READY OR NOT

Here’s the lowdown on Void Interactive’s new shooter

Pitched as a spiritual successor to PC-only series SWAT, and borrowing from more modern titles like Rainbow Six Siege, Ready Or Not is a tactical shooter where killing isn’t your only option. Resolving conflict non-lethally is your priority and a methodical approach is encouraged.

From flashbangs to zip-lock cuffs, you’re well stocked to face whatever is thrown at you. Though, as a SWAT operative in a dark and twisted version of the United States, you’re packing lethal tools as well as less harmful options. With a strong focus on realism, planning your loadout before you set out is key and, in multiplayer, discussing your approach with your squadmates ahead of time is critical. Looking at the floor plan, does it make sense to go in the front? Could a tactical ladder be deployed here or there? Should we take our chances and go in with ballistic shields? Developer Void Interactive will launch Ready Or Not on PC first but would like to make the jump to the next-generation PlayStation down the line. Managing director Julio Rodriguez tells us how the team will make the most of next-gen tech.

Rodriguez seems optimistic about what PS5 means for PC-focused developers, saying “the specs allows for a broader range of games to be able to approach the console market.” As for Ready Or Not itself, Rodriguez tells us, “Our game design will lend itself to run excellently on the PS5 [and] we are currently achieving 80-plus fps on mid-range devices.” He clarifies that things are far from final and that the team still have a lot of testing ahead of them.

GUN-SHY

[HAPTIC FEEDBACK] CAN BRING AN EXTRA DIMENSION.

We ask what PS5’s SSD and ray-tracing capabilities (tech PCs already have) will mean for devs. “Loading times haven’t been an issue [for us] but games have been traditionally quite slow on consoles to load in,” Rodriguez explains. “This [tech] will be a big boost and big players like NVIDIA are proving very willing to partner with developers to make it happen [on PC].”

Haptic feedback is something gamers on all platforms have seen far less of, however. Rodriguez says

of the new DualShock’s haptic triggers, “This can bring an extra dimension to shooting and/or being shot at [or] suppressed.”

PlayStation 5’s specs have yet to be fully officially confirmed (though we do now know a little more about its capabilities – see p44 for more on those). Rodriguez said that if the rumoured stats turn out to be true, “It could make PS5 potentially have graphical and framerate parity with the PC build […], which excites us […].”

The game will go into beta and alpha later this year but only for players who pre-order it on PC. Watch this space for news of a possible PlayStation 5 release and the latest on Sony’s next-generation console itself.

Find out more at the official website here: voidinteractive.net.