Vostok Games' Survarium looks set to push the boundaries of the MMO genre with its gritty post-apocalyptic FPS...

Ukrainian developer Vostok Games yesterday released the first in-game screenshots for Survarium, their upcoming MMOFPS set for release in late 2013.

Survarium is set to be the spiritual successor to the series of the cult classic PC series S.T.A.L.K.E.R., which sadly sank last year alongside it's parent studio GSC Game World.

The screenshots show a run-down church, a dilapidated village and some rather impressive scenery – all based in just one of the games locations. The game itself will be running on a custom-built engine utilising DirectX 11; while Vostok are eager to point out that the screen shots are based on an early build of the game, and will not be representative of the quality of the final release, they are nonetheless impressive for such early development, especially considering the game has only been in development since April.

The game's story begins in 2016 as mankind struggles for survival in the grips of a major egological crisis, consumed by overgrown forests and mutated wildlife. Amidst the struggle, a large pharmaceutical company releases a virus designed to halt the spread of the ever-advancing forest. However this holds disastrous consequences for humanity, as the virus leads to the human body rapidly decomposing over a period of 24 hours. Players begin their journey in 2026 in the ruins of civilization, where most of the human race has been wiped out, leaving abandoned cities and a few small groups of survivors to scavenge the ruins in a desperate bid for survival.

The development team for Survarium is made up largely of members of GSC Game World, after the company dismantled in April this year. The team, which was orginally working on S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2, seem to be returning in force, and a lot of parallels can be seen between both games – according to the developers' FAQ section a strong emphasis is placed on exploration, isolation, resource management and survival in a post-apocolyptic world, and will be players forming ramshackle factions vying for control amidst the ruins of the old world.

The game definitely shows a lot of potential and innovation, especially by utilising first person shooter controls in the realm of MMOs. This is definitely one we'll be keeping a close eye on. You can check out the screenshots over at Vostok Games' website.

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