In the first release game there are 9 maps, 3 modes, 5 classes, 36 forms, up to 4 player splitscreen, up to 8 player parties, etc. We have many plans for this game in the future (if people happen to like it, of course
).
The core idea is that EVERYTHING in it is based on physics (networked soft body physics, in fact). Movement and combat are free of the restrictions of animation, which means that the forms can "hug" the terrain and interact with each other in a continuous, tactile way. We also wanted the combat to be fast, chaotic, rewarding of skill and precision - there are at any time hundreds (even thousand) of entities being simulated. It looks cute and funny, but compared to most games of this nature it really very demanding on the simulation side.
The reason it always needs to be online is that the dedicated server performs the bulk of the heavy physics, things you just could not do on a console at the moment (especially not at 60 fps or in 4 player splitscreen). The servers always have authority and are locked at 60fps.
We wanted it to be short session, competitive, easy to pick up but with lots of skill-based depth.
At the end, I think this is a game that plays like its own thing - you guys will tell us if that's a good thing or not.