Recently, NetEase's new FPS work "Hyper Front" (once codenamed "Project M", now Chinese translated as "Advanced War Zone") has quietly opened tests in some overseas regions.
As early as the first stage of the game, Hyper Front left a lot of impressions on me. Whether it is the science fiction genre in the near future or the 5v5 competitive confrontation that emphasizes PVP gameplay, it is a relatively rare field track with good potential in the market.
(Also known as Project M at the time of the first test))
However, it is more noteworthy that Hyper Front's main "MOBA +FPS" setting. This kind of gameplay integrates the strategic nature of "MOBA" with the competitiveness of "FPS", and tests their decision-making ability on the basis of emphasizing player operation. Therefore, the gameplay product will have stronger viewing and wider user coverage than traditional FPS games.
At present, this kind of play is still in the field to be explored on the mobile side, and the head product position is vacant. So as NetEase's first product in the field of "MOBA+FPS", how does Hyper Front perform?
Curious about the product, I personally experienced the game. In terms of testing performance, Hyper Front is indeed an extremely differentiated product. Although it is still too early to talk about the online results, there is no doubt that I see a new possibility for FPS mobile games in the field of segmentation.
01
Addition: A diverse competitive experience where "MOBA" and "FPS" are integrated
As mentioned at the beginning, the core charm of Hyper Front is based on the "MOBA +FPS" gameplay. Simply put, it is to combine hero skills with tactical shooting.
In terms of the latter "tactical shooting", the game does not have much to repeat. Its underlying gameplay logic is very simple, that is, it is born from CS's "search and explosion" - police and bandit duels, one side goes to the designated location to install bombs, and the other side has to stop and defuse bombs.
The former's "hero skills" aspect is the core charm of hyper front, and it is also the biggest difference between it and the FPS mobile game on the market.
The game is set in a near-futuristic sci-fi world, where the player plays as a "secret agent" with extraordinary skills. Among these "agents" are not only archers who can detect enemies, but also assassins who can move instantaneously, and even mages who control storms to block the enemy's line of sight.
Agents are divided into five categories based on their skill positioning: a Breacher who is good at attacking, a Guardian who provides protection, a Brawler with melee ability, a Scout who can scout enemies (Scount), and a Supporter who heals teammates.
Each agent in the game will have three skills, two of which are minor and one of which is ultimate. Interestingly, the character's skills are not tied to cooldowns, but to the amount of money the player receives and the number of kills they have, which is the competitive confrontation gameplay mentioned earlier.
More intuitively, players need to constantly kill enemies in PVP confrontations to gain economy and kill points. The former can be used to purchase small skills and equip firearms on the body, while the latter can be used to recharge the character's ultimate skills.
With the addition of the Hero Skills system, the game's competitive confrontations have become more diverse and strategic.
Let's take a simple example. In traditional FPS games, you can't predict the location of the enemy, and in the face of an enemy lying in the corner or behind the box, the player can only rely on their own on-the-spot reaction and operation. The introduction of reconnaissance skills allows players to predict the location of the enemy in advance and respond.
Conversely, the same is true for the other party. Through reconnaissance skills, they can know the number and direction of the opposing attack, so that they can make timely counterattack deployments.
Let me give you another example. In Hyper Front, in addition to the traditional main and secondary gun shooting, there are various ways to inflict damage. For example, the character "Faith Arrow" can shoot arrows to form flames in a designated area, burning enemies passing by.
For example, the ultimate skill of the character "Storm" is to summon a large typhoon in a certain area of the map, which can not only kill and injure enemies in it, but also obstruct the vision of outsiders and protect their teammates.
Similarly, the rocket launchers of "Blast", the robots of "Valkyrie", and so on. These rich and diverse skills make the game's confrontation experience quite interesting.
Imagine that four enemy men are bloodied to plant bombs at point A, and you are the only one left, with only a small pistol on your body. Generally in FPS games, when encountering this situation, it is to put both hands down and send it directly. But in Hyper Front, you can also enjoy the thrill of flipping the game with the ultimate skill of four kills with one button.
(Four kills are not, but this feeling of killing red dust is really cool)
In addition to the aforementioned "reconnaissance" and "damage" forms of skills, the game also has "ice walls" used to block bullets, "teleportation" for fast movement, and "healing" to restore health, which are not elaborated here.
Overall, the rich and diverse hero skills give Hyper Front more possibilities in competitive confrontation, and also bring players a unique gaming experience that is different from traditional FPS mobile games.
02
Subtraction: Adapts to the fast-paced, convenient design of mobile terminals
In order to better present the unique gameplay of "MOBA+FPS" and further expand the user audience, Hyper Front has made a lot of designs around the aspects of "fast pace" and "convenience".
First of all, let's look at the "fast pace", which is mainly reflected in the "flat" design of the game map.
