Ghostrunner 2

Ghostrunner was easily one of the biggest surprise hits of 2020, and fans were absolutely impressed by its fresh gameplay ideas and the one hit one kill design philosophy overruling it all. A sequel was known to be in the works, and the recently unveiled Ghostrunner 2 looks primed to build upon the foundations of the original in new ways. Ghostrunner 2 will once again thrust players into the dystopian setting of Dharma City as they slash and dice their way through hordes of new enemy archetypes and other obstacles. In addition to having motorcycle levels, the game will also feature better boss fights and more complex level designs among a slew of other improvements. It releases for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S sometime in 2023.

"We want the City to feel like there is tons of things to do and see. There will be plenty of side quests ranging from detective style mystery solving to hunting down unique bounties along with some vehicle missions."

What should players expect from Vigilance 2099’s world when it comes to size and variety?

Players should expect a vertical city that is split into 3 sectors. The city is completely explorable and is a content filled open world where it’s not too large with empty spaces. We want the City to feel like there is tons of things to do and see. There will be plenty of side quests ranging from detective style mystery solving to hunting down unique bounties along with some vehicle missions.

Cyberpunk settings are always ripe for thematically rich storytelling. Can we expect something along those lines for Vigilance 2099 as well?

Absolutely! We are working on having a really captivating story that pulls and keeps the audience interested throughout the game. The story is a huge priority and will feel like a forefront along with a ton of lore to learn about.

Vigilance 2099 promises various choices where open world traversal is concerned, including different kinds of vehicles. Can you talk about what that will entail and how much variety players can expect from the vehicles in particular?

So the players can choose to parkour, drive on ground or in the air to traverse through the city. However, entering a new sector will require an Air model vehicle as entrances to upper sectors are for the wealthier population. With vehicle variety, players can expect a ground car or motorcycle or air models for cars. There will be different types of ground or air vehicles, each with customisable options. However, it’s too soon to say exactly how many vehicles there will be.

How much of an emphasis does Vigilance 2099 put on things such as parkour and stealth? Are they important parts of the core loop, or are they more ancillary mechanics presented as options?

Parkour and stealth are important for the core loop but can also be optional for missions. There will be different types of bounties, some will be better for a stealthier approach and parkour for the chases whereas others will be better for all out attacks and vehicle chases. It depends on the bounty type and completely up to the player.

"We are working on having a really captivating story that pulls and keeps the audience interested throughout the game. The story is a huge priority and will feel like a forefront along with a ton of lore to learn about."

What can you tell us about melee combat in the game and how robust that system will be?

The melee combat will have different types of combos and takedowns depending on the upgrades the player has. For example, the player having robotic limbs adds to strength and weight, which makes combos a bit slower however to more damage and access to unique takedowns. This makes melee combat a lot more interesting and plays a part to the customisation of the player character.

How in-depth is the progression in Vigilance 2099? Does the game put a lot of focus on build variety? Will players be able to make progression choices suited to particular play styles?

We aim for Vigilance 2099 to have a lot of focus on different playstyles so build variety will have plenty of options, which means that players will be able to make choices that benefit their play styles more. An example is weapon choices and limb upgrades. Snipers are heavier weapons which benefit stealthy far range playstyles, if you choose an upgrade that allows for less weapon sway this makes it easier for those players that prefer long range gameplay to benefit off of those upgrades. Same with more aggressive players, you could focus on certain upgrades that can increase health which helps for close range combat and also increase player speed by replacing legs of the player. These are just a couple of examples and we are working on having a lot of interesting options for the player to have fun with.

What has your approach been to designing side quests and optional content in Vigilance 2099? Will side quests tie into the main story in any significant ways?

Some side quests will tie into the main story in significant ways whereas some expand on the lore of the world, there are also side quests focused on just having fun like quick bounty targets for a quick buck and for players that just enjoy action gameplay. So we want to cater to different audiences, those that love story, lore and just action.

As an indie developer, what kind of an experience has it been working with Unreal Engine 5?

We only just recently updated to the Unreal Engine 5 but it has been great and allowed for better world designs which plays a huge part in the Cyberpunk city. It’s worth it!

Roughly how long will an average playthrough of Vigilance 2099 be?

