Dev Diary #1: The Road to Early Access

Hey, Renegades! I’m Andy Duthie, Executive Producer for HAWKED. We’re releasing HAWKED in Early Access on November 30—it’s the culmination of years of hard work and perseverance from the whole team at MY.GAMES, and we couldn’t be prouder to finally put it in your hands.

Today, we want to share more about our journey to Early Access, the new and reworked features we’ve implemented, and how your playtime and feedback from Open Beta helped us get here.

A BRIEF HISTORY OF HAWKED

HAWKED’s inception began several years ago. Our goal was to develop a fresh, colorful new game for the MY.GAMES portfolio, in a different genre than our players might otherwise be used to. We set out to make what was originally known as Project D1: an extraction shooter with a treasure-hunting theme.

Although the extraction shooter genre has risen in popularity in recent years, these games tend to not be too welcoming to more casual gamers. So once we settled on our direction, we wanted to make sure the game was as approachable as possible to newcomers. All the same, we wanted extraction shooter veterans to experience a challenge, with a smattering of deeper nuances to master. 

The developers united the heroes, humor, and world of pulp action stories with vivid, comic book-style visuals, and defined a simple game loop that anyone could grasp. 

The pieces began to fall into place, and thus, our anti-heroic Renegades (the player characters), the adventurers guild GRAIL, the Riftwake, the monstrous Disciples, and the mysterious island known as X-Isle—and all its treasures—came into being.

THE ROAD TO EARLY ACCESS

Lots of iteration, internal feedback, and testing brought us to our first Closed Alpha Tests in 2022 and early 2023. Feedback from players at this stage gave the developers a lot to work with, a challenge they met head-on. It was also at this point that we renamed Project D1 to HAWKED.

In the summer of 2023, we followed up with an Open Beta and Crossplay Open Beta for PC, PlayStation 5, and PlayStation 4. Though not without a few road bumps, we were heartened to see the beginnings of our Renegade community kindling. Your passion for what the game was—and everything it could be—was reflected in your feedback and crucial in shaping our path forward. 

We took several direct approaches to gathering feedback:

• Community reports: The community team gathered your feedback from Discord, social media, and Steam to give us a vibe-check on your sentiment towards HAWKED, including likes, dislikes, and requests.
• In-game surveys: Players were given short, five-question surveys after the tutorial, the first match, and after a quest. These surveys gave us plenty of quantitative feedback about the main gameplay features from a large number of players.
• Exit surveys: Sent to players after they closed the game during Open Beta, these surveys were more detailed and gave us an idea of what you liked, disliked, and what you wanted to see.
• Player interviews: Select players agreed to tell us more about their experiences with HAWKED. Supporting our quantitative data from surveys with qualitative interview feedback really helped us zero in on specific problem areas, as well as well-liked features.

After taking stock of the current state of the game and collating all your feedback, we wasted no time in acting on it.

Right now, we truly believe we’ve made HAWKED the fun and approachable extraction shooter experience we wanted it to be. We’re making Early Access on PC the next chapter because we want to battle-test it together with you, get your feedback in a live environment, and make sure we’re really heading in the right direction on the technical and gameplay front before we launch the game in full next year.

And that pretty much brings you up to speed with where we’re at now! On the eve of Early Access, let’s review what we’ve been working on, how we acted on your feedback, and the changes you can expect to see in Early Access and Issue #1: Renegades, our first seasonal chapter.

TUTORIAL & ONBOARDING NEW RENEGADES

85% of players completed the tutorial in Open Beta, which gave us a great dataset and feedback to work with. The most common complaint we heard was that the tutorial was missing key information about basics like movement types, revival mechanics, Artifacts, Gears, and generally preparing players for PvP gameplay. With this, a key goal for Early Access was to make sure players knew what they were doing as early and as easily as possible, with no barriers to entry or unclear mechanics post-tutorial. 

We reshaped and improved the tutorial by showing off more of these features sooner, from traversal mechanics such as sliding, to using Ping to communicate with your squad. The tutorial is now also replayable from your Personal Quarters aboard the Riftwake in case you need to brush up. The post-tutorial transition to the Hideout is now smoother, too.

In addition, while HAWKED’s lore was deliberately thin on the ground in Open Beta, we’ve been ramping it up to give you a proper introduction to the incredible world our Narrative Team has created. The introductory comic has been reworked, and as Issue #1: Renegades progresses, you’ll experience new story quests (through a revised UI), discover a mysterious relic called the Glyphstone, and be able to take part in limited-time story events (the first one is launching in December). 

METAGAME FEATURES

We want to encourage players to really delve into HAWKED on a meta-level and find the weapons, Artifacts, Gears, and other loadout-related options that let them feel like they’re mastering the game in their own way. The limited time players had with Open Beta didn’t give them a great impression of the meta potential of HAWKED. Also, the small amount of session currency players could collect would expire from match to match, so didn’t incentivize much use during Open Beta.

We made a lot of changes to get players familiar with meta mechanics early on. Gear progression is now more streamlined, with more Gears available from the get-go that are easier to access and view from a menu. 

Additionally, the currency you can shop with in-game—renamed from HYPE to CRED—is now persistent between sessions. This should give you more time to earn and save it before spending it on new loadout options at extraction point shops. Just do your best to survive or extract with your CRED every match!

RIDIN’ SOLO

While Open Beta focused on squad gameplay, a whopping 77% of you asked for a solo mode. Well, we’re thrilled to say it’s ready for Early Access! Go lone wolf in the newly-added Solo Treasure Hunt to bring home the treasure on your own. 

