XLGAMES conducted a CBT for their new game 'THE CUBE, SAVE US' starting from the 13th. 'THE CUBE, SAVE US' is a new extraction game first revealed by XLGAMES in August, set in a hypothetical near-future destroyed by a nuclear war. Players must enter the massive 'Cube' left by an alien civilization, defeat various mutated Monsters and other competitors within the Cube, secure various supplies for survival, and then escape.

Until now, XLGAMES has been showcasing a portfolio centered on MMORPGs such as ArcheAge, Civilization Online, and Moonlight Sculptor. As such, with the game's sudden announcement this year, it was inevitable to be curious about how they would tackle the unique post-apocalyptic theme and the extraction genre that they had not covered before.

The Tension Created by the Uunknown Map Itself, like in the Movie Cube

Until now, Post-Apocalyptic Extraction has been set in a ruined city or its vicinity, but THE CUBE, as the title suggests, is mainly a space made up of a collection of gigantic cubes. It is a familiar setting for a series of movies with a similar name, where you escape from a cube filled with various traps, but THE CUBE's rooms are a bit different in that they feature various climate zones and cultural regions instead of traps. When I first entered, it was a prison guarded by medieval soldiers, and then suddenly, a medieval-like ruin with Orc-like Monsters appeared. In addition, I encountered various types of places such as a temple in the Korean style, a closed zombie apocalypse-style supermarket buried in heavy snow, ancient Egyptian ruins, and so on.

▲ After entering the game and Character Customization

▲ Instead of the Lobby Lounge, get supplies at the Survivors' Base and enter the Cube through matching

▲ In the cube, where each section presents a completely different environment, you must engage in a fierce battle to acquire the loot and escape.

Although a different section appears each time, due to the characteristics of the cubic space, you can find an entrance to another room by going straight in any direction. Because of that rule, 'THE CUBE' was not unpleasantly inconvenient even if you couldn't see the entire map except for the Mini-map. Rather, it could be seen as an attempt to mix the roguelike structure well with dungeon extraction. The structure changes, but the atmosphere itself doesn't change much in dungeon extraction. This is because the weakness of dungeon extraction, which has a limited variety of environments, is alleviated by adding a setting where various environments can exist.

Additionally, the monotony of the map composed of cubes was resolved by intentionally leaving only the Mini-map after creating a maze with various objects or by organizing each room into multiple layers. Various random experiences, such as encountering monsters, various loot chests, or other players, were mixed in, creating a unique sense of tension as players cautiously moved to escape the unknown space.

▲ You can roughly know the location of the escape place, but it's easy and difficult at the same time to find because the inside is twisted in different ways.

Only Attacks After Evasion? Casual and Exciting CQC that Covers Everything

‘'THE CUBE' is an extraction game set in a post-apocalyptic world that focuses on CQC. Since it is not set in a medieval or fantasy world, it is somewhat surprising that there are no 'guns'. However, the game has not perfectly resolved this question in its current stage. The monsters inside the Cube were mainly of the type that did not possess firearms or ranged weapons, such as zombies, Orcs, spear-wielding soldiers, and insane prisoners. While this felt like a intentional design for gameplay, it did not feel like it was in any particular context.

However, Extraction is a genre where the key is not the immersion of the story or background, but rather how well the process of struggling to obtain the loot and escape is established. In this aspect, 'THE CUBE' showed an attempt to break away from the simple combat style of Extraction, which involves street skirmishes and close-quarters combat using various tools. Although the basic structure of the CQC, which is the distance fight, remains the same, each Weapon has different skills and evasion techniques, allowing players to use multiple skills actively to make the battle more dynamic.

▲ When I first discovered another player, I tried to sneak up on them with transparency skill, but it failed

▲ Oh no, I'm caught. In this situation, you better dodge with a blink.

In fact, the Weapons in 'THE CUBE' are divided into several categories, and even within the same category, each acquired Weapon has different Skills. Taking the Survival Knife as an example, some have a skill to apply poison, while a few have a skill to slash the opponent's legs to reduce their movement speed. In addition to specifications and options, the variable of Active Skills further diversifies the range of settings.

Special skills such as transparency and flashing(or blink) were also kicks in battle. Especially in 'THE CUBE', where it is difficult to see the battlefield widely due to the lack of a full map, utilizing special skills and targeting the enemy's blind spots to gain the upper hand was a unique charm. As it became easier for enemies to launch surprise attacks, players had to be even more cautious when hunting powerful elite Monsters or searching for loot. Additionally, it was impressive that the classic MMORPG system for obtaining rewards through quests and monster hunting, whether successful or not, was refined to provide consistent compensation, showcasing a well-structured routine from the very first test.

▲ Mutants that use ranged attack very rarely appear. It's troublesome if you leave them for too long, so you should take them out quickly.