It’s too soon to say how long a playthrough will be but we want it to have a good amount of playtime with additional content via updates so that players will always have something to look forward to! We are a small indie team so we can’t promise a huge amount of endless hours right off at the start but we are making sure there is more than plenty to playthrough at the start with more along the way!

"We aim for Vigilance 2099 to have a lot of focus on different playstyles so build variety will have plenty of options, which means that players will be able to make choices that benefit their play styles more."

Do you have any plans to launch on the Switch?

At the moment we are aiming for PC and consoles. However, it’s way too soon to write off the Switch, you never know, we may one day have a Switch port.

What are your thoughts on Cyberpunk 2077’s disastrous launch, and what have you learned from it?

I enjoyed Cyberpunk 2077 a lot, but I can’t ignore that their launch was messy to say the least. We have learnt that we should make sure not to over promise, make sure everyone is having fun as a main priority and avoid rushing something that we feel is not ready for the public yet. We are focused on making this a game that us developers absolutely enjoyed making so that players can feel the passion that has gone into it!

What kind of results are possible when you mix the power of Unreal Engine 5 with PS5 and Xbox Series X?

Crowded environments with crazy amount of detail while maintaining a high fps. We are looking forward to showing everyone just what we have planned and are working on with the latest tech!

Can you let us know what are you most excited about for the game?

We are working on a very different system called the Outlaw system which takes some inspiration from the nemesis system seen in the Shadow of Mordor/War games.

That was a question we posed in a recent interview to Envoidant Studios’ Nas Nakarus, lead developer on the upcoming open world cyberpunk action RPG Vigilance 2099, whose biggest takeaway from the situation is that even though he personally enjoyed CDPR’s RPG, it reinforces the dangers of overpromising and rushing to deliver a product.

“I enjoyed Cyberpunk 2077 a lot, but I can’t ignore that their launch was messy to say the least,” he said. “We have learnt that we should make sure not to overpromise, make sure everyone is having fun as a main priority and avoid rushing something that we feel is not ready for the public yet. We are focused on making this a game that us developers absolutely enjoyed making so that players can feel the passion that has gone into it!”

Of course, Vigilance 2099 is a much smaller production developer by a significantly smaller team that the massive undertaking that was Cyberpunk 2077, so the two situations aren’t exactly alike- but it’s good to see developers taking crucial lessons from high-profile missteps by some of the bigger releases.

Vigilance 2099 is currently in development for PC and consoles, but doesn’t yet have a release date. Our full interview with Nakarus will be live soon, so stay tuned for that.

Early games like Hideo Kojima’s Policenauts flirted with the possibilities of exploring a futuristic dystopia back in the day but were severely hindered by the technological limitations of the time. Of course, that’s now changed – and there’s a litany of games and studios that have the technological resources to achieve a pristine level of detail in their environments using modern lighting techniques and faithful art direction.

2021 is looking to be the year of Cyberpunk games, with 2020’s Cyberpunk 2077 constantly reaching the top of news headlines at the beginning of this year (apparently, for all the wrong reasons but let’s not talk about that). Neon Giant’s The Ascent was also released in July this year to great critical and commercial acclaim and is already shaping up to be one of the year’s best. BlueTwelve’s cat-cyberpunk adventure Stray is still slated for a vague 2021 release. Finally, there’s Envoidant’s VIGILANCE 2099 that’s still relatively shrouded in mystery, which begs the question – what exactly is it?

VIGILANCE 2099 is a single-player action-adventure game set in a cyberpunk future. The game swaps between the first-person and third-person perspective, and is set in a city the game refers to as “Prey City.” As an unnamed protagonist, you embark on a quest as a bounty hunter, to well, take down several targets present in the seemingly dark and dingy environments of Prey City.

Details on the story front are scant for now, although that isn’t surprising considering the game is still in early development. VIGILANCE 2099 is both Envoidant Studios and publisher Behemoth Interactive’s debut title – which is certainly an interesting point worth noting. 

The studio might be small, but VIGILANCE 2099 is looking to be a big project. A fully explorable open-world with state-of-the-art graphics technology – it’s certainly a big undertaking for a debut project. It remains to be seen what the studio makes out of this opportunity, but the premise is definitely an interesting one and hopefully, will bear fruit in the near future.

