We recently kicked off Beyond the Wire’s developer blog series with an introduction to some of the iconic weapons you will be seeing Beyond the Wire. For this second instalment, we are going to dive into more areas of our weapon mechanics and systems! Below you can see some footage of these systems in our development testing range. Please bear in mind these features are early development implementations and are subject to change!
The turn of the 20th Century saw vast advancements in technology and strategy that would change the landscape of war forever. With the introduction of heavy fire support systems, gas attacks, and rapid-fire weapons, soldiers should become familiar with these systems before stepping out Beyond the Wire.
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With bolt-action rifles being the most commonly deployed firearms during World War 1, our primary goal has been to deliver satisfying gunplay and authentic weapon handling. Players can choose to operate the bolt handle manually allowing you to dictate the pacing of your engagements, which is especially useful when tracking targets.
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Additionally, you will be able to reload from a stripper clip or load each round individually, depending on the weapon. This is critical in moments of high tempo when you may have to cancel the reload process and only load one or two bullets before the enemy is upon you!
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Beyond the Wire features an advanced ballistics system that takes muzzle velocity and gravity into account. Be sure to adjust your aim to compensate for bullet drop when engaging at a distance!
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A huge part of World War 1 was the impact that portable machine guns had on the battlefield. The ability to bring suppressive fire without losing mobility was key to taking strategic positions. However, those machine guns and automatic rifles are hard to control when firing from the hip. In Beyond The Wire, you can deploy your weapon's bipod on nearly every surface to improve the accuracy of your weapon. Whether flat on the ground, on sandbags, or any other object that can serve as a makeshift firing platform.
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Usually equipped by leaders and assault troops, pistols and revolvers are among the most effective weapons at closer ranges due to their superior fire rate and mobility compared to bolt action rifles.
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Bayonets are a great offensive and defensive alternative to firearms in close-quarters scenarios with faster attack speeds than a rifle. If you run out of ammunition, affix your bayonet to increase your chances of taking out enemies at closer ranges.
Additionally, players will have the option to do a bayonet charge while sprinting, which will strike fear and terror into the enemy, especially if done with a larger group of players.
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Beware though, the additional weight of the bayonet will decrease the stability of your rifle, affecting your aim.
One of the systems we haven’t discussed much is the off-map support actions that leaders can call in.
As the introduction of industrialized artillery was one of the significant advancements during these times, we have developed off-map support call-ins that leadership classes are able to activate. With a variety of options like high explosive, smoke, and chemical barrages, your team has different tools to obliterate defensive positions and clear dangerous trench systems.
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GAS GAS GAS
Part of the significance of The Great War was the development of chemical warfare. The first large-scale chemical assault on the Western front was 170 metric tonnes of chlorine. And as such the chlorine gas attack will be available on Early Access Release, with the potential for more to be added in the future! The immediate impact of a chlorine attack on your troops will be disruption as the equipping of your gas mask robs you of fighting capability. If you’re stuck in a firefight and don’t reach for your mask in time, you'll suffer a horrible, gasping death.
The gas mask will protect you from the effects of the gas but will reduce your combat effectiveness. A small price to pay considering the alternative!
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Perhaps the most recognised aspect of World War 1 was the unprecedented amount of artillery barrages that laid waste to land, beasts and man alike. Strike fear into enemies and create holes in defensive positions with heavy artillery shells that rain down and saturate enemy strong points.
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The final support feature available is the use of smoke barrages which can be called in to disrupt the enemies' lines of sight and screen assaults. Whether you're neutralizing the effectiveness of a machine gun position or providing cover to a mass attack across no man's land, smoke cover will be an effective tool for infiltrating enemy lines.
That’s all for this instalment but we have so much more to show! Keep an eye out for further developer blogs as we head towards Early Access.
However, if you’re still not feeling satisfied then join us tomorrow for our second developer live stream!
Kicking off at 10 AM PDT / 2 PM EDT / 6 PM UTC we will be sitting down with Beyond the Wire Producer Mitsu to answer some of the questions we’ve seen across the community since we announced!
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