Starhawk, due out in 2012, is being developed by LightBox Interactive, the studio set up by Dylan Jobe and other ex-members of Incognito Entertainment, and Sony Santa Monica.Warhawk launched as a Blu-ray and digitial download. Starhawk, however, will be released as a Blu-ray retail only. Unlike Warhawk, Starhawk features a fully-fledged single-player campaign as well as the multiplayer portion the series is known for.Players assume the role of Emmett Graves, a Rift miner turned gun for hire altered by Rift Energy, found on the outer reaches of space. The enemy faction is the Outcast, humans turned into monsters following exposure to Rift Energy.The game has a Wild West in space look and feel. Graves goes in search of his outlaw brother, the leader of the Outcasts. Levels are large and open, designed to offer dynamic gameplay with AI that adapts to the player's actions.The gameplay hook this time is an RTS-lite element called "Build and Battle". As players kill enemies and other players they gather resources, spent on calling down structures from orbit and placed down on the battlefield as they see fit.Structures include walls, gates, turrets and landing pads for vehicles. Structures can be demolished, too.On the multiplayer side, Starhawk features 32-player matches, up to four-player online and offline co-op play, and split-screen gameplay within multiplayer and co-op modes against an endless attack of enemies.The game supports tournaments, leaderboards, clans and additional friend list and quick matches. There's a community events calendar, ticker tape updates, and plans for a Starhawk Android app.
A few other items that were discussed but not shown, the online features are definitely going to be the deepest we’ve ever seen on a PS3 game:- Full Clan support (not just a tag)- In-game calendar- Cross-Server Clan Voice Chat- A Fully Automated and Integrated Tournament System (we heard him say “cell phone,” but we’re not sure if it was something in-game or not)****Additionally, Starhawk employs a host of online community features that allows players to be always connected, all the time, including tournaments, leader boards, and clan support with additional friends list and quick match options. Players can keep up to date with the community events calendar, ticker tape updates, and a Starhawk Android application that let users to keep track of friends, clan mates, and stats when not online.
The Starhawk universe is set in the distant future, out in the far reaches of space where factions battle over a rare and dangerous resource known as Rift Energy. In this galaxy, colonies of humans, called Rifters, explore a scattering of planets, known as the Frontier, in attempt to mine this energy to make an honest living, but find their way of life threatened by the Outcast, a ruthless species of humans who have mutated into psychotic monsters due to exposure to this very same Rift Energy. Caught in the middle is Emmett Graves, a hired gunslinger ostracized from society because of his own exposure to Rift Energy, leaving him partially mutated, but still able to retain his humanity. Starhawk allows you to take on the powerful role of Graves who is drawn back to his home settlement of White Sands on the Planet Dust to face a mysterious outlaw and his war band of Outcast warriors only to discover that this job may mean more to him than he could have ever imagined. He will soon find out that his family is involved in the clash between the Outcast and the Rifters and therefore must decide between those close to him and those he swore to protect.
