Frostkeep Studios continues to the second PAX event of the year in Boston at PAX East from April 5-8, 2018. While the booth will be similar to our PAX South presence, the team is presenting a new Rend demo based on the version shown at Game Developers Conference last month to industry partners, journalists, and content creators behind closed doors. The new game build includes updates and improvements based on initial community feedback.
If you’re at the show, be sure to visit us at the Frostkeep booth (#17126) at the rear of the expo hall – just look for the Rend sign hanging overhead. We’ll see you there!
We’ve just returned from meeting press and partners at Game Developers Conference 2018, our second convention of the year, and the resulting interviews and articles demonstrate how excited game journalists are for what Rend is shaping up to become! Here’s a few quotes from some well-known press outlets along with links to their full coverage.
Game Informer:The Best Indie Games of GDC 2018 “Frostkeep Studios is trying to elevate [the survival genre] to a higher plane. Rend shakes things up by trying to redefine isolation to be less about the player and more about your tribe. Alongside its tight shooter gameplay and a sense of scale that intentionally seems to invoke Xenoblade, Rend seems to be making interesting changes and has shared stakes that I have wanted from online survival games since their inception.”
Shacknews:Exclusive Rend Interview “Unlike most of the survival games crowding the early access PC games market, Rend takes a different approach and mixes in a healthy dose of fantasy elements into the formula. Players choose one of three factions and then work towards pushing that faction to victory against the others. You can choose how you serve the faction when you play, either through resource gathering or in direct combat. Shacknews editor Greg Burke got some one-on-one time with Frostkeep’s Jeremy Wood at GDC to find out how the game is progressing.”
Gizorama:A Whole New World – Update on Rend from Frostkeep “One of the main goals for the team is to have a robust steam workshop available, and they’re not shy of drawing comparisons to games like Skyrim that have remained relevant for years thanks to mods. Frostkeep wants players to feel like they have no limits when modding Rend allowing them to create new creatures, weapons, or even entirely new mechanics. As an example, one of their developers was able to create a hornet’s nest in game with entirely new functionality, all through the modding tool.”
Massively Overpowered:Rend is Looking to WoW the Survival Genre “One thing that I really like hearing is their idea of Early Access: It’s a real release. It’s a product they feel should be worth your time, not investment. CEO Jeremy Wood says it is still a refining period, and that the goal is to get community feedback and reward passionate players. Fans get to play the game more than the devs, so they can understand it in different ways. That should be rewarded, but it doesn’t require years of development. Release just means the product is something borne of the devs and players working together. I’ll believe all this when I see it, but damn, do I ever want to see it!”
WCCFTech:Fantasy Survival Game Rend Launches on Steam Early Access This Year “Rend is one of the next games you should be keeping an eye on. As if the playable build at [PC Gamer Weekender] wasn’t enough, the sheer volume of people, particularly children, crowding around the booth was enough proof that this game could be something special when it releases. The Minecraft-era of gamers is maturing and Rend already seems to be securing that market by introducing a combination of building, teamwork and RPG-style progression. Of course, this isn’t just a game for children, and it certainly has all the aspects that would appeal to adults too, whether you’re interested in jumping in as a team or playing solo.”
GameReactor.eu:Rend Heads to Early Access in 2018 “Rend will have both PvE and PvP components, as well as player factions, RPG elements, sandbox gameplay, different win/loss conditions and “massive, culminating battle experiences the like of which have never before been witnessed in this genre”. The idea behind Rend is to join one of the three factions in the game, and then explore the world. It is a brutal place, so it is encouraged to team up with other players to fight against creatures and other factions. So player community will be key to the game’s fortunes.
Co-founder and CEO of Frostkeep Studios, Jeremy Wood, had this to say about Rend: ‘We are huge fans of the survival genre and are delivering an in-game experience that the community and our own team wants to play. We value player feedback and want them involved from the very beginning so they can influence the future direction of Rend as it heads into early access this year.'”
We look forward to bringing Rend to many more conventions (and countries!) as 2018 continues marching towards the game’s closed alpha, Early Access, and beyond!
