Last January 20, 1047 Games invited MP1st to a preview event for Season 1 of their portal-based arena shooter Splitgate. While the event did not feature a direct hands-on for the press, it did show off a number of the amazing things players will get to see in Season 1 of Splitgate, with many of it being community-driven focused that will surely please the player base. Ian Proulx, CEO of 1047 Games, presented the preview, and here is a compilation of the new stuff you’ll see later today in Splitgate Beta Season 1.
Splitgate Beta Season 1 Preview:
New maps that fit the game’s themes
The preview event kicked off with Proulx welcoming new art directors and other talents for Splitgate, with some of them coming from prestigious titles like Valorant, Destiny, and Halo. Two of the art directors, according to Proulx, were given one map each, and were told to make the best map possible with the team with no rush at all needed. You can check out one of the maps below called Foregone.
One of the things players will tend to notice is the massive lighting improvements, in addition to that massive energy dome in the distance. Proulx mentions that a big part of the new maps were its “thematic,” with them staying true to the whole Red vs. Blue concept that Splitgate strives for.
The footage also includes gameplay within the new map, showcasing new weapon skins for Season 1’s upcoming Battle Pass. The gameplay was also tuned, as Proulx emphasizes the community-driven efforts to fine-tune the game as time goes on.
Evolution, a ‘Gun Game’ mode for Splitgate
If you find yourself craving the Gun Game mode from Counter-Strike or Gun Master from Battlefield, then you’re in for a treat, as Proulx announced Splitgate’s own version which is called Evolution. Splitgate, however, has put its own twist within it. Starting off as a variant of Showdown in which 3 versus 3 players cannot respawn, Evolution takes it to the next level by changing the loadouts with every round. The catch is that the losing team will get better loadouts in the next round, making it harder for the winning team to keep their streak. The goal is to secure six rounds first with a clear disadvantage in the form of weaker loadouts. Check out gameplay from Evolution below:
Compared to Gun Game, where the gain a kill with all the guns in rotation, Evolution asks players to try and be creative with weaker loadouts for as long as they can. It’s an interesting dynamic that is sure to keep players on their toes and will certainly be one of the most exciting modes once Season 1 for Splitgate Beta finally releases.
Proulx also briefly touched upon a game mode currently in development called ‘One Flag CTF,’ which solves the issues for CTF (capture the flag) in a game with portals. While no footage of this mode was shown, Proulx was excited to share the details of this new mode which was the results of several experiments. The way it works is that there’s only one flag in two to three-minute rounds, with one team on offence and the other on defense. However, the player with the flag cannot use portals, meaning that they are reduced to sprinting and running back with the flag, leaving it to their teammates to strategize on how to best protect them.
Ranked Season rewards, new cosmetics, and new Battle Pass
A big question that frequently comes up for Splitgate is its competitive streak, and for Season 1 of the beta 1047 Games has laid out their framework for Ranked Season rewards for players willing to sweat it out against some of the game’s best players. Proulx has stated that these rewards were partially inspired by the one in Rocket League. Proulx showed off some of the referral rewards players can get by referring other players to Splitgate, with different levels comparable to a Battle Pass as you refer more and more friends to the game.
Of course, with a new Season comes a new Battle Pass, and Proulx showed off some of the corresponding rewards that came with the 100 levels players can attain. With these new rewards, much like the new maps, Proulx hopes that they can be “thematically consistent” with the feel and vibe of the game. However, it does not mean that the studio will be averse to the goofy and fun skins, so players who like to go wild with their cosmetics will still have the chance to do so.
Custom Map Creator, the highlight of Season 1
1047 Games has saved the best for last, as they finally introduced the basics of Splitgate’s custom map creator which is coming in Season 1. Proulx highlights their ‘community-driven’ mentality once again, and with the custom map creator, the studio hopes to bring player creativity out and allow them to really enjoy Splitgate on another level. On the studio’s relationship with the community, Proulx had this to say:
Our mentality with every feature we do is we want to get it into the hands of our community as quickly as possible. As soon as we have that Version 1.0 of a feature, we’re putting it out there, because instead of us building on what we think players would want, we’d rather put it in their hands, get their feedback, and build it alongside them. So, that’s really indicative of how we’re going about our map creator.
Despite the map creator being basically a version 1.0, Proulx guarantees that it’s a powerful tool which players can use to make lots of crazy things. You can check out footage of the map creator in action below:
The map creator allows you to tinker around with various stuff and modes, as well as simultaneous map creation with a couple of friends. According to Proulx, up to eight people can build one map at the same time. There are also what Proulx refers to as “map support bots,” which allows the players to test their maps on their own if they don’t have the people to test it with. Check out screenshots of the map creator UX below:
Custom maps can also be played without delay immediately once uploaded onto a server, allowing players from across the world to join and play your map. They can also save your creation if they enjoyed it.
‘[Splitgate Beta] Season 1 is the start of our journey into becoming a AAA studio’
Proulx ends the presentation with their vision for Splitgate moving forward, which is for the title to be a AAA game owing to its success and with the massive backing that 1047 Games now possess. He states:
We’re in a great spot, we really, really feel like this is step one of what’s to come, and just kind of a small taste of the direction we’re headed in as we ramp up. Another thing I’ll highlight is we’ve hired about 50 people now, and that’s been really great for us… A lot of these people are still ramping up, most of them have started in the last few months, we really feel like we’re starting to turn into a well-oiled machine… The team is just very, very close-knit, everybody’s excited, and it’s really been fun to see just as people get ramped up, and how efficient in the quality we’ve been able to produce. That’s only going to continue.
As for what players can expect from Season 1 and beyond, Proulx states that “more modes and playlist options” are on the table, and with these comes the return of fan favorites like One in the Chamber to the regular playlist rotation. Besides this, 1047 Games promises that “there’s a lot more to come,” with the community at the forefront of the direction Splitgate will be heading into.
Splitgate Beta Season 1 is releasing today, January 27, on PC and consoles. Huge thanks for 1047 Games for inviting MP1st to this hands-off preview.