Update at 10:55, 06/06/2013:
Sorry everyone – we got some of the information in our original article below wrong! The lovely people at Vogelsap have contacted us to advise the following:
“It’s very cool to see you guys wrote about The Flock. Thank you for your support! We can’t wait to show you guys more.
“We do have to notify you about something that had been written in the article is wrong. Holding the light artifact – and therefore being the Carrier – does not make you faster, jump higher and become invisible. The Carrier is much slower and as you mention in your article before: it’s very easy to spot as it has a beacon of light. The Flock however, are the ones that can run faster, jump higher and reach places invisible for the Carrier. They have to try and get the artifact.
“It’s probably just a mistake, so we thought we’d help and let you guys know. Keep up the good work!”
Sincere apologies to the development team and our readers. Now we’re off to give W1ngman a slap on the wrist and take away his chocolate supply for the week.
Original article at 06:00, 06/06/2013:
A teaser trailer has been revealed this week for a new, asymmetrical, first-person multiplayer title called The Flock. This intriguing game caught our eye instantly, with its concept of being the bad guys for once.
The game is set on a derelict Earth in the year 3000, when all of humanity and every other living thing has been killed off by the Flock. Each player starts as one of these creepy skeleton-like creatures and each level contains what the developers are calling the ‘light artifact’. When this distinct item is picked up, it transforms the player into a humanoid being known as the Carrier; and you maintain this status until someone manages to take the artifact away from you (and presumably your life too). Vogelsap have provided details on the environment you’ll be crawling around in on their website: “The surface can be seen as a dark, gritty, cold place with howling winds and weaving sand of ashes and debris.”
The goal is obviously to keep the artifact for as long as possible but, as it lights you up like a Christmas tree, you’re very visible to every other player. You’ll go from playing quite a stealthy game to having this metaphorical target on your character’s chest and having to run from everyone to stay alive. But never fear: keeping hold of the special item enables you to move faster, jump higher and become invisible when you’re fortunate enough to find a dark space to hide in. And you’ll get the handy power of freezing your opponents with the light from the relic and burning them.
Vogelsap is a Dutch indie development team, consisting of seven dedicated people who have a desire to make original titles with high quality standards. They came together because they believe in the ideas and passions that they have and, as they say on their website: “The Flock is our first love letter to the games industry.”
The title is due for release this year although the exact date hasn’t been confirmed yet. You can be sure that comparisons to Pitch Black will be made, but in our opinion Vogelsap’s creation looks like it will go even further with the clever dynamic. The element of trying to beat your own time record with the artifact will no doubt prove to be extremely addictive – and we can’t wait to try.
