First-person shooter / real-time strategy game hybrid Silica announced for PC

Due out in Early Access "soon."

Bohemia Interactive has announced Silica, a first-person shooter / real-time strategy game hybrid for PC. It will launch in Early Access via Steam “soon,” where it will remain for nine to 12 months with several major updates already lined up throughout the year.

Here is an overview of the game, via Bohemia Interactive:

Command From Up High or Put Your Boots on the Ground
Silica is an immersive blend of first person shooter and real time strategy, each true to its respective genre. The game allows players the freedom of choice, without forcing them to play as both.
If you prefer sand-filled boots, bullets whizzing overhead, and menacing alien jaws closing in, the infantry role is for you. Not limited to merely foot-based soldiers, you can also take control of any available vehicles, including the colossal Harvester, the speedy Light Quad, or the insidious Siege Tank, just to name a few. Or, if chewing metal is your niche, then the hive-mind, insect-like aliens are your faction of choice. Shift your consciousness between creatures such as the stealthy Crab, the nimble Hunter, or the armored Goliath.
For those who’d rather command their forces from a distance, the esteemed role of Commander awaits you in the relative safety of orbit. Deploy Harvesters to silica crystal fields, hiding the valuable resources you’re after. Construct and place immense structures to produce and dispatch units that will dominate the battlefield.

Three Game Modes to Choose From
The game offers variety in terms of game modes. Strategy is the flagship game mode of Silica. In this mode, players battle for dominance by building, harvesting, and striking the enemy.
Strategy mode seamlessly combines both real-time strategy and first-person shooter elements and is playable in any combination, up to a three-way conflict between factions.
Prospector mode acts as a tutorial for Silica. It is offered as an first-person shooter, which can be played in single or multiplayer mode. Players start off near a landing pod and are tasked with exploring the area in search of a Balterium field. They will encounter enemy forces along the way and must complete all the objectives in order to make it out alive.
The third mode—Arena—introduces a fun and crazy environment where players select their favorite unit and face off in an unbalanced first-person shooter free-for-all.

Key Features
First / third-person shooter with vehicles.
Six unique locations.
Three engaging game modes.
Single-player and multiplayer options.
Five infantry classes.
11 distinct vehicles.
Eight alien creatures.
AI control for both commander and units.
Introducing Bohemia Incubator: A New Opportunity for Indie Game Devs
Historically, Bohemia Interactive has not only been associated with game development, but with publishing activities as well. Bohemia has successfully helped launch titles by smaller studios and indie developers which have gone on to gain success on the global market.
“In this respect, we are returning to our roots. We are transforming the existing Bohemia Incubator, which has so far served as a platform for our internal projects to investigate interesting concepts, implement new technologies, and develop games outside our main game series. But now, in its new form, we are also opening Bohemia Incubator to third-party developers who are working on interesting game projects but lack the necessary publishing and financial resources. To indie devs who want to join forces and enter the Bohemia Incubator, we can offer over 20 years of experience in game development and top-level know-how, as well as assistance with QA, marketing, and publishing. Eligible projects need to have reached the playable prototype stage at minimum,” says Marek Spanel, founder and CEO of Bohemia Interactive.
Bohemia Incubator aims to help cultivate the indie game dev scene primarily in the Czech Republic and help talented developers realize their dreams of proudly presenting their games to the world. Silica is the first title to be fully “born” in this new era of the Bohemia Incubator.