Hot on the heels of PAX South, Frostkeep Studios is heading to London to attend PC Gamer Weekender from February 17-18, 2018. The team is bringing the latest Rend demo across the pond to showcase it to press and industry partners at the event. This new version highlights updates and improvements based on initial community feedback as detailed in our recent post about Rend’s alpha phase beginning later this quarter. The Frostkeep team will also participate in a developer chat and interview on PC Gamer’s official event livestream.
We’ll announce more details about our presence at the show (like the location of the Rend gameplay stations) in a few weeks. Hope to see you there!
New year, new look! Tribal identity is a key aspect of Rend as its gameplay centers around a trio of competing factions. With the game being featured at conventions starting as soon as this week, we thought it was time to unveil Rend’s new logo.
For more insight into the inspiration behind this rebranding, here is Lead Artist and Writer Nick De Spain:
A lot of thought and consideration went into the creation of the new logo for Rend. Our goal was to encompass many aspects of the game and bring its essence to life without making the actual text of the logo difficult to read. Taking inspiration from Norse runes and the idea of triangles and triads (Rend is based on three warring factions), we created the logo you see today. The gold used for the logo color was intentional to represent glory and Valhalla. The dents and cuts are a nod to how brutal and dangerous the world can be. As a fun bonus, we found the logo worked well when flipped and repeated together to resemble a Norse pattern. The entire process of finding Rend‘s new logo was a fun challenge and rewarding experience.
Frostkeep Studios will be kicking off the new year in sunny San Antonio at PAX South from January 12-14, 2018. The team will be hanging out with players and presenting a new demo of Rend to industry partners, journalists, and content creators behind closed doors. The new game build includes updates and improvements based on initial community feedback as detailed in our recent post about Rend’s upcoming alpha testing.
If you’re at the show, stop by and say hello to us at the Frostkeep booth (#10465) near the center of the expo hall – just look for the Rend sign hanging overhead. We’ll see you there!
We hope December is treating everyone well! Before we take a short pause to be with our families for the holidays we wanted to take a moment to update you on the next phase for Rend. We have been heads-down, working hard to expand the game beyond anything you’ve seen or played in the pre-alpha.
Our goal with Rend has always been to present a fresh approach to gameplay in a way that transforms how players are interacting and participating in a survival game while also solving many of the pain points that can be experienced in this genre. Thanks to the initial community feedback from our pre-alpha players, we’ve introduced many additions and improvements to the game – from a bigger map (4x larger), more sandbox and RPG elements like personal base-building, a deepening of the crafting system, new creatures, game-changing items, and more.
Our next big step will be launching the Rend alpha in the first quarter of 2018. We will initially begin with a brief round of Friends & Family testing to establish client build readiness and server stability before opening up alpha testing to our earlier pre-alpha players who will have immediate access. We will increase the tester pool over time and as needed, adding in waves of players who previously signed up for pre-alpha (no need to re-register on the website). Our staff will continue to be available on Twitter, Facebook, and Steam as well as fan-operated channels such as Reddit and Discord throughout alpha.
During this major test phase, we will introduce a new restriction for players: the alpha will be under a strict media embargo prohibiting the publishing of test client screenshots, videos and streams by players. Please note this is not a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) as we will strongly encourage everyone to discuss the game and their alpha experiences with the greater Rend community. We also plan to engage our current and future content creators during alpha with initiatives such as invitation giveaways, partnerships, and more. This restriction will help our team position and maximize opportunities for the game by using Rend’s new content -- including new biomes, monsters and game mechanics – for features that are timed alongside our release roadmap.
Thank you for your ongoing support - we’re grateful and excited to have you with us as Rend enters the next phase of testing in the new year.
