Hell Let Loose

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Hell Let Loose
Developer(s)Black Matter[1]
Publisher(s)Team17[1]
Director(s)Maximilian Rea[2]
Programmer(s)Roman Kramar, James Baxter[2]
Artist(s)Rick Echler, Mikhail Fomenko, Stanislav Ostrikov, Olga Tishchenko, Stefan Engdahl, Danny Ivan Flu, Danyal Davies, Tom Harle[2]
EngineUnreal Engine 4[3]
Platform(s)Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S
ReleaseMicrosoft Windows
  • WW: July 27, 2021
PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S
  • WW: 2021
Genre(s)First-person shooter
Mode(s)Multiplayer

Hell Let Loose is a multiplayer tactical first-person shooter video game[4] developed by Australian[5] studio Black Matter and published by Team17. Players fight in iconic battles of the Western and Eastern Fronts of World War 2 at the platoon[6] level.

The game was announced via a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2017,[1] where it raised US$220,000.[3] It was initially released for Microsoft Windows[3] as an early access title on 6 June 2019,[7] with full release in July 2021. It is set to release for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S in 2021.[8]

Gameplay[]

Matches are 50 vs. 50 combined arms battles between two teams of Germans and Americans,[9] and, more recently since the full release of the game, Russians. Each consists of multiple smaller rifle squads of six soldiers, armoured squads of three soldiers, or recon squads of two soldiers.[4] As of October 2019, two game modes exist in the game: Warfare and Offensive. In both modes, the map is divided into sectors that each team seeks to capture and control. In the Warfare mode, the game is won by either controlling all sectors at a given point in time, or by controlling a majority of them when the timer runs out, essentially functioning as capture the flag. In the Offensive mode, a defending team is in control of all sectors at the beginning of the match, and the objective for the opposing side is then to capture all of them before the timer runs out.[10]

Communication is intended as a central gameplay aspect by the developers.[11] Each unit may be led by a single officer, who can communicate with other officers and the commander through a "leadership" voice channel. Similarly, there are unit-only and proximity voice channels as well. As an alternative to voice communication, players also have access to team-wide and unit level text chat.

Hell Let Loose also features a RTS-inspired[12] resource-based strategic meta-game.[6] Each of the two factions fighting will also be assigned a commander, and the commander is in charge of not only the team and squads, but tank deployments, air strikes, and orders, however these orders cost resources. Resource nodes can be built using supplies by engineers to bolster resource production, and be able to deploy more tanks, air strikes and orders in order to help the team fighting on the battlefield, however they can be taken down if found by the enemy team.

Development[]

Hell Let Loose is developed on Unreal Engine 4.[3] After about two years of initial development and testing following the launch of its Kickstarter campaign,[13] the game released on Steam as an early-access title on June 6, 2019 — the 75th anniversary of the Normandy landings.[7]

Map design[]

External image
Map design
image icon A developer example illustrating map design based on street level images of Sainte-Marie-du-Mont, Manche.
Source: Kickstarter campaign.[14]

The playable maps in the game are designed based on historical WWII theaters of war by combining satellite imagery, archival aerial photography and street-level recreation.[14][15] According to the developers, the map for Norman town Sainte-Marie-du-Mont is "a 1:1 scale battlefield" recreated through the aforementioned methods.[14]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c Dominic Tarason (2018-11-28). "Team 17 to publish hundred-player WW2 shooter Hell Let Loose". Rock Paper Shotgun. Archived from the original on 2019-10-29.
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c "PRESS KIT". Presskit. Hell Let Loose. 2019-10-30. Archived from the original on 2019-10-29.
  3. ^ Jump up to: a b c d Tom Phillips (2018-11-28). "There's another WW2 shooter in development". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 2019-10-29.
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b Mostafa Hossam (2019-06-11). "Hell Let Loose Preview (Early Access)". The Indie Game Website. Archived from the original on 2019-10-29.
  5. ^ "Black Matter". LinkedIn. Retrieved 2019-11-02.[permanent dead link]
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b "Press Kit". hell-let-loose. Retrieved 2021-05-11.
  7. ^ Jump up to: a b Dominic Tarason (2019-06-07). "Hell Let Loose dives into the hundred-player trenches of early access". Rock Paper Shotgun. Archived from the original on 2019-10-29.
  8. ^ "Hell Let Loose coming to PS5, Xbox Series in 2021". Gematsu. March 16, 2021. Retrieved March 16, 2021.
  9. ^ Black Matter (2018-11-28). "This is Hell Let Loose!". Steam Community. Archived from the original on 2019-10-31.
  10. ^ Black Matter (2019-10-04). "Developer Briefing #43 - Introducing the Offensive Gamemode!". Steam Community. Archived from the original on 2019-10-31.
  11. ^ "Hell Let Loose". Team17. Archived from the original on 2019-11-03.
  12. ^ "Hell Let Loose on Steam". store.steampowered.com. Retrieved 2021-05-11.
  13. ^ Chris Smith (2019-05-28). "Driving a tank in 'Hell Let Loose' is the most fun I've ever had playing a first-person shooter". Boy Genius Report (BGR). Archived from the original on 2019-11-03.
  14. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Hell Let Loose". Kickstarter. Archived from the original on 2019-10-30.
  15. ^ "Hell Let Loose: A tour of all iconic maps".

External links[]

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