Though It’s Only the First Test, the Sound, Server, and Matchmaking UI Still Need Improvement

▲ Currently, PvE is only available in Solo Mode and PvP is only available in Squad Mode.

In this way, THE CUBE showed solid basics in graphics, quest, map design, and reward system, despite being the first test of the extraction genre, thanks to the developer's MMORPG know-how. However, unlike what was listed in theory, there was some room for it to feel somewhat bland when actually played due to several issues.

The first thing I noticed was the lack of impact and the sound to support it. This problem was shared by many of the previously released CQC-focused Extraction games. While focusing on the impact of the hit sound can overshadow other sounds like footsteps, the reaction and sound when hitting a Monster or another user were still quite small, making it feel less impactful. Although 'THE CUBE' itself is a light game with high skill usage frequency and low stamina consumption, the lack of weight in the hit sound made it feel a bit bland. Especially when you get hit, this issue became more pronounced, making it difficult to tell if you were being hit when you weren't fully focused.

There were also issues with the server and matching UI. First of all, to match, you have to press the Del key to select the type, but before that, the main screen says 'Currently matching,' which can cause confusion. In fact, some foreign users even posted chat messages asking when the game would start. In such a situation, the fact that there was no information about the matching status and only the time was displayed made the frustration even greater. It was good to create the lounge in the form of a base area rather than a lobby to increase immersion, but there was a sense of regret that more convenience and visibility should have been secured since there were many UI/UX processes to go through.

▲ A base environment that even reflects the passage of time

▲ Crafting to obtain various high Grade Item

▲ The system that allows you to recover your losses with the Quest reward even if you fail to escape is definitely in place.

▲ It's a pity that they missed the basics, such as not letting the party go when they're already wiped out and have no means of resurrection.

Even if they were matched and entered the game, various errors occurred on the first day, such as high ping, lag, and even crashes. Therefore, the first and second rounds thought they had equipped Special Skills, but the server did not process them, so they entered the game without equipping Special Skills and crashed in the middle. Then, when entering the third round, a maintenance notice appeared, and even after that, the issue was not resolved, so another maintenance was performed.

After going through this process, the server issues have improved somewhat, but the UI/UX shortcomings remain. While the input lag, where attacks are often missed, has definitely decreased, there are still several aspects that disrupt the gameplay tempo, such as not being immediately eliminated when the entire squad is wiped out, and collectively waiting for rescue.

▲ I didn't even think about such a rookie mistake like the UI being cut off at the top of the screen when comparing Weapon stats.

The Cube Aims to Dominate the Market in the Fourth Quarter, and Quick Feedback is the Key

Although several close-combat-focused post-apocalyptic extraction games have been announced, the release date has not been confirmed. As such, it was good news for users that 'THE CUBE' announced its release in the second half of the year and aggressively tested it.

Although it was very different from the games that XLGAMES had made so far, the know-how that had been polished by finding various good materials was also evident in 'THE CUBE'. Although it was not the best, the quality of the graphics and optimization that captured the realistic atmosphere were well implemented even in the testing stage, and though the context isn't perfect, the idea of creating a background where various environments appear randomly by utilizing the material of THE CUBE was also impressive. Although the weight of the core play was somewhat lacking, it was also possible to see an attempt to balance the core and casual of the genre by intentionally limiting the information while using various skills and Weapons in battle to increase tension.

▲ Learn various skills and distribute them according to your cost and playstyle, and the feeling of playing differently each time

▲ They’re also preparing for the release of various cosmetic items and Battle Passes.

On the other hand, there were issues that needed to be quickly resolved for the second half release. The immediate server and matching issues were quite critical. Typically, users gather during the initial testing phase, but 'THE CUBE's servers were unstable to the extent that two maintenance checks had to be conducted at that crucial moment.

Although it has improved somewhat now, the focus on fully showcasing the base-like lounge designed to create a post-apocalyptic atmosphere has resulted in low UI convenience, making it cumbersome to access matchmaking. Despite the appearance of various climate zones, terrains, and time zones, the lack of distinctive features other than visual effects made the immersion less engaging.

In addition, the fact that you can't quickly leave after a wipe, etc., which were missed when first creating the Extraction genre, were disappointing in this test. Also, it was mentioned that there is a high degree of freedom in the play style without a job, but it was also disappointing that you couldn't freely test it by resetting the Stats after leveling up.

However, isn't it better to be criticized first? 'THE CUBE', which casually refines familiar genre, has shown potential to establish itself by coming out first in a situation where there is no news of the release of strong competitors. Therefore, it is necessary to quickly provide feedback on unstable aspects through this test and add a kick that will further highlight the strengths of 'THE CUBE'. Despite being the first test, it has already demonstrated a satisfactory quality, so it is noteworthy to see what kind of experience 'THE CUBE' will offer at the official release.

This article was translated from the original that appeared on INVEN.