When people see Splitgate 2, it’s often that games like Portal and Halo come to mind. After all they were two of the biggest inspirations behind the free-to-play shooter from 1047 Games and CEO Ian Proulx. That said, that’s not what Proulx and the studio want the game to be known for. Instead, they want Splitgate 2 to stand out in a crowded market thanks to what they’ve created over the last three-plus years.
“With Splitgate 2, we very much have tried to build our own identity,” Proulx told Insider Gaming. “And we’ve done that in a number of ways. I’d say there’s definitely, of course, Halo and Portal inspiration.
“The gunplay in particular, very Halo-esque. Halo 2, [my] favorite game of all time. And obviously the portal mechanic is the portal mechanic. It’s iconic. I’d say the big thing with Splitgate 2 though, is we’ve evolved that formula a lot.”
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That formula involves making changes to the general gameplay, having a distinct “sporty” art style, and game modes such as a new 24-player mode that keeps the games fun and fresh.
That evolution and nailed down sense of identity, Proulx says, has a lot to do with iteration during the game’s development. Whether it be feedback from playtest participants or from internal suggestions, everything that has been updated or implemented with the game has been done with purpose.
“Honestly, we’ve just kind of seen it get better every single step of the way,” he said. “Part of that has just been natural—the game’s getting more polished, more optimized, just overall better. But a lot of it’s been getting feedback. Every time we do a playtest, we do a survey. Every time we also do a group discussion afterward, Q&A. So we’re learning a ton from our community and we’re just constantly iterating. And I think they can see that. They can see every time, ‘Oh, that thing that they complained about—it’s addressed in the next one.’”
With the constant feedback from the community and a passionate development staff, Proulx wants to show players that Splitgate 2 isn’t going to just be a game that pops up for a month or two and then fades into the background. He says they learned from how slow major updates were for the original game, and aim to not make the same mistake again.
“This is not just, ‘here’s the game’ and then six months later, ‘oh, here’s a map’,” Proulx said. “And that’s the big thing. I mean, if there’s one thing I’m obsessed about, it’s this very challenge, right? Because that’s what happened with Splitgate. Splitgate was super fun and people who played it had a good time and left good reviews, but then they were gone a month later.
“It took us seven months to ship a new season because we were just putting out fires the entire time. If there’s one thing we’re going to get right this time around, it’s that.”
That new plan involves new content every month with a new season launching every three months. Each season, Proulx says, will feature monthly chapters—a start, middle, and end—spanning over the three months along with a new map and events each month.
“We’re not trying to just convince people this is a fun game,” he said. “We want to show them this is a game that is here to stay.”
Splitgate 2 is currently available in open beta on PC and console. All progress from the beta will carry over to the game’s 1.0 launch when it happens.
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Mike has been covering the gaming industry since 2012, and has reported on some of the largest events in the industry while also working as an investigative reporter. Outside of…
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