The S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series was never known for having a healthy esports following. It was known for the single-player experience and multiplayer was never its strong suit. Still, fans might’ve been wondering what a purely multiplayer experience would be like – hence Fear The Wolves, developed by Vostok Games, a team of ex-S.T.A.L.K.E.R. devs. The game is out now on Steam Early Access. You can see how Fear The Wolves was inspired by the franchise in the launch trailer below.
Fear The Wolves – Out now on Steam Early Access
For starters, the game explains why you’re out in the middle of the Ukranian countryside. You’ve just escaped the disaster from S.T.A.L.K.E.R. – namely Chernobyl – yet you remain hunted by everything around you. Up to 100 players will be able to battle it out in the bleak landscape of post-apocalyptic Ukraine.
Along the way, there are PvE threats like wolf packs and mutants reminiscent of the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games. Likewise, you’ll be forced to evade anomalies brought about by the Chernobyl disaster. And yes, you can obviously be killed by radiation.
Given that this is an Early Access game, there are quite a few hiccups from the get-go. First off, players have reported that there are optimization issues with the game even on newer machines. Others, meanwhile, have noted problems with matchmaking. For instance, a player from Australia cited that there were no Oceania servers and he ended up with opponents from the other side of the world. This has led to some frustrations among new players who’ve just picked up the game.
In any case, we do hope that Vostok Games can eventually sort things out. S.T.A.L.K.E.R. may not have been known for its multiplayer aspect, but a game that’s inspired by it does have some potential. Then again, with all the battle royale games that are out – and are soon to release – it is a question of how Fear The Wolves would be able to live up to that while maintaining a sizable player base.
You can check it out on Steam here.
