Daybreak Games has announced that the massively multiplayer survival shooter H1Z1®: King of the Kill® will officially release out of Steam Early Access for Windows PC on Sept. 20, 2016.
LARRY’S TAKE: “You could make top 60 in one match and top five in the next; the drama of that competition makes King of the Kill extremely entertaining to play and watch. The game is inherently competitive, but by design all players have a chance of claiming the coveted number one spot, not just the elite. The feeling you get when you outlast hundreds of other players – it is what drives players to compete – and you can’t get it anywhere else.” - Larry LaPierre, SVP of Games at Daybreak Games
H1Z1: King of the Kill has greatly evolved over its course in Early Access as a result of feedback from the community, including overhauls to the combat and vehicle systems, the addition of Skirmishes, and changes to the toxicity system. At launch, players can expect new features and updates that transform King of the Kill from a working Early Access title into a fully realized, highly intense multiplayer shooter.
KEY LAUNCH FEATURES:
- The Arena, a Totally Revamped World Map – This larger map is designed to improve the pace and performance of matches overall, with additional points of interest for showdowns and surprises, better loot distribution for player spawns, and greatly improved graphics and lighting.
- The Arena will be a focal point of action for those playing H1Z1: King of the Kill at PAX West this weekend at Booth #1909, and later when some of Twitch’s top streamers and players compete in the second annual H1Z1 Invitational on Oct. 2, 2016 at TwitchCon.
- New UI – A fully redesigned and more intuitive user interface speeds the flow of movement and action. The HUD has been made more effective at relaying important player information moment to moment, inventory management has been simplified, and preset skin loadouts enable instant skinning, giving players more control over their character customization.
- Training Mode – This special mode allows new players to get familiar with the game and gives existing players a chance to warm up before jumping into a full match. In Training Mode, players automatically respawn after death, allowing them to get back to the fight more quickly to hone their skills.
- Twitch Integration – At launch, players will be able to connect their Twitch and Daybreak accounts, making it easier for streamers to invite viewers to team matches and for fans to find popular and up-and-coming players to watch online.
- Scoring System – Progression outside of matches is evolving to foster the natural competitive spirit of the H1Z1: King of the Kill community. A new and more dynamic scoring system after each match will award points to players based on their placement, their kill total and when in the match those kills took place, with higher points going to kills that take place later on. This new system will give players immediate feedback on their performance, as well as the opportunity to earn in-game rewards. It will apply only to solo matches at launch.
- Seasons – For those that crave further competition, Seasons will allow players to feel confident in their wins and resilient in their losses by better tracking their progress and accumulating their top 10 best game scores, as well as providing in-game rewards. Seasons will last for a pre-determined timeframe, during which a player’s score will be accumulated based on how well they do in matches. The specific length of a Season will be determined after player feedback during the pre-season, which will be announced at a later date.
PRODUCER’S LETTER: For more information about the game's launch features and a console update, read Executive Producer Chris Wynn’s message to the community here: https://www.h1z1.com/king-of-the-kill/news/h1z1-producers-letter-august30
H1Z1: King of the Kill will focus on continuing to escalate its last-person-standing thrills with solo and team-based matches, while exploring fresh challenges through new Skirmish types that feature changing rule sets and rewards. The game’s future also includes further embracing of player competition with greater support for structured organized play, tournaments and more. Players can expect continued support through new game updates after release.
H1Z1: King of the Kill will officially launch on Sept. 20 for $29.99 on PC, but will remain at $19.99 throughout Steam Early Access. More information leading up to release can be found at www.h1z1.com/kotk