Alternatively, if you want to enjoy quicker matchmaking with the added challenge of competing against teams, you can also now choose ‘No Fill’ when matching into Duos and Squads.

TECHNICAL IMPROVEMENTS

Naturally, we’ve put a lot of work in on the technical front. Since issues related to movement and shooting ranked high on your list of bugbears, we’ve worked to ensure a smoother flow within sessions. 

Many issues that can impact combat flow, including crashes, collision issues related to hitreg, and instances where players might become stuck, have been resolved.

ADVERSITY

Many players told us they wanted a more adrenaline-pumping extraction shooter experience. With more players expected to join Early Access, we expect the competition to ramp up considerably. 

To help this along, Early Access introduces skill-based matchmaking. That means you’ll be facing more players that are on your level. If you’re still learning the Renegade ropes, you’ll get a fair match-up and won’t be pitted against the Indiana Joneses of the HAWKED world.

We’ve also tinkered with the enemies you’ll find on X-Isle. To keep sessions competitive and give you a greater sense of progression, enemy encounters will now scale dynamically in difficulty. The closer you get to your goals, the harder the Disciples try to stop you. If you encounter bots (used to fill matchmaking slots during quieter hours), you should notice their AI and behavior have improved since Open Beta.

TEAM COMMUNICATION

Good communication is the cornerstone of team play in HAWKED. We noted some frustration with the lack of communication options in Open Beta, so we added more ways to help you coordinate with your squad.

You can now Ping on markers (such as encounters extraction points) to highlight goals to your squad, Ping the map while spectating, as well as confirm other players’ Pings. Characters will use dynamic dialogue for different types of Ping. The contextual action button ‘Revive Me’ can be used to attract teammates’ attention if you’re struggling.

TRAVERSAL

Character movement was admittedly not very smooth in Open Beta, so we put some work into the simple act of getting around. Animations are now smoother, with improved transitions between different types of movement, a fix for jumping while aiming down sights (ADS), and a reworked camera while sprinting and sliding. 

Your Renegade tools—the Hoverboard and Traverser—are also more intuitive to use. It’s easier to find traversal points, and you can now auto-disembark from the Hoverboard when it’s not effective to use it.

CONTROLS & GAMEPAD SUPPORT

We want you to play in the way that’s most natural and intuitive for you—whether that’s keyboard and mouse controls or a gamepad. While many players found the controls in Open Beta comfortable and effective, there were a few issues and complaints that arose related to limited keybinds, some uncomfortable options, and several actions being mapped to the same key or button.

Early Access introduces a few new control schemes and improvements to existing ones. There’s a reworked default control scheme on keyboard and mouse, different control schemes available straight off the bat, better input binding options, plus additional camera and control sensitivity options.

Playing on a controller? Aim assist, which was a little strong in Open Beta, has been rebalanced in the interest of maintaining a fairer competitive landscape in crossplay matches. We’ve also added vibration support for DualShock 4 and Xbox controllers, and adaptive trigger support for DualSense controllers.

VISUALS & USER INTERFACE (UI)

Visual communication is important to us. When the chips are down, you’ll want to get the information you’re looking for at a glance. That’s why we added new types of reticules (or crosshairs) that change dynamically depending on what you’re pointing at. You’ll also be able to check your teammates’ statuses while in a Squad (whether they’ve died, been knocked down, disconnected, or left the game).

Environments and characters are now easier to parse thanks to added outlines and brushstroke effects.

New lighting presets have been implemented for the final phase, evening, and night for greater session immersion, while visual improvements have been made to the in-match Shop and Resurrection Points.

GRAPHICS

Want to take in more of X-Isle’s horizon? We’ve added ultrawide monitor support, available with Early Access. 

On the other end of the spectrum, if you’re playing on low specs, the game will look even better on the improved preset for Minimum graphics settings.

CUSTOMIZATION AND IN-GAME PURCHASES

As you may know, HAWKED will be completely free to play in Early Access on PC. As a live service title, HAWKED will include optional paid content that supports continued development and regular updates. Gamers are rightfully wary of predatory practices, so we wanted to reaffirm our commitment to making HAWKED a fair competitive experience for all players. In short, the game is not pay-to-win. You can’t buy an advantage over your enemies and peers!

The in-game Shop—run by GRAIL’s resident robot quartermaster GE-0—allows you to spend our soft currency “Hawks” (acquired through regular gameplay and not purchases) and premium currency GE-0 Cash (purchased with real-world cash) on optional content like cosmetics, a premium status known as GRAIL+ (which grants speed boosts, but not power bonuses), and a type of battle pass known as the Renegade Pass.

Through events, the Renegade Pass, optional purchases, and other special campaigns like Twitch Drops, you’ll be able to customize your character, gear, and Quarters. Dress up your Renegade in Outfits, switch up your Traverser, Hoverboard, and weapons with new skins, perform Emotes, and so much more. There are plenty of options already unlocked—and more premium and free options to come—so please mix, match, and carve out your own personal Renegade style!

Are we missing anything? That’s what Early Access is for! Let us know your thoughts on Discord once you get some hands-on time with the new build.

We’ll have more to share in future Dev Diaries as we progress with Issue #1: Renegades and move towards the launch of HAWKED on PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X|S, and Xbox One in early 2024, so stay tuned.

Thanks for reading—see you all on X-Isle!