The last few months have been a whirlwind (and exciting!) time here at Frostkeep. We’ve been heads down, working around the clock on new updates to Rend and are thrilled to announce four new team members to Frostkeep Studios. Please join us in welcoming the newest Frostkeepers to the team, including:
Tim Truesdale, Principal Software Engineer
Tim began playing and creating games on some of the first personal computers available. He started his professional career making arcade games in Chicago, focusing on engine and graphics programming. He moved on to Blizzard Entertainment where he worked on World of Warcraft and first met the Frostkeep Studios founders. At Carbine Studios he worked on Wildstar with many members of the Frostkeep team. After working at Obsidian Entertainment on Pillars of Eternity 2 and an unannounced project, Tim joins with colleagues old and new at Frostkeep to work on Rend.
Tom Cassera, Senior Game Designer – @Hildogen Tom spent many of his early years attempting to conquer the world using schemes from his favorite TV shows. Despite some sweet (very) amateur yo-yo “skills”, most of these plans were unwittingly thwarted by the up and coming hero, and Tom’s now nemesis: Nick De Spain. After a particularly spectacular failure involving some cottage cheese, an armadillo, and a whole mess of sandpaper at a library, he decided to end their rivalry with mutually assured destruction through their shared weakness: a burning polar bear. With the centuries long feud over, Tom decided to pursue his love for bacon and game development. Starting his career as a programmer, he transferred to his first full-time design job as a gameplay scripter at 38 Studios. Shortly after he went to Carbine to design dungeon and raid content for Wildstar, then to Sony as a technical designer on God of War 4. Now reunited with several of his previous colleagues at Frostkeep, he contributes to their upcoming game with specialization in combat/systems design, exasperating programmers, and homemade baked goods.
Loren Broach, Senior 3D Artist
Growing up, Loren didn’t own any fancy console systems like the Nintendo or Sega Genesis. Instead he would boot up his dad’s work computer and play some good ol’ DOS game classics like One Must Fall, Raptor, and Jazz Jackrabbit. None of his friends knew what games he was talking about, but they were a big influence in his desire to make games himself. Loren began his game making career working as an artist for Bungie back in 2007. Since then he has helped ship 6 games from 4 companies ranging from AAA to indie. He met David Talley and Nick De Spain at Turtle Rock Studios while working on Evolve. He now works with them again and has joined the ranks of Frostkeep Studios as a props and environment modeler for Rend.
Evan Berman, Community Lead – @Scapes Evan began his gamer life on an Apple IIC playing 8-bit titles before it was cool. Starting in commercial video production at Crispin Porter + Bogusky in Miami, he travelled west to follow his passion for games and player engagement. With a focus on online multiplayer titles, he has pioneered new channels for community management at Bethesda Softworks, Microsoft, Trion Worlds, En Masse Entertainment, and THQ. After 10 years of developing game audiences for international corporations and startup studios, he is excited to join industry veterans at Frostkeep Studios and introduce the world to Rend.
We also have some bittersweet news to share — a departure among our ranks: Jordan Leithart, better known as JarNod to our Steam and Discord communities, will be leaving Frostkeep for greener pastures in a far-away realm outside the game industry. Our new Community Lead, Evan Berman, will continue the great work that Jordan spearheaded in engaging and growing Rend’s passionate community. We wish Jordan safe journeys and the best of fortune as he enters the wild, untamed world of working in a field our parents can comprehend.
Rest assured, we have much more Rend news to announce before the year is out! If you haven’t yet, be sure to follow the latest developments on our Twitter, Facebook, Steam, and community-run Discord. Keep frosty!
Our friends over at OnRPG.com wrote an article after we talked to them at PAX West!
The game will feature plenty of progression depth within its sandbox structure, too – creating depth of progression through hunting down rarer materials, for example. One of these areas is the caves, which features dangerous environments, deadly creatures, and the threat caused by funneling all three factions into a central area. The caves are also incredibly dark – a darkness that can’t be solved with gamma adjustments – meaning that choosing to use a light is a tactical decision that may give away your position to the enemies. Noise, too, is important – armor and talents may determine how much noise you make, which in turn gives away your position to player and AI enemies.
You can read more about it here: http://www.onrpg.com/news/editorial/pax-west-2017-a-closer-look-at-rend/
We hired a couple of developers!
So many wonderful things over the last week or so! Tech Raptor placed us in the top 10 games at Pax! We hired two new team members whose impact is already being seen!
