Publisher and developer Team17 Digital has just released a PC demo for their upcoming open-world survival title The Survivalists, which is based on The Escapists universe. The demo was released as part of the Steam Summer Festival and will be available until June 22.
The sandbox survival game was initially announced in December of last year and was reported to be released in early 2020. But seeing as how 2020 turned out with a number of games being delayed due to the global pandemic, The Survivalists was no exception. That said, it is still expected to release within the year. The Survivalists' main allure is similar to most crafting, survival, and sandbox titles: start off with the crudest tools, farm resources, build a base, hunt and gather food, and survive (hence, The Survivalists). The island has its own day and night cycle, and a plethora of species that you can either hunt or be hunted by. There are also mythical enemies that are not necessarily pleased with your presence on the island. Team17 guarantees a different experience with every server and playthrough with its procedurally generated islands.
As with any survival game (Ark: Survival Evolved, Don’t Starve Together, and even The Escapists come to mind), the fun always comes from playing with friends. The Survivalists will allow up to a 4-person party for every session. With friends, the grind becomes less tedious, and the getting to the fun part of the game (which is mainly exploring) is much quicker. The Survivalists knows the weaknesses of the genre and are therefore implementing Monkeys and the Mimic System, which can make life easier for either solo or group players. Monkeys can be found on the island, and can be trained to mimic your actions and help make surviving a lot easier.
For those who are interested, the free PC demo for the game includes most of what you can do with The Survivalists already with the added benefit of trying it out with friends thanks to its online co-op mode. The Survivalists will launch in 2020 for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and PC via Steam.
