Microsoft's recent major layoffs cut off the highly anticipated new IP of the Elder Scrolls OL developer (codenamed Blackbird Project) and Rare Studios' Everwild and Perfect Dark: Reboot Edition.
The Blackbird's plan was first known to players in a court document exposed by the FTC and Microsoft lawsuit in 2020. It was called Project Kestrel at the time, and it was also preparing to launch an expansion pack at that time.However, Zennimax finally wanted to use Kestrel as the official name of the work, so the development code was changed to Blackbird.
As for the content of the work, previous reports said that "Blackbird" is a third-person science fiction MMORPG with high maneuverability like "Titanfall", a vast open world, but focused on the first city of Exodus, the planet.Although the game was favored by Xbox executives at the time, it was eventually cut.
So what kind of game is "Blackbird"? Foreign media MP1ST exposed a 2-minute clip of the game, allowing players to have a glimpse of the creatures and human models and game animations in the game.
This video comes from the resume of a ZeniMax animator and shows a wide variety of development animations, such as facial animation tests, weapon animations, player body proportion tests, and five independent species (W’Hurra, Wretzel, Skreev, Coyo, Kronar).Interestingly, a report by the achievement website True Achievements described that one of the races, W’Hurran, was tall, furry aliens, who were “business masters.”
There are many types of weapons in the game, ranging from pistols, submachine guns, AR rifles, and even machine guns.Players can also customize their characters, and the second half of the video focuses on various different models.
Regarding weapon animation, we can see the prototype of a female player character who is wearing sci-fi armor and holding two light weapons and two heavy weapons, all of which have the same futuristic aesthetic.Finally, the video shows a body proportional test, probably for the customization of the player character.
The gameplay will combine elements from classic games such as Destiny, Blade Runner and Horizon: Zero Dawn.
Video screen:
