Hood: Outlaws and Legendswas one of the bigger announcements to come from PlayStations' recentState of Play, and while little is known about the game, it shows a ton of promise, even when stacked against some of next year’s bigger titles. There are bound to be difficulties when getting a new IP off the ground, butHood: Outlaws and Legends’reveal trailer paints a bright picture for its future, dark tone aside.
Hoodis a reimaging of the Robin Hood legend with a gritty tone, pitting two teams against each other in a 4v4 competitive heist setup. There are multiple characters, each with different specializations and abilities that can be used to create a comprehensive heist plan. It’s a new spin on traditional competitive multiplayer, seeming just familiar enough while bringing something new to the table.
RELATED:Hood: Outlaws and Legends Gives Off Serious Witcher Vibes
In a way, it looks like a darker take onAssassin’s Creed Unity,which allowed four players to tackle objectives together in a co-op setting. And whileUnity’sbug-riddenlaunch put a damper on the game, the multiplayer mode was still enjoyable enough with a group of friends. Fundamentally, that’s whatHoodneeds to accomplish; providing a fun playground to compete with friends against another group.
Luckily, there are far more asymmetrical multiplayer games that have started to pop up, despite early attempts to get the genre off the ground failing with titles likeEvolve,which set a group of players on a hunt against a player-controlled monster. Now, however, there are games likeDead by Daylight,which uses a similar 4v1 structure toEvolve,but has managed to achieve much greater popularity, solidifying the genre.
The difference withHoodis the competitive element between two teams, though it still isn’t clear what exactly that will entail. Deciding how much the two teams interact with each other will be one of the big things thatHoodhas to get right, as creating conflict between the groups will be a delicate balance. Too much, and it may feel overbearing, causing it to come off as a major distraction from the objective. Not enough, and it may feel like players are only really threatened by NPCs.
The key forHoodto succeed will likely come down to character customization and map variety. Part of what makesRainbow Six Siegeso successful is how it’s continued to roll out content since launch, something thatHoodwill need to replicate if it plans on making a name for itself in an increasingly large market of live-service games.
TheRobin Hoodlegend isn’t as well known as it once was, which is both a curse and a blessing. There are few recognizable characters for the game to pull from, but that may also give the developer more freedom to create new ones. InHood’sreveal trailer, fans only see four characters, but the game promises that Robin Hood is an idea rather than a singular character, for the possibility for new heroes in the game is effectively endless.
Obviously, things will grow and change the longer the game is available to the public, and that’s a good thing. Very few games have fully-realized their potential on launch day, making updates a key element as games have gotten bigger and more technically complex. ForHood,it’ll be key to give players a reason to stick around until new content starts rolling out.
Of course,Hood: Outlaws and Legendsis bound to have its fair share of challenges. Multiplayer relies on keeping the player base full, and with an increasingly competitive market of multiplayer games, attracting new users to an established property may prove to be difficult. If the game is given the time, resources, and care that it needs, though, there may be a new hit on the market, but that depends on whether or not it’s able to recognize its full potential.
Hopefully,Hoodis able to provide a competitive fantasy game unlike any other on the market, something that the current landscape is sorely lacking. It’s a unique concept, and that sets it apart from other announcements, but fans will need to see more before they can come to any real conclusions about the game.
Hood: Outlaws and Legendsis currently in development for PC, PS4, and PS5.
MORE:Hood: Outlaws and Legends Could Show Assassin’s Creed How Multiplayer is Done
