- MICA Team adds a big chapter to the GFL franchise, complete with new characters and aesthetic
- The player takes control of the Professor, who was instrumental in making the T-Dolls’ Neural Cloud system
- They must strategically navigate a virtual world to uncover the truths behind the project
The popular Girls Frontline gacha game story is being expanded with Project Neural Cloud, a title that will show the player a different angle of the original game’s gritty dystopian world.
MICA Releases Project Neural Cloud
Girls Frontline has built up a very stable player base over the almost six years it has been released. First seeing light in China in 2016, and then being released in the west in the spring of 2018, the game has consistently ranked among the top mobile games in places like East Asia. Its popularity in the region, as well as its very sizable player base in Europe and the Americas, has prompted the developers of the game, MICA Team, to finally release a new game of the franchise on November 21.
Project Neural Cloud is a side story that plunges the player into a virtual world that contains the digital minds of the game’s iconic Tactical Dolls, androids built for war and work. The original Girls Frontline game, set in the 2060s following a fictional WW3, saw the player get in the boots of the Commander – an employee of the private military contractor Griffin and Kryuger.
The player must then slowly build up an army of battle androids, often called T-Dolls, and navigate a treacherous and gritty world of rogue AI that wants to wipe out humanity, multiple internal conflicts, and hotspots in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Along the way, the player and the androids under their command encounter complex military conspiracies and the moral dilemmas of how much an AI has to resemble a human mind in order to be considered human itself.
What Is a Neural Cloud?
Speaking of minds, this is where the concept of the Neural Cloud comes in. It’s not uncommon for T-Dolls to “die” in the game. However, before each battle, their memories are backed up to the so-called Neural Cloud. This means if they die, a new body is built for them and their memories are downloaded, effectively “reviving” the android.
This technology was created in 2060, but it was ground zero for a failed experiment that seemingly caused several Dolls, and the professor behind the experiment, to vanish. In the new game, the player takes the role of said professor and assembles a team of fellow “Exiles” in hopes of getting everyone out of the virtual Cloud they have ended up in.
What’s the Gameplay Like?
Just like the original Girls Frontline game, Project Neural Cloud is also a strategy game with a heavy influence on collecting characters and building them up. However, the gameplay differs quite a lot from the main game. Neural Cloud is far more accessible to new players and it has a different 3D top-down view, as opposed to the original game’s two-dimensional view and characters.
The game features roguelike elements, such as its randomly-generated maps and a strong emphasis on card games. Each map contains different “Conflict Zones” that initiate battles on each map. Each successful battle gives the player Function Cards that contain buffs and power-ups. Maps also often have Anomaly Areas, which can throw unknown variables into the fray.
To survive the Neural Cloud, the player must think of long-term strategies, but it also means being prepared for anything the harsh digital landscape might throw at them. The tides of battle may be unpredictable, which makes the player’s thoughtful planning even more paramount.
The Player Is Immersed in a Rich Virtual World
Being essentially a buffed-up version of the Internet 40 years in the future, the Neural Cloud is a great place to store important data. The many corporations that have risen to power after the end of WW3 use the digital space to store data in relevant “Sectors”. These take the shape of futuristic neon-lit cities, appropriate for the dystopian world of Girls Frontline.
Perhaps the most important place in this cyber world is the Oasis. It is effectively the player’s base and just like the original Girls Frontline’s base, the Oasis is where the player can take stock of their forces and acquire new resources. The Oasis also contains the dolls' dormitory, where the player can spend quality time with the team that fights for them.
Project Neural Cloud gives veteran GFL players a new look into the popular franchise and new players a clear point of entry to it. It’s sure to pave the way for future projects MICA Team is working on.
