Developers Walk Through Nine Minutes of Pacific Drive Gameplay
Pacific Drive is a unique survival indie game set to release this February. Players must venture into the Olympic Exclusion Zone with nothing but a trusty station wagon to carry them through.
Earlier this week, Ironwood Studios, the developers of the upcoming indie survival game, Pacific Drive, posted a nine-minute gameplay summary video. Ironwood’s Creative Director, Alexander Dracott, and Pacific Drive’s Game Director, Seth Rosen talk through the basics of how the game will work. Players will have a safe space, the garage, where they must ensure they are as prepared as possible for the next venture out into the Olympic Exclusion Zone. Watch the full gameplay summary below:
Pacific Drive is a unique concept. Players are tasked with mapping out the chaotic wasteland that once was Washington state’s Olympic Peninsula. Some time ago, the region was devastated when a strange technology went haywire. Ever since the region has been experiencing strange anomalies, which can include hostile floating piles of scrap metal. Players must use their wits, whatever materials they can find, and their best driving skills to make it back to the garage successfully.
The garage is a great starting point, but after driving so far into the Exclusion Zone, it’s not always easy to go straight back the way you came. So, when the player is ready to return to safety and has collected enough energy, they can open a gate that they must drive to within a certain amount of time to be transported back to the garage. This gate is the yellow light emitting from the ground in the key artwork for Pacific Drive.
This debut game from Ironwood Studios has a wholly unique feel to it. Based on this summary Pacific Drive will go to great lengths to build the player's relationship with their station wagon. Aside from the huge depth of practical and cosmetic upgrades, each car also comes with personality or quirks. Familiar to some old car owners, these quirks might mean that whenever the back right door is closed, the hood opens. Or when the trunk closes, the back left wheel falls off. These quirks can be harmless, but when they do become a problem, players can also diagnose and fix the problem in the garage.
Pacific Drive is full of charm and character. Carefully taking time to decide how to upgrade the car, planning a route on the map, and then throwing all plans out the window when something chaotic starts happening sounds like a great gameplay loop. Pacific Drive launches on February 22nd, 2024, and will be available on PlayStation 5 and PC via Steam and the Epic Games Store. Pre-orders are also available now.
