2K reveals Project Ethos, a free-to-play, 3rd-person, roguelike, hero shooter

2K studio 31st Union has revealed Project Ethos,  a new  free-to-play, 3rd-person, roguelike hero shooter.

The game, which is being developed by Sledgehammer Games veterans, will enter community playtesting today.

“Shape your playstyle every match through Evolutions, powerful, semi-randomized, upgrades unique to each hero,” reads a description for the game.

“Evolve a sniper into a close-range skirmisher, or a support role into a powerful lone wolf. Build your hero in real-time to suit your personal playstyle.”

Two game modes will be included in this weekend’s playtests.

The first mode, Trials, is an “ongoing, persistent fight to collect cores, extract, and unlock powerful Augments which fuel your future Trials runs.”

Gauntlet is the competitive head-to-head tournament mode for Project Ethos. “Play against other teams in your bracket, upgrade your hero after each match, and fight to be the last one standing.”

The community playtest is available from October 17-20 in the United States, Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, Ireland, France, Germany, Spain and Italy. The playtest will be live at the following times:

• North American Countries
  • October 17: 9 AM – 11 PM PT
  • October 18-20: 11 AM – 11 PM PT
• European Countries
  • October 17: 5 PM – 1 AM GMT+1
  • October 18-21st: 1 PM – 1 AM GMT+1

31st Union was established in February 2019 and is led by president Condrey. He previously co-founded Call of Duty studio Sledgehammer Games for Activision, and served as chief operating officer at EA‘s original Dead Space studio, Visceral Games.

California-based 31st Union opened a Spanish office in Valencia in 2020, and both are working together on its upcoming game.

“31st Union is off to an incredible start with a passionate and talented team, an intentioned culture that champions inclusivity and greater representation, and an ambitious and inspired new IP that we’re extremely excited about,” Condrey said at the time.