Mainframe Industries has announced an Early Access release date for its social sandbox MMO Pax Dei, which will have you exploring a massive open world based on the myths and legends of medieval times.
Per a press release, Pax Dei will launch into Early Access on June 18th, which means it's exactly two weeks to the day (at time of writing) until you'll get to play this one.
According to Mainframe, Pax Dei is "currently amongst the most-wishlisted games on Steam", with more than 100,000 players apparently taking part in the game's latest alpha test.
Although Pax Dei is still in the relatively early stages of development, Mainframe says it has "reached a stage where it requires a permanently live game and an active player base" in order to progress.
Game director Reynir Hardarson, whose name you might recognize from his work as creative director with Eve Online developer CCP Games, says Pax Dei "can't be built without players" and that Early Access puts Pax Dei players "on the floor with [Mainframe]".
Two of Pax Dei's core gameplay loops are, according to Mainframe, already in place. The "peaceful" loop, which involves gathering and crafting, and the "adventure" loop, which encompasses the game's PvE and PvP dimensions, are already present.
The third pillar, the "social" loop, will introduce markets and economy to Pax Dei, and will be incorporated as the game's first major update after its Early Access release, although we're not sure exactly when that will happen.
Mainframe Industries boasts luminaries from the likes of not only CCP Games, but also Blizzard, Ubisoft, and Remedy on its team.
If anyone's going to be able to build a lasting, sustainable social sandbox MMO, it's probably these guys, although I don't think you should expect a Pax Dei Microsoft Excel crossover anytime soon.
Pax Dei launches on PC via Steam Early Access on June 18th.
