The long-defunct sci-fi action shooter Evolve might not be completely dead in the water after all. A new statement from its publisher 2K Games has got some members of the game’s community hopeful for its possible revival. The multiplayer monster-hunting game has recently seen a bit of a surge in popularity after peer-to-peer hosting for PC players was re-enabled earlier this year. This seemingly hasn’t gone unnoticed by 2K Games.
As spotted by GamesRadar, the publisher has recently made an appearance in an Evolve community Discord which is working towards a revival of the game. A representative from 2K posted a message in the server which essentially acknowledged the work the Evolve community has been doing to breathe new life into the game, adding that their efforts have been recognized by 2K, which is now considering if the game could be supported once more. “It’s been exciting (and admittedly a little surprising!) to see the recent community interest in Evolve,” the message explains, continuing with, “servers are functioning for players who own the game to be able to matchmake with others. We want to acknowledge that we hear and appreciate the feedback, and are exploring options to continue to support fans.”
While it’s fair to say that this isn’t exactly a full-blown notice of a revival, it is clearly a positive sign for those who’ve been keen to bring the game back to life. The game itself is a 4v1 action shooter in which four Hunters square up to a player-controlled Monster in high-intensity matches. While the game was received positively, Evolve had its dedicated servers shut down by 2K in 2018. However, the recent re-enabling of peer-to-peer hosting has rendered the game playable once more. This has led to an influx of players, many of whom have been working to convince 2K to give Evolve some renewed support. These efforts by the game’s dedicated player base seem to have paid off, with the publisher also recently turning some of Evolve‘s features back on. Players can once again claim the game’s daily sign-in rewards and check the in-game news feed, which has also been reinstated as a way of 2K showing the community its appreciation for playing Evolve.
As it stands, players on PC can only jump back into Evolve if they already have the game in their Steam account. Those playing on Xbox One and PlayStation 4 are also able to play the game, but only if they already have it in their library or own it as a physical copy. While this means the game is currently off-limits to new players, the revival effort is definitely seeing some payoff. It seems that playing via peer-to-peer networks is the only way to experience the game until if and when the time comes for 2K to resurrect the game in full. Those keen to see Evolve return will simply have to watch this space and keep an eye on further developments.