VIGILANCE 2099’s gameplay revolves around three core tenants – the shooting, hand-to-hand combat, and exploration. It’s looking a bit rough around the edges with animations that feel clunky and environments that feel empty for a bustling city, but development is actively being done on the game. Following in the footsteps of games like The Coalition’s upcoming Gears of War 6 and Game Science’s Black Myth Wukong, VIGILANCE 2099 will be utilizing Unreal Engine 5 now. The visuals are looking great, but this choice might hinder the development pace since the engine itself is still in early access.

Coming back to the gameplay side of things, players will have two main options to fight with foes. The first is shooting – which switches the character to the first-person perspective. It looks nothing spectacular with little in the name of visual and audio feedback, but that’s to be expected considering the game’s current development status. This feeling continues over to the fighting as well, with melee brawling being an integral part of the game. One certain sequence in the trailer showcases an enemy with a shield that blocks bullets, which forces the character to get into close quarters for a killing blow.

Prey City is a fully explorable space, and players are free to choose their means of commute across the various areas. There’s of course, walking – which players can resort to if they want to explore the city at a laid-back pace. The trailer also showcases the protagonist scaling rooftops using ledges – hinting at a parkour system. Considering the fact that wall-running was cut from Cyberpunk 2077 during development, a fleshed-out parkour system would be a great way to give players a bit more freedom in how they want to explore the world.

Then there are cars – which because it’s a futuristic dystopia – can fly. This is looking to be one of the more interesting parts of the game since flying cars are one of the most intriguing elements of science fiction and cyberpunk. CD Projekt Red’s take on the source material didn’t feature such flying cars, nor did any other cyberpunk game in recent memory with the exception of Cloudpunk.

VIGILANCE 2099 is an action RPG at heart, so a fair bit of progression is to be expected. Not a lot of details are known as of yet, but fans should expect the levelling up mechanic using XP, investing points in stats, and filling up skill trees – as is customary with most action RPGs. The game will also feature cybernetic gear and weapons – hinting at a similar system to Cyberpunk 2077’s cyberdecks and implants.

Envoidant has crafted its levels and missions in a flexible manner – and players can either gun their way to their bounty, or use the information on the target and interrogate your target to carry out the task in a more creative fashion. Then there are stealth options – and the developer says it’s possible to carry out an assassination without arousing any suspicion. This is reminiscent of Deus Ex in many ways, which is a great inspiration for the developer to look into for sandbox level design.

The art direction is one of the biggest attractions of VIGILANCE 2099. The game flaunts its high-resolution textures and lighting with an abundance of reflective surfaces – which creates a charming, neon-soaked Prey City. Although not yet confirmed, VIGILANCE 2099 would probably feature ray-tracing options as well – given it is using Unreal Engine 5. The Bladerunner influences are in abundance, with a holographic lady being an advertisement model plus, the design of flying cars. All in all, there’s a ton of little details that Envoidant has managed to get right that makes Prey City so endearing – but the whole picture will be revealed on release, of course.

Details on the release date are non-existent, and fans shouldn’t expect to be playing VIGILANCE 2099 anytime soon. Considering the fact that the game is being developed on Unreal Engine 5 means that it could arrive sometime in the ballpark of 2023 or later, depending on how much time is required by the developers.

VIGILANCE 2099 is one of the many interesting single-player games from relatively lesser-known studios that are entering the AA to AAA space – just like Faith of Danschant: Hereafter and Black Myth: Wukong being two recent examples. Envoidant’s development budgets aren’t as high as say a 2021 AAA game, but the team is devoting those resources in an efficient manner. For instance, most denizens of Prey City seem to be robots, which are arguably easy to animate and create rather than uncanny human NPCs. All in all, VIGILANCE 2099 is shaping up to be an interesting game, and might be worth keeping an eye out for.

Note: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of, and should not be attributed to, GamingBolt as an organization.

FAITH OF DANSCHANT: HEREAFTER

Chinese developer developer Beijing Joyfun recently unveiled its action RPG Faith of Danschant: Hereafter with a lengthy gameplay debut, and honestly, it looks really interesting. Inspired by Chinese mythology, it’s the sequel to 2017’s Faith of Danschant, and the gameplay trailer it debuted with was quite packed. Slick, action-packed combat, large-scale fights against mythical beasts, parkour-heavy traversal- it’s got all the elements in place to deliver a promising package.