Wishlist Providence on Epic Games Store Ahead of Early Access Launch

On-chain survival shooter Providence has officially been listed on the Epic Games Store, allowing the blockchain gaming community and interested web2 gamers to wishlist the sci-fi title ahead of its upcoming early access launch.

Will Providence Have Web3 Features on the Epic Games Store?

The Epic Games Store version of Providence will have web3 features to power the game’s player-driven economy and enable true asset ownership, but nobody will be forced to interact with blockchain technology to enjoy the core gameplay experience.

According to the FAQ section of the official store page, the third-person shooter is using an Avalanche-powered subnet to make the game’s economy and all assets fully on-chain, enabling players to own, trade, buy, and sell items if they want to. You won’t need to connect any crypto wallet to start playing, nor are there plans to support other wallets, as the game will use its own in-game wallet that can also be accessed externally via web, but you won't need to know anything about blockchain technology to enjoy the game as any other traditional title. Blockchain integration is said to be done in such a way so as to ensure a seamless experience, so if you don’t want use the game’s web3-powered marketplace, you won’t have to.

Next to using web3 tech for on-chain items, both ones crafted by players and the ones extracted from Slipworlds, developer Dynasty Studios does mention a number of main utilities that blockchain brings to the game and all other games within its ecosystem. The FAQ lists a couple of blockchain-powered utilities: staking, voting rights, early access, community funding, community outposts, in-game upgrades & additional customization options, and special events & rewards.

These features are all designed to encourage players to hold and use $PRV, the game’s own upcoming token that does not have a TGE date yet. This means that token holders will be able to stake, vote on game-related changes, vote on proposing and funding community projects, gain early access to in-dev builds to try out new features before they’re publicly live, and more. There will be token-gated special events with unique rewards, as well as upkeep costs for Community Outposts that will feature a variety of activities where you will need to spend or stake the game’s token. The same token will also allow you to make in-game upgrades for your loadout, dropship, and equipment, but these enhancements “do not give the player a significant gameplay advantage over others,” as it seems they’re designed to provide players with more customization options to make them further stand out.

What Gameplay Features Will Be Included in Providence Early Access?

The early access version of Providence will allow players to experience early versions of Homestead and Slipworld, which is 2 out of 3 world types that are planned for the full launch.

Homestead will act as your home base of operations that you will get to build up while crafting various items and enhancing gear to set up stronger loadouts that will have you better prepared for the more challenging Slipworlds. Slipworlds represent hostile land surfaces torn off from planets and asteroids that you’ll explore to find useful resources while encountering various creatures and attempting to extract with valuable loot before the area “fully slips into the singularity.” This means that these places will be available for a limited time, and you might have to do some PvP next to PvE too, as other players will also attempt to extract the same goods you’re after.

If you like this multiplayer blend of survival and roguelite gameplay, then be sure to wishlist Providence on the Epic Games Store to help it potentially gain more visibility on the platform and get notified when the free to play UE5-built title goes live. No official release date for the early access version is available at the time of writing. If you want to play earlier, then you might be able to by hopping into the game’s official Discord server, where you will find a channel in which you can join potential giveaways that give out closed alpha access keys to lucky entrants. One button press seems to be all it takes to join these giveaways.