| Meltdown | |
|---|---|
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| Developers | Prime Studios |
| Designers | Mikhail Dzheyms |
| Engine | UEE Mk. III |
| Released | November 11, 2018 |
| Genres | Survival Action-Adventure First/Third-Person Shooter |
| Ratings | PEGI (Europe): 16
ACIP (Russia): 16+ ESRB (US & Canada): T (13+) CERO (Japan): C (14+) GRB (South Korea): 15-year + ACB (Australia): MA15+ |
| Platform(s) | XBOX One, Playstation 4, MPHES, PC |
| Cast | Voice Actors:
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- "What will keep us alive?"
- ―Official Game Tagline
Meltdown is a survival shooter game developed and published by Prime Studios. It features an open-world singleplayer and persistent multiplayer with very large maps. Players have a limited inventory and must scavenge for ammo, supplies and food, and can kill wildlife for food and clothing.
Features[]
Meltdown features an open-world singleplayer campaign, Co-Op campaign, and online multiplayer with two gamemodes. There are no win/lose conditions in multiplayer, meaning that it is perpetual. Players have a limited inventory whose size depends on the backpack they have equipped, and they can also find and wear different articles of clothing. Player have to scavenge for weapons, ammo, food, water, fuel, and other items. Vehicles can be found, repaired, and used.
AI Traits[]
The AI in Meltdown have a system called 'Traits'. This system works by randomly giving certain AI units different personalities/traits. The variables include such things as Bravery, Inquisitiveness, Alertness, Skill, Strength and Self-sufficiency. AI with higher bravery 'points' tend to be more brave/reckless, sprinting over longer distances from cover to cover, as well as popping their head up more frequently, keeping their head up out of cover for longer periods of time, and waiting longer to duck from incoming fire, whereas less brave AI will stay in cover longer, peer over cover less frequently, and keeping their head out of cover for shorter periods of time. More inquisitive AI will search and loot bodies and items more thoroughly, as well as wait around longer and search more throughly for the player once they're alerted to the player's psoition, whereas less inquisitive AI will often walk past loot and give up searches more easily and quickly. More alert AI will tend to notice the player more quickly, as well as looking around often, making them harder to sneak past, while less alert AI are relatively easy to sneak past. Skilled AI tend to conserve ammunition, preferring short bursts or single shots, are more accurate with their fire, and tend to perform more complex maneuvers such as flanking, whereas less skilled AI will often use prolonged bursts with less accuracy, and are more easy to predict. Stronger AI can run faster and for longer distances, throw grenades farther, faster, and more accurately, and can recover from being hit more quickly, while weaker AI cannot run as fast or far, cannot throw grenades as fast, far, or accurately, and take longer to recover from being hit. Self-Sufficient AI can retain their combat effectiveness when other self-sufficient AI units are killed or missing, whereas less self-sufficient AI tend to lose effectiveness when in the absence of a more sufficient AI unit.
Plot[]
Meltdown takes place in 2031 in a post-apocalyptic Virginia. The apocalyptic event was caused by a computer worm similar to Stuxnet, that goes out of control and targets infrastructure networks around the globe, including traffic light systems, nuclear plants, factory systems, and military networks, crippling much of the modernized world. The story follows two young survivors, Chase Evans and Mayra Panos, as they seek to simply defend themselves against the major warring clans of the area. The first few missions do not have any overarching point in the story other than to introduce the characters, and they serve as a tutorial, to introduce the player to certain aspects of the game, such as inventory management, using weapons, crafting items, driving vehicles, food & water, etc.
When stealing a generator from a city, Mayra and Chase are attacked during the night by a clan (Which of the clans depends on player actions beforehand), and another clan saves them. They confiscate the generator, in return giving them food, water, and hospitality, as well as having them attack other factions.
Soon after an attack on the allied clan's camp by a rival clan, Mayre and Chase find a suspicious flash drive. Plugging it into a working computer, they discover that it was their clan's leader who engineered the computer virus and that he has the cure, but is withholding it from the public and the US government for the time being. The player steals it, and the two escape the clan's camp after killing their second-in-commend, but are ruthlessly hunted by the clan's gunmen once they discover the two took it. Mayra and Chase attempt to blackmail the clan for food and weapons, but when the clan's messenger is killed by a squad of gunmen from another clan, word leaks throughout the region and the other clans join the hunt for Mayra and Chase.
During an ambush at a former military checkpoint, a sniper from one of the clans wounds and captures one of the characters (which character is captured is determined by player actions), who is then held hostage to coerce the other character into handing over the flash drive. However, the other character infiltrates the clan's airbase, rescues the other character, and kills the leaders of that clan, and they both escape on a plane. Mayra and Chase land at a farm and drive from there to the National Guard's HQ, where they fight against a Leopard 2 tank and kill the leader of their first clan. The ending cutscene depicts a National Guardsman uploading the cure, clearing the worm from the system and enabling the US Government to begin rebuilding civilization.
Modes[]
There are 3 'modes' in Meltdown: Campaign Singleplayer, Campaign Co-Op, and Online Multiplayer.
The Singleplayer Campaign gives the player control of either Mayra or Chase, and the other chosen character will loosely follow the player in most situations. The singleplayer is open-world, but the player is required to go to the marked objective in order to advance the story.
