This was met with a round of cheering and applause from the assembled fans. Details were scarce, but what little we were told sounded interesting
The game seems to build on the ideas first tested in the PlayStation 3 shooter Dust 514, although the two games won't interact in any way. In fact, Dust 514 was barely mentioned during the talk, other than to release some basic milestone. 5.2 million clones have been killed in the game, just in case you're curious.
As for Project Legion, the scope of the project, and whether or not it will be turned into a full-fledged release, seems to be somewhat in the air.
"It’s still very early, it’s been a few months the team in Shanghai has worked on it, and the idea is to really deliver on that vision, very much on that same vision, but there were a few pillars that were really important. More of a sandbox experience, more true to Eve, as an example, than necessarily Dust," Dust 514 exec producer Jean-Charles Gaudechon told Polygon during an interview.
You begin each round in a hangar, scanning starfields for battles and contracts. That aspect of the game will play out much like Dust 514, excluding the graphical fidelity that the PC brings to the proceedings. One of the major additions are PVE areas that allow you to team up with your friends to hunt AI-controlled enemies and search for loot.
Gaudechon stressed that the sandbox aspect of Eve is something they wanted to bring to Project Legion, and these scavenging areas are a large part of that charge. In high security areas there will be no friendly fire, and you can let your guard down a bit. In low-security areas things get a little bit scarier; there is friendly fire, and any bonds of friendship are verbal only. You can be betrayed at any time for the loot.
"Progression right now is very skill based," Gaudechon explained to Polygon, "It’s going to become more gear based." The game could very well come to the PlayStation 4, but at the moment they’re focused on making the best experience possible on the PC. The game isn’t even a game, not yet. It’s more of a concept they may put into full production, a way to move onto the PC and to learn from the mistakes made in Dust 514.
"We’re still in project stage, we’re very much in the stage of sharing with the community, very CCP style, to get feedback," Gaudechon said. "If the community doesn’t react well… more importantly they will help us shape the right product."
"It’s still in the project phase," he told Polygon when asked about whether or not it will become a full game. The crowd at Fanfest received it with hoots and cheers, especially since an Eve shooter experience is coming to the PC. Without any news shown on Dust 514, and with developers stressing that Project Legion was an opportunity to learn from Dust and move forward.
The team stresses that what happens next is up to the fan reception of the news and content, so this is the time to speak up.
