Loadout, the free-to-play multiplayer shooter, is officially out of beta and its first few weeks in the spotlight have been an unmitigated success, according to Edge of Reality CEO Rob Cohen. Within the first 14 days of the Steam release, the third-person action bonanza had accumulated two million new users and cemented its place amongst Steam’s most popular free-to-play titles – a turn of events that Cohen described as “simultaneously humbling and exhilarating”. Over nine million hours of play have been logged to date.
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The success of Loadout was both a blessing and a curse, as the servers struggled to cope with the sheer number of players attempting to join the ranks. This was despite the addition of further online infrastructure that was put in place in preparation of the game’s release. “The incredible surge of interest at launch shattered all our expectations, and it unfortunately just became too much for our servers to handle in the beginning,” Cohen explained. “We’re committed to delivering an excellent game to our community, and we continue to work hard to ensure that our servers provide all our players with the same fluid, responsive, and enjoyable experience across the board.”
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Steam’s free-to-play market features heavy-hitting titles such as Dota 2, Team Fortress 2 and Path of Exile. Like its peers, Loadout relies on micro-transactions in order to succeed, however the majority of these purchases are cosmetic, ensuring the competitive spirit of play isn’t lost. Players can use real money to purchase new skins, taunts and gun unlocks, although the latter can also be earned naturally by progressing through the game. Loadout can be downloaded for free from the Steam store and while it is currently only available for PC, a Mac version is in the works.