Co-Op works very much like the campaign, except there is a second player who will assume control of the other character. One player will have to spectate the other at certain points in the game.
Online Multiplayer comes in two forms: Solo Survival, where a player is on his own, but can band with other players, and Clan Wars, where a player is automatically part of a large clan and must battle the other clans in the area whilst trying to survive. The three clans are the Free Rogues, Poseidon's Guardsmen, and The Hope.
Campaign Missions[]
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Factions[]
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Characters[]
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Maps[]
Multiplayer consists of many players surviving on different maps of great proportions. Each multiplayer map takes place on a fictional island, each with different climates and settlements, as well as a varying set of vehicles.
- Hawaimaina: A large island near the end of the Hawaiian island chain, formerly under control of Japan before the cyber attack. Has a tropical climate and is especially populated with fixed-wing aircraft and large boats.
- Ark Isles: A group of smaller islands in the Hudson Bay, with nearby oil rigs. Has a very cold climate with lots of snowfall. Has a larger number of helicopters, but medium and heavy ground vehicles are particularly rare.
- Zolotostrov: An Island in the Baltic Sea formerly under Russian control. Features a colder, subarctic climate with snowfall at higher elevations. Vehicles on this map are well-rounded.
- Oseriosa: A Swedish island featuring a temperate climate and many inland rivers. Light watercraft are particularly common here, but helicopters are quite rare.
- Suaka Selatan: A formerly Indonesian-controlled island, much of the map is an arid desert, meaning that Medium and Heavy ground vehicles are more common, but watercraft are rarer.
The Singleplayer takes place in a section of the mainland US, specifically in a city near the Virginia-North Carolina Border.
In-Game Equipment[]
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Wildlife[]
(work in progress)
Aggressive
- Coyote
- Black Bear
- Bobcat
- Bull Shark
Non-Aggressive
- Red Fox
- Deer
- Falcon
- Cow
- Pig
- Horse
- Bass
Soundtrack[]
| Track 01 |
Sweet Dreams |
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| Track 02 |
Deliverance |
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| Track 03 |
Standoff |
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| Track 04 |
Reactor/Encampment |
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| Track 05 |
Recovery |
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| Track 06 |
Hopeless |
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| Track 07 |
Escape |
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| Track 08 |
Free Roamers |
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| Track 09 |
Meltdown Theme/Exploration |
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| Track 10 |
Thumbdrive |
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| Track 11 |
Lost |
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| Track 12 |
The Trail |
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| Track 13 |
Desolate |
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| Track 14 |
Reunited |
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| Track 15 |
Siege |
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| Track 16 |
Preparation |
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| Track 17 |
Hunted |
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| Track 18 |
Confrontation |
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| Track 19 (Credits) |
Band of Horses - The Funeral |
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| Track 20 (Easter Egg) |
eBay |
Marketing[]
Trailers[]
The first Meltdown trailer, a teaser, was released on April 28th, 2018. A transcript can be seen here. The trailer is approximately 30 seconds long.
On May 15, 2018, the reveal trailer was released, showcasing the post-apocalyptic environment that the game is set in, as well as some of the characters and factions. The trailer is narrated by Chase Evan's voice actor, Alex Harrouch. The trailer is approximately 1 minute and 30 seconds minutes long, and has a section of the track Reactor/Encampment playing in the background.
Another trailer, titled Improvisation and released July 3rd, 2018, was the first trailer to show actual gameplay (alongside cinematic footage), although gameplay had been leaked and also shown at E3 previously. The trailer showcased the crafting system and particularly highlighted the player's ability to create makeshift weapon attachments and camouflage with the crafting system. This trailer took footage from both the Campaign and Multiplayer. The trailer is approximately 1 minute and 45 seconds long, and has the track Free Roamers playing in the background.
A fourth trailer, released September 1st, 2018, highlighted the expansive multiplayer maps and the wide array of vehicles available in the game, showing both cinematic and gameplay footage. The trailer particularly focuses on Zolotostrov and Ark Isles. The trailer is approximately 1 minute and 30 seconds long, and has a section the track Standoff playing in the background.
The final trailer for the game, the Launch trailer, was released November 9, 2018, two days before the release of the game. The trailer is narrated by Mayra Panos's voice actor, Karen Strassman, and showcases campaign footage. The trailer is approximately 2 minutes and 30 seconds long and has the track Meltdown Theme/Exploration playing in the background.
Partnerships[]
DESI signed a partnership contract with Toyota, calling for Prime Studios to include multiple Toyota vehicles in game. Toyota agreed to promote Meltdown by giving away a free copy to customers with every 4Runner, Corolla, Tundra, or Prius sold, as well as creating a limited-edition Meltdown Tundra. The Meltdown Tundra features extra metal caging and has a removable pintle mount for a machine gun, much like the one seen in game.
Prime Studios also made an agreement with IDI, in which Prime Studios acquired legal permission to use IDI's game engine, the Ultimate Experience Engine, for Meltdown. Along with this agreement, Prime Studios released the game for the MPHES as a downlaodable game. In response, IDI made a special edition Meltdown themed MPHES design for anyone who bought the MPHES and pre-ordered Meltdown.