MotorStorm Apocalypse Now Racing Online

Hello, PlayStation.Blog readers. We are definitely glad things are starting to get back to normal, and as part of that I wanted to remind you about little game called MotorStorm Apocalypse that hit stores this past May 3rd.

It’s got 40 chaotic levels to race through, 13 vehicle classes to customize and upgrade, split-screen play for up to four players locally, and a deep online matchmaking mode. Matt Southern, Game Director at Evolution Studios, talks about what you can expect in the online multiplayer mode they’ve cooked up. But first, here’s a new trailer featuring some of the praise the game has received from the gaming press so far.

And here’s Matt Southern, the Game Director for MotorStorm Apocalypse, to tell you more about the amazing online gameplay waiting for you in MSA.

Hi again everyone! It has been a difficult few weeks for both PlayStation and our dedicated users and followers. As fate would have it, the release of MotorStorm Apocalypse fell during the outage, and so some of you may have missed it. So if you were one of the people who did pick up MSA, then firstly thank you…and secondly, let’s finally get round to some online mayhem! And if you haven’t picked up the game yet, it’s not too late.

MotorStorm Apocalypse online multiplayer (part of a mode we call Wreckreation) offers many hours of gameplay and progression and is as feature-rich as we could possibly make it. Every powerslide, every bit of airtime, every ram, every finishing position (not just first!) wins you ‘chips’, and winning chips lets you progress through 80 ranks.

Rewards will absolutely cascade at you when you start moving through those ranks. New vehicle shapes, new vehicle parts like wheels, spoilers, graphics, decals and paint jobs are all unlocked with each rank. This of course means that you can drive a customized vehicle that shows at a glance how much progress you have made and how good you are at the game. You also unlock new player icons that do the same thing.

An aspect of our online game that is proving to be massive is the betting. Before every race you can pick a rival from the board and bet against them – each one is worth a different amount of chips based on their current form. If you beat them, you win those chips, and you can cash them in immediately to add to your total. But you can also choose to gamble those winnings, increasing the amount of chips available in the next race. Watch out though: any time you lose a bet, you lose everything you’ve earned up to that point.

So…if you keep beating the rivals, you can seriously increase your chip winnings, speed through the ranks, and unlock the cool gear at a tremendous rate. This simple mechanic means that rather than trying to win every race you can get rewarded just for beating one person, in whatever position they finish, making it a much more rewarding experience for useless n00bs like me.

Also – please note you can play four-player split screen in the living room; there has been some confusion about this. You can also play two-player split-screen at home against 14 others online, with dual logins. We’re really trying to make this one of the most feature-packed and rewarding online racers ever, inspired by the best online shooters, and hopefully you’ll give it a try and agree.

See you online!