EVE: Valkyrie (2016), the arcade dogfighter from EVE Online studio CCP Games, is about to get a big update that promises to take the game in what lead game dev Andrew Willans says via an official Sony blogpost “new and exciting directions.” Called Groundrush, the new update—launching April 11th—will include tweaks to existing systems and a brand new map, Solitude, that brings the dogfight to the surface of a snowy planet.
Besides Solitude, Groundrush promises weirder and wilder wormholes, a feature that was added 2 months ago that changes up the game’s maps in unexpected ways.
Co-op will also now include Control and Carrier Assault. According to Willans, “no matter which mode you select, all XP progression and rewards are the same. You play the game how you want to, and be rewarded for it. Squads welcome!”
Willan mentions in the blogpost that Groundrush will also include a new avatar animation feature. The feature hasn’t been specified, but “the animations will help pilots celebrate a victory or commiserate a defeat.” English subtitles will also be a part of the update.
Valkyrie League Alpha is also changing somewhat, as CCP will be improving Training modules, tweaking multiplayer playlists and fixing many bug and stability issues. Leagues is a system developed to increase player competition by offering 4 leagues in descending order of difficulty to enter; diamond, sapphire, ruby, and emerald—effectively providing a players across all supported platforms bragging rights. Valkyrie supports cross-platform play with Oculus Rift, HTC Vive, and PSVR.
Check back for our hands-on impressions of the new Groundrush update.
Update 04/06/2017: article was updated to reflect that Groundrush will be launching on all available platforms.
Disclosure: CCP Games provided airfare and lodging for Road to VR to attend Fanfest 2017
