Steel Hunters: Mech Hero Shooter Launches Beta with Tactical Edge

Wargaming Unveils Mech-Based Hero Shooter, Steel Hunters, at The Game Awards

Publisher and developer Wargaming, famed for 'World of Tanks', put on display their latest creation, Steel Hunters, at The Game Awards 2024. Steel Hunters distinguishes itself with a pinch of MOBA, extraction shooter, and hero shooter gameplay elements, all built around a core third-person shooter mechanic.

The game melds PvPvE dynamics by pitting competitive objective-based teams of two against numerous duos, accommodating a total of 6 teams comprising up to 12 players per match, interspersed with AI enemies on the map. A stand-out aspect remains the mechs known as 'Hunters' which players harness during contests.

Tactics Over Speed in Steel Hunters

The pace adopted in Steel Hunters leans towards the slower side, as the game emphasizes tactics over reflexive shooting prowess. With multiple capture points scattered across three distinct maps and emergent side objectives surfacing across matches, players can acquire valuable loot and items to aid in combat.

Cosmetic items, bringing personalization opportunities to players’ respective Hunters, can be acquired during play and retained upon extraction at the final standoff of the match.

Unique Playstyles and Hunter Customization

Hunters symbolize hero characters, each displaying a unique playstyle through its primary weapon, skills set (with cooldowns), and abilities. Exploring a few examples of Hunters, Fenris stands as a nifty wolf-like mech, Heartbreaker a long-range sniper, it also includes a combat medic in Trenchwalker, a spider-like tank in Weaver, an ability-focused strategist with Prophet, and a standard-run-and-gun Hunter with Razorside.

Clear strategic harmony bonds the Hunters, requiring players to co-opt their respective strengths in matches for an optimal outcome.

Monetization and Game Progression

Maintaining its traditional monetization model, Wargaming enables Hunter customization with progression tracks. The progression tracks will unlock abilities and mods permitting further Hunter customizations. It was stated that in-game purchases using real money will not accord competitive advantages to players but provide progression accelerators. Upon registration, players are provided access to three initial Hunters but need to play towards unlocking new Hunters or purchase them.

Steel Hunters will also introduce the battle pass and seasonal contents, found in other live service games, with the operational mechanics of these systems yet to be detailed.

Steel Hunters Launching Closed Beta

The closed beta for Steel Hunters goes live today and will continue until December 22. Players can sign up via the official Steel Hunters website. An open beta is projected for 2025, with no specific date or release period to report as yet. The beta spans and early release will target PCs initially, with a console version planned to follow.