There is no shortage of multiplayer horror games with asymmetrical gameplay, especially on PC, and new ones are launching regularly. One of the next to try its luck is Level Zero Extraction. A title that had disappeared from the radar and that we had the opportunity to review before the launch of its beta phases and early access. Our first opinion.
DogHowl Games, a small Ukrainian independent studio made up of veterans of the video game and VFX industry, has been working on Level Zero Extraction for over three years. An asymmetric multiplayer horror and extraction FPS that draws inspiration from great references such as Alien Isolation, Dead Space, Outlast, Escape from Tarkov and Hunt Showdown. Enough to make you want to take a close interest in the game.
Level Zero Extraction, the next co-op game to make?
Level Zero Extraction takes place in the near future, 2058, as a team of researchers land on the planet Turion in hopes of finding a new form of life. The discovery ends in a secret laboratory in Antarctica, with the fantastic idea of mixing the alien DNA recovered from Turion with the human genome. What could go wrong? Obviously, this plan completely degenerates and mercenaries are sent there to collect data, but above all to clean up the massacre and bury this experiment forever. This is where it all starts with two different teams. That of the soldiers which can accommodate up to 9 players, divided into three types of squad (solo, duo, trio), and that of the monsters which will only be two. And of course, everyone has a well-defined role.
The goal of the mercenaries is to survive the aliens, by fighting or avoiding them, to loot useful resources and to escape from the map. Depending on the map, there may be different extraction points with conditions to be met to escape. Loot before taking an elevator, wait at a point or have in your possession a specific item such as a zip line. All the treasures pocketed during the games naturally allow you to create new tools, and four locations will be reserved to preserve the best finds from one game to the next. As for the objective of the aliens, there is no surprise, they are there to teach humans a lesson and make them pay for their stupidity and arrogance. But there is a twist. The entire concept and gameplay of Level Zero Extraction revolves around the duality between dark and light. Alan Wake is not cited in the references by our interlocutors, but it is indeed one – we could also have cited Obscure (cocorico).
Human players must escape the darkness to keep the monsters away. To do this, they will have to regularly turn on the lights in the place where they are, which can go out suddenly following a random event, and light up using smoke bombs or a halogen spotlight on a stand for example. But like in Remedy’s game, light is somehow the ultimate weapon. Without them, the various weapons carried by the mercenaries are of no use. Illuminating the aliens, before shooting them, is the only way to cause damage capable of causing their death. While knowing that depending on the light source and the distance, the damage also varies. For example, using a smoke bomb at close range can be a particularly powerful combination to weaken the body of monsters.
In the event of death, and before possibly being reanimated, a soldier can reappear in the form of a drone. Equipment aimed at supporting survivors since it has the ability to scan the environment, find and bring objects to teammates, but also turn the lights back on. Even though we haven’t gotten our hands on Level Zero Extraction yet, it seemed like a very interesting addition. Especially since it breaks the usual codes where when you die, the only possible interaction is watching your comrades die one after the other. Which can be long sometimes.
Snipers versus monsters
Even if we haven’t yet been able to try Level Zero Extraction, good and not so good things stand out on the military side. Already DogHowl Games seems to have created a nice atmosphere, with quite a few light shows coming in particular from the tools which allow you to see better and repel potential attacks. We will certainly not be terrified or surprised, but the atmosphere of a topsy-turvy complex, occupied by two monsters, seems well respected. On the other hand, the sound design will perhaps be behind, but given the few extracts seen, it is worth seeing. It wasn’t that and the melee attacks also lacked impact. Because yes, humans also have more traditional instruments for striking, but this point was rather overlooked during the sequences shown. We just know that the studio took the example of Chivalry where the shot sent depends on the movement made with the mouse.
Humans are very nice, but they are not welcome and the monsters will quickly reinstate a hierarchy of species by hunting them relentlessly. But taking care to stay hidden as much as possible. And their ideal ally to achieve this is the ventilation ducts, like a xenomorph. It is their only secure space where they can spy on the commandos from a distance, and stay away from them, to better prepare their attacks. Because before slashing the mercenaries, the creatures have the ability to turn off the lights with an electromagnetic pulse. At the same time, it was hard to see them leaving their hideout to activate a switch.
Then, after scanning the surroundings and hearing the pulse of enemies to temporarily highlight their prey, it’s time for solo or duo assaults for greater efficiency. And this is where the synergy between the two aliens and the strategy can emerge. We could see this concretely when one of the two beasts placed a trapped egg, to stun and disorient the soldiers, right on the opening of a door. Once deposited, the monster returned to its conduit, while its colleague waited in the room that the soldier was about to enter. The trap is then triggered and the creatures emerge from the darkness to carry out their attack. RIP little mercenary gone too soon. Coordination will also be one of the keys to making it out alive. Because beasts may reappear endlessly, unlike humans who fail when all members die, they are not invincible. In addition to toxic eggs, it is also possible to spit bile to, again, pin an opponent in place and prevent them from seeing by completely blurring their vision, or even to extinguish smoke bombs.
The aliens are powerful, fast, but not invincible. Abilities like spit need a source of energy, which are also eggs to collect in different corners of the map. However, the more active the monsters are, the more XP they will gain to unlock skills. And that goes for humans who can create modification chips, to install on their outfit, which offer buffs or debuffs, knowing that there seems to be a systematic reset. On the other hand, don’t expect classes for both camps. According to the studio, to test another build, it will be necessary to somehow sell the DNA of the alien and start a customization phase again. The bestiary will potentially be limited, but we will have the choice of whether or not to apply a different skin. There are therefore encouraging promises, especially Level Zero should express its survival horror aspect through limited resources.
We await Level Zero Extraction… with curiosity
Level Zero may not shine brightly, because it involves a lot of things already seen, but as long as it’s done well… Impossible to decide either way for the moment and we’ll see clearer during Closed Beta in March, Open Beta in Summer, or better yet, when Early Access launches later in the year. In any case, there seems to be potential for co-op, hoping that the promises made, or made by the developers, are kept. So keep an eye on it.