Back in the golden age of gaming, it was common to see games released with a single-player campaign, online multiplayer, and local co-op modes. More recently, we have seen games focus on either multiplayer or single-player. Yet, we rarely see both, for fair reasons. Game development has become more specialized as time has passed due to all the specialized technologies available nowadays to develop games.
Games have become more and more demanding in most of their areas, especially in the gameplay and visuals. Videogames now have to be built for a market that begs for visually mind-blowing games mixed with an incredible gameplay experience and narrative. This means developers spend more and more hours developing products that can take years to be released. To meet these demands, developers like Void Interactive are turning to game engines like UE4 to produce Ready or Not.
Ready or Not is an early-access game focusing on PvE combat where players can team up with friends or random to complete their missions. Ready or Not is a fun multiplayer game that can have players repeating the levels over and over again for hours.
With such a great game with fantastic gunplay mechanics and combat, players will likely want to test their skills against real players. That begs the question, does Ready or Not offer a PvP Multiplayer mode? We will answer that question and more in this article.
Overview of Ready or Not Core Gameplay
Ready or Not is a Tactical First-Person shooter PvE game developed by Void Interactive that requires strong communication skills, coordination, and teamwork so players can succeed in a mission.
Moreover, Ready or Not is a challenging game that will constantly punish players for making bad decisions, such as not checking a corner, breaching a room with no intel, and assuming stuff. This game is about trial and error, where players will constantly repeat missions before completing them and getting a high score.
Furthermore, Gamers playing Ready or Not not only have to worry about enemies that can take them out in one shot, but players must also worry about not killing or injuring civilians, friendly fire, and grabbing evidence.
Is Ready or Not PvP?
Void Interactive released a closed alpha: twice: once in 2020 and again in 2021. Both were incredibly disastrous and far from being the game that Ready or Not is nowadays.
Both Alphas got filled with bugs, horrible mechanics, bad animations, lazy map design, and more problems. While those alpha games had PvP, the game, as it was back then, was destined to fail.
Thankfully, Void Interactive turned the game around and focused on PvE, which the community wanted. After all, this game was the spiritual successor to the old classic, SWAT 4.
Because of this good change in direction, currently, there is no way to play any PvP modes in Ready or Not. However, that does not mean that PvP will never make it into Ready or Not in the future (more on that below).
How to Play PvE in Ready or Not
Players can play Ready or Not with bots, solo, and friends. It is up to every player to decide how to play. As we discuss in our review of Ready or Not, all offer players a different challenge.
Play with Bots
To play with bots, players must select the single-player option, and once the mission gets launched, bots will spawn, ready to take orders.
Keep in mind that players can completely edit bots loadout by heading to the lockers in the room to the right, where players spawn in the debriefing room.
Play Solo
Playing Ready or Not Solo can be one of the most challenging, tense, and fun ways to play the game, as you have to rely entirely on your skills and senses.
Currently, Ready or Not doesn’t offer players a way to play Solo, but thankfully, there is an easy workaround for this. To play Solo, select single-player, pick your mission, and as soon as you load into the map, order the bots to stay at the spawn. This way, bots won’t interfere at all in the mission.
Play With Friends – PvE
To play with Friends, players must select the Friends Only option in the main menu and invite their friends.
This experience is a little different than playing with bots, as players must have excellent coordination to prevent friendly KIAs or civilian casualties.
Friendly Fire in Ready or Not
Ready or Not is a realistic and punishing game that doesn’t take friendly fire lightly.
If playing with friends with no coordination and communication, it is likely that someone will shoot a friendly, and in the best case scenario, they will only severely injure one of their limbs. But there is also a high chance that the injured player will not make it.
While you could theoretically conjure up a scenario in which you and your friends can use friendly fire after you finish a mission to fake a sort-of pseudo Ready or Not PvP mode, it wouldn’t be very fulfilling. The number of players is very limited, and comms would be open between both teams.
If playing with bots, friendly fire is even worse because if the player happens to take out one or two bots, the others will turn against the player and finish them instantly.
Will PvP Come Back to Ready or Not?
The short answer is yes. PvP has always been in the plans of Void Interactive, but it is clear that now that they have an excellent and fun game, they will focus on polishing that and making it a great experience before taking the next step into PvP.
As evidence Void Interactive has this piece of information on the Ready or Not Steam Store Page:
How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?
“The full version will have at least 5 more levels, more game modes, have completed UI/UX, more weapons, PVP, and full translation in all of our desired languages.”
Void Interactive via Steam Store Page
Thus, straight from the developer, Ready or Not is expected to feature a full PvP mode. It is likely that by the time the game fully releases from early access that it will feature a realistic and intense PvP mode.
What Do Players Want In A Ready or Not PvP Experience?
Ready or Not is a solid product that is now a worthy successor to SWAT 4. To make it work in a PvP environment, Void Interactive should have PvE and PvP split at different experiences so players can progress and unlock the best guns in Ready or Not without affecting the PvE aspects.
Moreover, Ready or Not will also benefit from more game modes in the future. While Ready or Not already features many mission types, fans would love to see Search and Destroy, Prisoner Rescue, Protect the VIP, and more.
Lastly, Ready or Not could also use different maps or modifications of the current ones to work in a PvP mode.
Last Thoughts on How We Hope Ready or Not PvP will Be Implemented
Ready or Not is a great game, and it’s not a lie that it doesn’t need a PvP mode to succeed, but let’s be honest, who doesn’t want to be able to play against other players in a game like this? If the gameplay can be kept just as intense and tactical while featuring PvP gameplay, that’d be amazing. Most fans love the game’s realism; they are not looking for the arcade gameplay of Rainbow Six: Siege. We can’t wait to see what is in store for this great game as it continues to be developed.
Hopefully, Void Interactive will release more information soon about this and give the community an ETA for the PvP modes.
Do not forget to check our other articles for Ready or Not. For those who prefer a more console feel, we have a guide on how to implement controller support in Ready or Not. And for those looking to mod the game, we have compiled a list of the best Ready or Not mods.
Good Luck, and Stay Frosty!
