At last year's E3, one of the biggest surprises was the existence of Maneater, an open-world action RPG where you play as a shark. Now, as part of the E3 2019 PC Gaming Show, we got to see more footage of Maneater, featuring Scaly Pete, the main villain who you'll be stalking for some toothy revenge.
"The three words that we think sum up the game best are: eat, explore, and evolve," said TripWire president John Gibson. "Pete is the best fisherman in the gulf, [and] he'll tell you he's the best shark fisherman. He disfigures our baby shark at the beginning of the game, and he does some really nasty things, so he's not a very nice guy." Anyone who disfigures a baby shark - especially given the existence of that earworm Baby Shark song that has almost 3 billion views - is clearly a monster who must be brought to shark-based justice.
If you're wondering how a game starring a shark can possibly frame its narrative, Gibson gave us the answer. "The story of Maneater is told through the lens of a reality show called 'Sharkhunters versus Maneaters'" he said. "It's like GTA if you were a shark." If swimmers aren't plentiful enough in the water, your shark can briefly wriggle onto land to eat up any unwitting beach goers who think they're safe on dry land.
Gibson also detailed some of the game's progression systems. "There's three facets to the 'shark-PG' elements of the game - there's growth, there's life phases, and there's evolutions," he explained. "Growth comes about through eating things - nutrients, people, whatever you can find. And that's kinda like your XP in the game; that allows you to level up, your shark will grow a little bit, he'll get more powerful. Then at key phases we call life phases, you'll make a big jump." That translates to an increase in size, power, and capability.
"As you reach these life phases, you unlock evolutions, which can be applied to parts of the shark's body," Gibson continued. "For example, you could get metallic teeth that'll allow you to shred boats, or a powerful tail that allows you to jump to incredible heights. Or you could get mutated lungs that allow you to spend a little more time on the beach getting those afternoon snacks."
TripWire isn't ready to announce a release date for Maneater just yet, but Gibson said we'll see it before next year's E3.
See what else is in store at the show will the full E3 2019 schedule.