From the image below, we can intuitively see that the game map is very simple and clear. A and B are two points of the explosion point, the defender is born near the explosion point, while the attacking side is relatively far away from the explosion point. Therefore, most of the fire exchange points between the two sides are concentrated on three interconnected paths.
This design has two benefits. The first is to shorten the time for the two sides to exchange fire and speed up the pace of the game. Because "Search for Explosion" itself is a very short gameplay of TTK (referring to the time required to kill), and the simple map design will induce both parties to walk in the same location and quickly engage in a firefight.
So in actual experience, after leaving the birthplace, players will immediately encounter enemies to fight, eliminating the time of running back and forth on the map, shortening the game time of the small game to less than one or two minutes. At the same time, this also means that the player can maintain a positive feedback state of excitement, similar to the feeling of restarting a game immediately after death.
The second is to lower the barrier to entry into the game. The flat and simple map design allows even novices who are new to FPS games to basically remember the route and direction after a few games, effectively reducing the cost of reading and learning for players.
Then let's look at hyper front's "convenience" design, the most intuitive manifestation of which is the ui in the game.
Take the store page that players need to visit frequently, the game divides firearms into several rows according to different types of pistols, submachine guns, rifles, etc., so that players can quickly find the weapons they need and like on the page.
At the same time, at the beginning of a single game, the system will also recommend several collocation schemes according to the player's current economic situation to achieve one-click purchase of equipment. By reducing the unnecessary operations in the game, players can focus more on the game's matches.
Another example is the design of the route display of thrown objects in the game. In the traditional FPS game battle similar to "CS:GO", how to throw a good throw is an operation that requires long-term practice, and there are strict requirements from the throwing angle to the time point.
In Hyper Front, a simpler and more intuitive parabolic display is used, and the player can clearly recognize the drop point of the throw before throwing it out, and it is easier to play a wonderful operation.
(It may also be the operation of the next meal)
Fast-paced game matches and convenient operation thresholds make Hyper Front a very easy to use game, which not only meets the fragmented usage habits of mobile phone users, but also compared with the hardcore FPS mobile games on the market, the lower threshold can undoubtedly attract more potential users.
03
Marketplace: Where is the future of Hyper Front?
After talking about the content of the game, I think everyone has a general impression of "Hyper Front". As I said at the beginning, in the current FPS mobile game market, it is a very differentiated product. So, what market opportunities does NetEase look at in Hyper Front?
First of all, "MOBA+FPS" as a game that has only emerged in recent years, there are still many untapped user spaces, and it can be expected that it will be a relatively large incremental market in the future. And there is a lack of competitors in this area, and there is only one game, Ace Warrior.
Strictly speaking, however, Hyper Front is different from Ace Warrior, which is a game with a shorter TTK and an economic system in the game. These two qualities fundamentally raise the competitive ceiling of Hyper Front, bringing an entertainment experience to ordinary players while leaving room for exciting games between master players.
(Ace Warrior's gameplay experience will be easier and more entertaining)
It can be seen that NetEase does not want to be a competitor of "Ace Warrior", but is laying out a more subdivided field track and doing the first "Hyper Front" on the market.
Secondly, hyper front's gameplay mechanics have been validated by the market. Because, we can know from another representative product, "Valorant".
"Valorant" is a "MOBA+FPS" game developed by Fist Games on the PC side. Since its launch one year ago, it has more than 14 million monthly active users worldwide, and players have played more than 5 billion games in the game. The first major International Masters in 2021 attracted more than 1 million spectators to watch at the same time.
Therefore, the player's acceptance of this "short TTK and MOBA + FPS with economic system" gameplay is relatively high, and the performance on the PC side is quite good. But in mobile games, the gameplay track is still a wasteland that has not yet been reclaimed. As the first mobile game in the segment, Hyper Front can occupy a certain first-mover advantage and gain a lot of room for user growth.
At the same time, we need to pay attention to the fact that although the gameplay of "MOBA+FPS" has a low threshold for getting started, it is difficult to master, and the difference between master players and novice players is very large. Therefore, for Hyper Front, one of the paths it is bound to take in the future is "esports".
Through "e-sports", the competitive level of player users is continuously raised, and while retaining high-play users, it can also precipitate peripheral users. Conversely, the excellent viewing of "e-sports" can also bring a steady stream of heat to the game, further improving the influence of the product.
Judging from the areas that are now open for testing, this can also be confirmed, whether it is the Philippines or Thailand, it is a relatively strong area of e-sports culture in Southeast Asia. They also have a common feature, that is, the user base is large, and the market attributes are relatively sinking.
Therefore, combining all the information, it is not difficult to guess that NetEase intends to open up a new track in the overseas FPS mobile game market with "Hyper Front" in the future. Mature gameplay mechanics, a huge audience, and the convenience of mobile terminals, this series of elements, people can't help but look forward to the future performance of Hyper Front.
But no matter what the future holds, one thing is worth affirming, Hyper Front has contributed substantial value to NetEase's category expansion.