Blackshot Open Beta Coming Soon!

This is quoted by Skiing from Official Blakcshot Website

As most of you knew, Blackshot was expected for OB launch in December of this year. As you can already tell, it's not looking that way. There were many reasons for this delay, however, I could not discuss it due to contract rules. But what I will say is that everyone here is working diligent on providing a better quality game.

Many times too often will you find a free-to-play game that rushes for launch at the sacrifice of quality, bugs and lack of content. We don't want to follow suit. While I will admit that internally, we at first tried to push for OB launch 7 days ago, I felt the game was not ready. I am an FPS player at heart and it would be hard for me to accept releasing an FPS game that's half-assed just for the sake of meeting a date.

Many changes have been made to Blackshot and right now we're still in the testing/tweaking phases. Changes in Blackshot will affect balance, gameplay, and overall replay value. Realistically, late January to early February is when we will launch Blackshot.

Here are some details on what to expect (details are subject to change at release):

New UI
Most of you have seen the new screenshots and it's more than just being smexy, it also serves a purpose. The new UI makes it easier for a new player to know what the hek is going on. Actions are simplified and everything is easier to find. Placement of "ads" are better placed so that you will know when, what, and where; about events and new content. Having a better UI translates to easier use, which translates to more players, which translates to a more active, bigger game! Oh and less engrish...

Tactic Gear System
We touched a bit on this new sytem a while back but I'll go into futher detail here. What we basically did was strip the clothing of functional purpose. Clothing is now mostly visual. What does that mean? It means you customize your stats and character abilities without having to worry about wearing some ugly body piece for the sake of a little more bonus to your stats. Every character will now have tactic slots where you can customize your play style ability depending on the tactics you choose. For example, I might add a tactic that allows me to change weapons faster or a tactic that increases my run speed while carrying a specific weapon. Some tactics you may have seen in other popular FPS games, such as dropping a grenade after dying or 2nd chance to fire your pistol after your HP reaches 0. Your character starts off with a set number of empty slots and as you rank up, more slots will become available. Some tactics are tiered similar to RPG games. For example, you may acquire Berserker I ability, and later down the line, acquire Berserker II ability. We have over 50+ tactics created with more being developed as the game progresses.

Weapon Mastery
Weapon Mastery is similar to crafting in most MMORPGs. You basically level up the gun you use in battle. As you progress in level with your weapon, you begin to unlock achievements and maybe even special guns/abilities. You also receive titles as you level up your weapon. You have the capability of reaching "Master" title for any weapon. An exp bar for your weapon will appear in game as you play. You will also see exp numbers flash near the bar as you gain experience points.

Clan Match System
Clan will not open at the start of OBT for specific reasons. It may be 14-30 days after OBT start. We WILL do our best to actively pursue tournaments and have a proper league/ladder system in place.

The way Clan Matches will work is, you must create a game room for your clan in the clan server. You are allowed to have 5 or 6 members in one room at a time. You then select the desired map and press "Start". The system will then search for the closest match available. By completing a clan match, your clan will receive experience points. Winning obviously nets your more points than losing.

New Modes
New modes are in development (does not affect OBT schedule) that we hope to release as soon as March. (Names of modes are not final, but if you have ideas, please share )

HQ Mode - Think "Iceworld" in Counter-Strike, with a twist. If you don't know what iceworld is, it's basically a very close quarter map with many weapons at your disposal. It's an all out team vs team frag fest.

Time Bomb Mode - One team has multiple objectives in the map that they must complete. For example, they must open objective 1 in order to reach objective 2. Then open objective 2 to reach objective 3. Once they have completed all objectives, the must escape. Opposing team must stop the other team from completing all objectives.

There are other modes which I cannot discuss yet but these are the 2 that are near completion.

Server Infrastructure Changes
Server structure has been re-configured to help minimize latency in the game. We have also placed an IP Block to all non-North American players from accessing the North American servers. North America West, North America East, Open. West server will reside on the west coast. The East and Open server will reside in the east coast. We know it may be fustrating for those of you who want to play friends from across the world, but due to real world limitations, this is not possible without sacrificing quality user experience. You can opt to play in the Open server though if you want to play with your international friends. We are however looking into other options that may help with this situation. But in the meantime, this will be the setup. We're doing what we can to minimize the laggy games, but with the new changes, we can't really tell how much better it will be until we do a real world trial.

Other Miscellaneous Noteworthy Mentions
Sticky Bomb - Bomb that sticks to walls/objects. Has timer. (newly created item not in other Blackshot services)
BP Balance - Changes were made to the amount of BP you acquire.
Avatar Help Dude - A guy in a uniform now runs around in the lobby giving you tips (you probably saw him in a recent screenshot). You can turn him off if he annoys you. It's more for the nubs who need a little direction. You can also use him to access your MP3s to play in the background while fragging one another. (may not be ready by launch)
rider/SKiNG - Just wanted to note that we're too good. Challenges anyone?

That's about how much I can think of at this time, at least for what I know is confirmed. I'll be sure to add more when I remember. If you have any questions, feel free to ask. I'll do my best to answer them.