Making it in Unreal: inside the tornado of turbulent battle royale Stormdivers

A crucial part of the Battle Royale formula is the storm - the wall of near-instant death that encroaches ever inward. It’s a necessary tool for ratcheting up the tension and action during the course of a match, even as permadeath ensures the number of players dramatically shrinks over time. Nobody said the wall can’t be interesting, however. In Stormdivers, the nano-storm that repeatedly gobbles up a South Pacific-style idyll is a living system - a petri dish for tornadoes that rip through the map and lightning that stabs at its surface. It’s been an opportunity for developer Housemarque to show its chops in visual effects, after decades spent building coin-op inspired arcade games. The Finnish studio has a long history of shoot-’em-ups and twin stick arcade games on PlayStation platforms - you might have played Resogun, Super Stardust, or Matterfall. Stormdivers represents a conscious departure, and not only in genre. For Stormdivers, Housemarque has left behind trusted internal tech for the first time to create a new future in Unreal Engine 4.