Destroy robots, rescue hostages, blow up the reactor, and escape before the whole thing explodes.

Many 3D action games have four to five degrees of freedom in their motion controls. Space combat games allow 3 axes of rotation, but usually only 1 axis of movement, while first person shooters generally allow 2 axes of rotation and 2.5--if you count jump as half an axis--axes of movement. A six-degree-of-freedom shooter gives you controls for all 3 axes of rotation and all 3 axes of movement. While this creates complexity for moving and controlling the player’s character, the reward is an experience unlike any other. Combat and movement are more dynamic, as you are able to interact in 3 full dimensions.

Though 6-DOF shooters surged in popularity in the 90's, the genre has laid dormant for over a decade. Overload’s early development has focused on merging modern technology with natural and intuitive 6-DOF controls, all while still providing intense robot-annihilating action.

The primary objective in classic 6-DOF shooters was simple: Find the reactor, destroy it, and escape. Carrying out your objective is where the true essence of the game lay, and that’s what Overload focuses on. Each level will be full of gameplay reasons to move and look and shoot all around you, with secrets to discover, traps to trigger, powerups to find, and cryo-frozen hostages to rescue. Along the way you’ll encounter plenty of robots to battle or flee from. There will be keys to collect, shortcuts to take, and reactors to eliminate. You’ll race to the exit as the timer counts down and be thrilled when you make it out just in time.

Though Overload's primary focus is on gameplay, it will also have a rich backstory and universe ripe for expansion. The details of the story will be revealed later, and we're happy to announce that it's being penned by the writer of FreeSpace 2.

“We started Overload as a nostalgic homage to Descent, but it’s really grown into something more. We were able to create a deep story with voice, a new challenge mode and add VR support. And all this is on top of graphics and sound we could only dream about 20 years ago,” said Mike Kulas, co-creator, Revival Productions.  Matt Toschlog added, "It's been a blast creating this game, and we especially value the relationships we’ve formed with our Kickstarter backers and Early Access players."

Overload will be available for PC (Windows, Mac, & Linux) beginning May 31, 2018 for $34.99, with PS4 and Xbox One versions to follow in Q3 2018.

A “playable teaser” of Overload is available for free on Steam or by direct download from the official website,  It contains a small subset of Overload, giving the player a taste of what it’s like to play in six-degrees-of-freedom.

Destroying a robot is extremely satisfying in Overload. It needs to be, because you’ll be destroying tons of them. We’ve spent a lot of time refining the feel of the combat, the way robots move and fire, and the many ways robots take damage and explode, but we’re not done yet.

We’ve established the basic AI archetypes for robots, and every robot type will have customized AI that gives them a unique personality and combat behavior. Part of that personality comes from the sounds they make as well. When you hear the alert scream for a robot, it not only lets you know that danger is coming, but it can fill you with fear as you cringe in anticipation of getting hit. Already the sound of unexpected grinding blades makes us immediately dodge up or down if at all possible.

The other major element of combat is the weapons. Though we’ve only done initial passes on 4 weapons, they each feel great to use and have roles that they’re ideal for. We have big plans to expand the weapons system with multiple upgrade types per weapon that you’ll unlock over the course of the game.

Overload has a classic inspiration, but that doesn’t mean it’ll look pixelated or have an 8-bit soundtrack. It uses the latest graphics technology to immerse you in the world. With physically-based rendering, dynamic shadows, and realtime global illumination, your eyes will be as engaged as your heart. Even when you can’t see a robot hiding around the corner, its shadow could give it away. And when you turn the tables and blow the robot to pieces, you're rewarded with some beautifully rendered particle effects.

On top of the fantastic visuals, we’re pulling out all the stops to make Overload sound amazing. We're excited to announce that we've enlisted the talents of Dan Wentz and Allister Brimble. Dan worked on sound and music for Descent 2, FreeSpace, and Red Faction, and has maintained an active presence in the Descent community for the past 20 years. Allister worked on the CD soundtrack for Descent along with many other hit titles over the years including Dungeon Master II, the Team 17 range of Amiga games, Rollercoaster Tycoon & Driver.

Key Features:

• 15 level single-player campaign plus secret levels
• Numerous level challenges including lava, forcefields, lockdowns, ambushes and secret rooms
• 20 terrifying robot enemies, plus Super-Robots and Variants and three bosses
• Multiplayer with public and private matches
• Challenge mode (with two variants) and 12 Challenge Mode levels Story by the writer of FreeSpace 2 with fully-voiced audio (English Only)
• Adrenaline-pumping soundtrack
• Optional training level for refining your piloting skills
• Achievements and Leaderboards
• Upgrades and XP system and advanced player stats
• Automap and Holo-guide for navigation assistance
• Save anywhere
• Six difficulty levels ranging from a casual challenge to very punishing
• Support for mouse, keyboard, gamepad and/or joystick controls
• Surround sound audio options
• Virtual reality support for Oculus and Vive
• Interface and Subtitle Available in: English, French, German, Spanish and Russian
• Post launch: Release of Level Editor and support for user-created levels and campaigns

Overload will be available for PC (Windows, Mac, & Linux) beginning May 31, 2018 for $34.99, with PS4 and Xbox One versions to follow in Q3 2018.