BitCraft, a new procedurally generated sandbox MMORPG, has been officially announced. The game is currently being developed by Clockwork Labs, a new fully remote independent game development studio. Clockwork Labs also announced that BitCraft's pre-alpha would be starting soon.
Clockwork Labs is based in San Francisco, California and BitCraft will be their first foray into the genre. BitCraft is categorized as a massively-multiplayer community sandbox game. At the moment there is no definitive timeline for the release of the game.
BitCraft's announcement trailer shows interesting dark anthropomorphic characters interacting with a wild world. These characters are seen interacting with others, fishing, chopping down trees, and building an ever-expanding settlement. The areas in the BitCraft trailer include a number of diverse environments including an expansive desert, a sometimes-violent ocean, as well as large forests and mountains. The world of this MMORPG looks quite large but the actual size isn't clear as of yet. The trailer ends with the character staring at an incredibly large beacon as the game title appears.
BitCraft is labeled as "a new kind of MMORPG" in its announcement trailer and promises to take players to a procedurally generated sandbox world. While there are a number of great MMORPGs out there at the moment, Clockwork Labs promises an interesting option with this announcement. There will be a deep skills system and a general focus on crafting, economics, cultivating, and city building. The developers have also mentioned a freeform character progression system that allows players to hone the skills they wish without placing them in a fixed profession.
As with other game announcement trailers, BitCraft looks like an impressive undertaking. Similar to the recent game announcement of Into the Echo from a different studio, Clockwork Labs is looking to reshape the MMORPG genre. BitCraft promises players the ability to work independently as well as collaboratively to affect the world around them. At least part of the emphasis with the game is to have players work together to build cities and even civilizations.
But it remains quite early days for BitCraft. With pre-alpha still awaiting an exact date, players should probably approach the promises with caution. There is a lot of potential with titles such as this but, until more information has been revealed, not much can be definite. And the MMORPG genre is full of incredibly popular games for a reason. So finding a balance between removing stale gameplay mechanics and keeping solid foundational pieces will likely be a challenge.
BitCraft is currently under development.
Source: BitCraft