Ready or Not graduates from Early Access in December 2023

Originally posted on Video Games on Sports Illustrated
By Marco Wutz | Last updated 12/7/23

Tactical FPS Ready or Not is coming out of Early Access on December 13, 2023, on PC, developer and publisher VOID Interactive announced during The Game Awards 2023.

Not to be confused with the 2019 dark comedy horror movie of the same name starring Samara Weaving and Adam Brody, Ready or Not entered Early Access in December 2021, so the full 1.0 release is coming almost exactly two years later. That seems to be a golden formula these days, as was recently the case with Against the Storm.

Ready or Not features both single-player and multiplayer content and follows the operations of a SWAT team in the fictional Californian city of Los Suenos amidst a crime wave. It’s described as “an intense, tactical, first-person shooter that depicts a modern-day world in which SWAT police units are called to defuse hostile and confronting situations.”

Mission types available in the game include hostage scenarios with strict rules of engagement, active shooter scenarios, bomb threats, and raids, among others. These can be played alone with AI squad mates or via co-op multiplayer. A PvP mode has been promised for the time after the game has been fully released.

The title is regarded as a spiritual successor to Sierra’s SWAT series, which last had a release in 2008. The early Rainbow Six games are another good comparison point.

Though lauded for its atmosphere and gameplay, there has been criticism for its handling of the subject matter at hand, such as the glorified and sanitized representation of law enforcement.

Ready or Not has been reviewed over 100,000 times on Steam, receiving a “very positive” rating, so it’s clearly what a large group of players are looking for when it comes to tactical FPS games.

This article first appeared on Video Games on Sports Illustrated and was syndicated with permission.

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