I have been personally following WARDOGS since its announcement. The game promised all-out warfare gameplay in a new integration of the King of the Hill mod from Arma 3. The mod is one of the most popular custom games in Arma 3 to this day, with hundreds of players still actively playing. My interest was even more piqued when the team announced that they were working with the creator of the mod itself, Sa-Matra. I have hundreds of hours of playtime in Arma 3, with Sa-Matra’s King of the Hill accounting for around 70% of those hours. I have been hoping for new games to incorporate more of this underrated mode rather than chasing the battle royale and extraction shooter trends. Thankfully, I was one of the lucky players to have been invited to a playtest of one game that has decided to bring this classic mode back, WARDOGS.
On the playtest day, I got into the tutorial course while waiting for the servers to open. In the training course, I was immediately captured by the atmosphere of WARDOGS, which reminded me of the classic Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare aesthetic with the British SAS. I was surprised to find already good controller support and ultrawide resolution in a playtest. When the playtest went live, I was very glad to see a server browser; no worries of strict matchmaking! I joined a match, prepared my loadout, spent some cash, and jumped into a helicopter hoping that the pilot had some training before. The pilot couldn’t land, and we crashed before making it to the zone. I knew then that I was indeed back in a true version of King of the Hill.
Sa-Matra’s King of the Hill takes the standard idea of fighting for control of a zone and evolves it into a big war game mode. There are three teams, each fighting for control of the zone, while players on each team earn money by being in the zone, getting kills, transporting players into the zone, etc. Players also earn XP towards a level progression system that has many weapons and gear behind each level waiting to be unlocked. WARDOGS takes this concept and transforms it into a complete game, with the progression system expanding beyond just a modded server.
Cash is king in… King of the Hill, even more in WARDOGS. Each time players respawn, they have to rebuy their loadout at their base vendors. Weapons and gear are tied to a Wardogs Level, which is the player’s general level, and classes also have their own levels with other items as well. This class system is one of the most impressive I’ve seen in recent FPS games. While series like Battlefield unfortunately keep taking away features for their class systems, in WARDOGS your actions need to reflect that class to progress it. Want to unlock better medic items? Go be a medic and revive teammates. Want the best sniper rifle? Go snipe and assist the team with spotting. This system greatly encourages teamwork and role identity, even though players aren’t locked to a class. There are also no Battle Passes planned for the title either, which makes the level progression experience feel fresh, rewarding, and immersive in this gaming age.
Speaking of roles, WARDOGS’ progression and money system add a role-playing-like feel to it. Having that mix of level progression and military role-play elements is something unique and rare in the FPS scene. Either an FPS game is a MilSim and realistic like Arma or Squad, or arcade like Battlefield and Call of Duty. WARDOGS has managed to perfectly blend an arcade style with tactical elements. Since this was an Alpha, some planned features, such as skills, weren’t available, but will come up with the full game. This skills system aims to improve each class’ play style, which can bring even more of that roleplay feeling that was already present in the Alpha.
This mix of arcade and MilSim also applies to the gameplay, making WARDOGS one of the most unique FPS experiences I’ve played in a while. There is no fast movement like in modern COD or Battlefield titles, but it isn’t as slow and realistic as Arma or Squad. Character movement is responsive, but weapons and vehicles still have some realism to them. This gameplay gives the opportunity for every firefight to feel fun, yet also requires strategy for each of your plays.
Not everything was perfect in my playtime, though it shouldn’t be since this was still alpha. The maps, I feel, will be the element that will most benefit from the Early Access period. While the map is huge, which greatly helps in the all-out warfare element, there were still some issues, such as a lack of variety in the environment. The map felt a bit empty, and more dynamic structures could’ve helped with that. Again, this was an Alpha, and I am sure many of these elements were placeholders and new additions will be made for this map. The latest video from the team, however, promises more maps with the early access release, which I am sure will help with making the game more varied and engaging.
While other franchises are taking away classic modes from the FPS multiplayer scene in pursuit of other trendy ones, WARDOGS brings back a classic one and creates something special. Even in the Alpha stage, the game felt ready in a lot of aspects, so I completely understand why the team at Bulkhead decided to go for the Early Access release next month. The fixes and additions the game needs, such as maps, gear, and weapons, could be better identified by working with the community. Keep your radar on GameObserver to learn what the Bulkhead team brings to the future of WARDOGS, both in content and gameplay features.
Walter played WARDOGS during an Alpha playtest on PC.
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