IGN Editors React to Playing Evolve for the First Time

Evolve -- from the creators of Left 4 Dead -- makes its roots readily apparent. The four-against-one first-person shooter blends L4D with a MOBA, and the results are invigorating. Developer Turtle Rock wasn't content to just tell us about the game, however. Rather, they're so confident in their new baby that they sat us right down in front of it and let us play it for a couple hours. Here are the impressions of the IGN editors in attendance.

Oh, and be sure not to miss our full Evolve coverage.

Mitch Dyer's Goliath Domination

I am very, very good at playing Goliath.

I'm not even going to pretend to have humility. I went into Evolve expressly interested in ruining my coworkers day by beating them into a pulp while playing as a Monster character. The Goliath's mix of strength and speed makes it a well-balanced brute, capable of quickly navigating large spaces while coming down on enemies like a spiked sledgehammer.

I expected the squad of four Hunters would be able to pretty effortlessly annihilate a Monster -- they have the mobility of their jetpacks, the ability to shield and heal each other, as well as tether Goliath in place. Imbalance is not a problem. I saw huge comebacks on both sides, so even now, in brief burst, Evolve appears to have a strong balance of competitive play.

Prioritizing the kill is clutch. When the Medic is healing the Trapper giving you grief, spit fire on her. Airstrike inbound? Leap attack toward the Support character, and then nimbly clamber over a wall to make a great escape. Goliath is an empowering playable character, and the satisfaction of obliterating four players cooperating well is intoxicating.

Ryan McCaffrey's Medical Marvel

I'm not sure the Monster life is for me. My very first time playing Evolve was as Goliath, and I was quickly annihilated by Mitch, Marty, and their two teammates. What were my powers again? How do I best cycle them to maximize my offensive prowess? The Goliath definitely has a bit of a learning curve to him.

Things got markedly better as I cycled through the four human classes. I quite enjoyed the Trapper and his Goliath-grabbing harpoon (I kept wanting to go full Robert-Muldoon-in-Jurassic-Park and yell, "SHOOT HEEEEER! SHOOOOOT HEEEEER!"), as well as the mobile bubble dome he can use to temporarily cage the beast. The orbital barrage of the Support guy was pretty cool; few things during my play session felt better than when I successfully called down an orbital missile strike on Goliath and landed it on him while the Trapper held him in place. And despite the fact that I almost always gravitate to the most tank-like class that deals the most damage, the Assault dude didn't do much for me, even if it was nice to have the firepower of a lightning gun and an electronic assault rifle.

I found my calling as the Medic. Finally, a class I could play that would reward me and make me a positive contributor to our team without me having to rack up the most kills. I loved being able to tag the Monster with a tranquilizer gun so that he'd glow green on my teammates' HUD -- even from behind objects. I loved poking holes in his armored flesh with the anti-material rifle. But most of all, I absolutely loved chasing my teammates around with my medgun as they engaged Goliath. As they damaged him, he would take swipes at them back, draining their health...until I quickly refilled it with my medgun's beam, which tethers and locks onto your buddies as long as they're in your field of view. This infuriated the person playing as the Monster, so much so that they'd ultimately come after me. This played right into my hands (so long as I was able to stay alive, that is), as that would then free my teammates to go into full-on attack mode. I took my job of keeping my friends' health bars topped up very seriously, and we emerged victorious.

Oh and for what it's worth, I did get to play as Goliath again before my play session ended. And with a much better grasp on the game mechanics, I ripped the throats out of my puny human opponents one by one until I was the only bipedal thing left standing. So maybe there's something to this Monster thing after all...

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