Capcom has announced today that this very week will see a demo released of their upcoming sci-fi shooter, Dark Void. There’s been much speculation about this title, which boasts cool premises like jetpack combat and appearances from historical badass Nikola Tesla. This week will see hopes or fears compounded as demos generally give a good impression of how a game will play (kind of the point). Not much has been said regarding the demo content, merely that “The teaser level will be a nice introduction to gamers who plan to try out the full game when it ships on January 19, 2009.”
For those out of the loop, Dark Void is a sci-fi shooter “that combines an adrenaline-fueled blend of aerial and ground-pounding combat.” It’s set in an alternate universe in a seemingly Bermuda Triangle sense, and stars a pilot named Will who finds himself unceremoniously dropped into the middle of a war between humans and aliens. The jetpack mechanics certainly sound intriguing, and if done well could provide a whole new method of gameplay for innovation-hungry gamers. And while it’s sci-fi in nature, it’s refreshing that someone has steered away from the space marine formula saturating today’s games.
Releasing this month means that Dark Void finds itself up against some pretty steep competition. That’s a bit of an understatement. With games like Bayonetta, Mass Effect 2, and No More Heroes 2, Dark Void needs to be better than sliced bread stand a chance at any decent sales numbers. Capcom has been knocking things out of the park lately though, so it’s entirely possible. And people always appreciate the chance to test out new intellectual properties.
Regardless, the demo hits Xbox Live on Wednesday, January 6th (that’s tomorrow!), and PSN on Thursday January 7th. Feel free to check it out and give us your thoughts!