A free-to-play weekend is now underway for The Anacrusis, a four-player cooperative First Person Shooter in Early Access that is obviously influenced by Left 4 Dead. Getting recognition for independent games is becoming more difficult. Multiplayer games, notably those in Early Access on Steam, have resorted to free-to-play sessions to combine marketing and testing efforts. The Anacrusis is the most recent example, and it’s one that co-op players won’t want to miss out on.
The Anacrusis, which was first released in January 2022, claimed to take 9-12 months of Early Access to grow and test before it was completely released. A year later, The Anacrusis is still not finished, but creator Stray Bombay wants to get the game in front of more people. Stray Bombay, on the other hand, hasn’t spent the previous year napping. It has issued 26 separate updates for The Anacrusis with no signs of stopping down. It’s unclear how much more of The Anacrusis Stray Bombay intends to work on before releasing it, although the game is closer to completion than ever.
The Free Weekend for the @anacrusisgame continues – because that's how weekends work!
You can check it out as the free weekend has been a great success – proving the game play really does sell it better than my stupid jokes… sigh if only…https://t.co/w4eoZL6Elz pic.twitter.com/QlD6ttEoix
— Chet Faliszek (@chetfaliszek) January 7, 2023
For this reason, Stray Bombay is so confident in their decision to provide a free Steam weekend at this time. The Anacrusis will be available for free download and play until Monday morning at 10:00 a.m. PT. The whole game, in its present state, is publicly downloadable. It is not being concealed in any way. Stray Bombay just wants more people to see what The Anacrusis is all about.
Four episodes of story-driven co-op action, as well as three holdout mode maps for more challenge-focused gameplay, are included in the current version of The Anacrusis. There’s also an Infinity Pass for meta growth, “billions” of weaponry to test out, unique opponents to combat, and lots more to do. The Anacrusis is built around an “AI Driver” that controls every element of the game, ensuring that each playtime is a unique experience meant to be tough, memorable, and enjoyable.
This is actually just the “first season” of The Anacrusis, a narrative about Nessa, Guion, Liu, and Lance, survivors of an extraterrestrial assault on a large spacecraft. That implies there will be more The Anacrusis even when the game is completely released. Stray Bombay certainly has huge ambitions for the future of The Anacrusis.
Chet Faliszek and Dr. Kimberly Voll created Stray Bombay in 2019. Faliszek is well-known for his contributions to Valve’s Portal 2 and Left 4 Dead games. Voll, who has since departed Stray Bombay, created The Anacrusis’ AI Driver, which powered the cooperative shooter.