A new shooter aims to rival Escape from Tarkov with a special twist

Level Zero: Extraction lets us explore abandoned research labs as mercenaries or hunt down other players as monsters

Remember Evolve, the multiplayer shooter in which you play either one of four hunters or the monster they’re after? Then imagine combining this principle with an Escape from Tarkov. The result would be roughly equivalent to Level Zero: Extraction&nbsp

We had the developers show us the unusual shooter and can now tell you how the game aims to bring a breath of fresh air to the genre.

What is Level Zero Extraction?

The basic principle of the multiplayer shooter is quickly explained: three squads of three mercenaries and two monsters each play on a map. The aim of the mercenary groups is to find valuable items such as research data and then disappear alive again. Other squads are usually competitors and can be eliminated or bypassed.

The goal of the two monsters is simpler: They have to eliminate as many people as possible. While the mercenaries lose all their loot and equipment when they die, monsters can spawn again and again and continue hunting.

Loyal squad or lone wolf?

The humans in particular have to think carefully about their strategies. While weapons can hardly harm the monsters, they are particularly vulnerable to light. To this end, the mercenaries carry flares around with them, for example, but can also switch on the light in individual sections of the map to be temporarily safe from the monsters.

(Your most effective weapon in the fight against the monsters is light.)

However, this can also make other mercenaries aware of the squad and possibly attack them. Fights are again an additional risk: Under stress, which is triggered by enemy fire, for example, the mercenaries’ heart rate increases and they can be located more easily by the monsters.

Theoretically, however, such clashes can also be avoided: If the monsters are particularly strong, for example, the mercenary groups can also talk via proximity chat, and fight together. If, on the other hand, someone wants to do without human company altogether, they can also go off on their own, and should then rely above all on a silent approach.

Monstrous gameplay

The monsters are much more relaxed. Since, unlike humans, they have no real victory conditions such as a successful extraction and can respawn indefinitely, they can prepare their attacks at their leisure

(As monsters, it’s best to ambush individual mercenaries.)

First of all, the two creatures move through the darkness unseen, for example by climbing through air shafts. They then prepare ambushes and lay traps to blind people for a short time and then kill them. The monsters can also collect buffs on the map that make them stronger

Progress between matches

Monsters also become stronger between rounds by gradually combining various learnable skills into a build. Once this is complete, they can continue playing with it, or create a new monster and test other skills

But mercenaries can also make permanent progress. Collected loot can be sold at the merchant after the match. This not only gives people money for better equipment and weapons, but also permanently increases their reputation, allowing them to purchase more powerful items.

If Level Zero: Extraction has piqued your interest, you can already register on Steam for a closed beta, which will be available from March 15, 2024&nbsp.

The multiplayer shooter will then be released later in the year at an as yet unknown date. The game will initially launch in Early Access on Steam. A release for current consoles is also planned, but there are no exact release plans as yet

Conclusion of the editorial team

I’m always happy when shooters try something new. Although most of the elements of Level Zero: Extraction are already familiar, their combination definitely has potential.

If everything works as well as the developers promise, the tactical gameplay in particular could be really fun. As a team, you could then decide whether to focus on firepower when it comes to equipment and first try to eliminate other mercenary groups. Or you can proceed as quietly and cautiously as possible.

Of course, it is not yet clear how successful such a shooter could be. After all, multiplayer and extraction shooters are a highly competitive genre. But Helldivers 2 recently showed that there is still room for one or two surprise hits between the big brands

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