faces. The four hunter classes in a given Evolve match are always the same — Assault, Trapper, Medic, and Support — but, as we learned from this latest demo, there are multiple hunter variations in each class. Turtle Rock introduced an entirely new foursome, all of whom bring a distinctly different flavor — and a new set of strategies as a result — to the game’s hunting grounds. Let’s take a look at each one:

  • Hyde / Assault: Just like all of the newly introduced hunters, Hyde heads into battle with the same temporary invulnerability-granting personal shield that the previously introduced assaulter does, and the same jetpack as everyone else. That’s where the loadout similarities end. Hyde is a big, beefy, eyepatch-wearing fellow who totes a chaingun for ranged encounters and a brutal flamethrower for close-up showdowns. He’s also got a gas grenade that is very useful for forcing the monster out of a defensible corner. Activating the shield and letting loose with the flamethrower when the monster is stuck in a trap amounts to instant devastation.
  • Maggie / Trapper: Maggie brings along the all-important Mobile Arena that temporarily constructs an dome that traps the beast, but she trades the previous trapper’s harpoon gun for a machine pistol. Maggie can still slow the monster down, however, with the help of harpoon traps. They work like mines, tethering themselves to the monster when it gets close, preventing it from moving until it destroys the trap. Maggie’s biggest help, however, is Daisy. Essentially a fifth team member, Daisy is a dog-like Trapjaw that sniffs out the monster in a much more direct path than its winding tracks allow. The AI-controlled beastie also helps out the team, reviving downed teammates automatically if she’s close enough.
  • Lazarus / Medic: Lazarus only has the medic class-specific Heal Burst ability for health restoration. He ditches the previous medic’s heal beam in favor of the Lazarus Device, a glove that occupies his secondary weapon slot and is used for bringing downed characters back to life. He’s also got a personal cloak — handy for getting close to downed teammates — and a silenced, semi-automatic sniper rifle that doesn’t do a ton of damage on its own, but successful shots create temporary weak points on the monster (highlighted by small boxes) that all the hunters can shoot at for extra damage.
  • Bucket / Support: Bucket is the most unusual of the newly revealed foursome. He’s a robot, and his class-specific group cloak ability — while a great panic button for when the monster takes the upper hand — is the least of the advantages he brings to the team. Bucket’s powerful rocket launcher makes him a potent offensive weapon, but he’s also got the ability to craft sentry guns inside his body and deploy them as point defenses. Even better, he can actually tear off his own head and toss it into the sky as a player-controlled UAV. The flying head isn’t as effective as the trapper’s Daisy, but it’s handy for being able to “paint” the monster, which keeps it visible in the HUD for a short time.

Presentation

2K_EVOLVE_E3_Landscape1.bmp
Image used with permission by copyright holder

A fresh battleground. The jungle-like setting of Evolve‘s initial look was replaced in this latest demo with a new desert setting. Less Sahara, more Jawa-infested rocky region of Tatooine, the new map is a surprisingly lively place. It’s more lush than most would expect from a desert setting, and there are some signs of civilization in the form of towering metal structures, but the environment is much more open, less claustrophobic than what we saw previously.

The new setting doesn’t change up Evolve‘s gameplay in a significant way, but much like the new hunters, it creates fresh opportunities to interact with familiar game elements in different ways. With more than a dozen maps planned for the final release, as well as multiple modes of play, we’re getting a sense from these two maps that the game’s going to offer a whole lot of variety.

Takeaway

2K_EVOLVE_2K_EVOLVE_E3_CombatLazarus1.bmp
Image used with permission by copyright holder

Turtle Rock promises that we’ll be seeing more monsters, hunters, maps, and modes prior to launch. In short, more everything. Evolve has all the makings of being the rare new IP that makes a major splash when it first launches, which we now know will be happening on October 21. That time of the holiday season is usually dominated by established franchises like Assassin’s Creed, Battlefield, and Call of Duty, and it’s an indication of just how much faith 2K has in the quality of the experience Turtle Rock is crafting. We’re sure to see more soon enough, but color us excited to see what’s next for Evolve based on what we’ve been shown so far.

Adam Rosenberg
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Previously, Adam worked in the games press as a freelance writer and critic for a range of outlets, including Digital Trends…
Steam Spring Sale: best deals, how long is the sale, and more
Ichiban and Sujimon celebrating.

Spring is in the air, which means it's time to do some Spring cleaning. Thankfully, that doesn't mean cleaning out your wallet because Steam has launched its seasonal sale event to cut prices on tons of amazing games to some of the lowest we've seen.

Given how many incredible games were released last year and at the beginning of this year, odds are you have quite a few games on your backlog you've yet to get to. Your patience may have paid off if you've held out until now. Act fast, though, because this sale won't last forever.
When is the Steam Spring Sale 2024?
The Steam Spring Sale has already sprung and will close on March 21.
Best deals for the Steam Spring Sale 2024

Read more
All confirmed Pokemon in Pokemon Legends: Z-A
Pokemon runing in a neon city in Pokémon Legends: Z-A.

It used to be the case that every new Pokémon game would include every monster from the games that came before it. With the total list now approaching 1,000 critters, it just isn't possible to fit them all in a single game, mainline or otherwise. Following the release of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, the next entry isn't going to be generation 10 or a remake, but a new entry in the Legends game called Pokémon: Z-A. While a lot of details are still unknown, we've been picking through all the promotional material released so far to round up a list of all the Pokémon we can confirm are going to be included when it launches in 2025.
Every confirmed Pokémon

In the initial trailer alone, over 30 Pokémon have been spotted and identified. Here's every one we were able to confirm, but we will not be including their evolutions (except for one specific Evee evolution that we spotted), which you should expect to be there as well:

Read more
When will Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth be on PC?
final fantasy vii rebirth ending analysis 7 tifa aerith cloud

PlayStation 5 players have been raving about the second part of the FF7 remake project Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth. As with the first part, it was made clear well in advance that this game would be a PlayStation exclusive at launch, however, we did eventually get Remake of the first part on PC around a year later. This gives PC players hope that the same treatment will be given to Rebirth, but the big question becomes how long will we have to wait this time? Is it possible to see it come to PC storefronts faster than its prequel, or will we need to bide our time avoiding spoilers for months on end? Here's our best estimate as to when you can expect to see Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth on PC.
What is the Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth PC release date?

The sad fact of the matter is we don't have an official release date for Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth on PC or any other platform at this time. But there is reason to at least hope that the wait won't be as long this time around. Our only clue is that the marketing for Rebirth states that it is a PlayStation 5 exclusive until at least May 29, 2024. That's exactly three months after its initial release.

Read more