The long anticipated Raw Data by developer Survios launches for the HTC Vive on Steam today in Early Access. We sat down with Survios to get an inside look at what players can expect now and in the future from this hero-based action combat game. While we've had a chance to play the game in one form or another over the course its development, Raw Data's Early Access launch today marks a significant step forward in the scope of the game; you'll now get to step into the shoes of two distinct heroes, each specializing in certain weapons and combat styles, instead of generic avatars—and Survios gives us the first glimpse at the next two to come. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8phhKZn4DuM Survios Chief Creative Officer James Iliff tells me that rather than focusing on a huge weapon arsenal, Raw Data's heroes will have an array of special abilities that enhance and extend the heroes weapons and fighting styles. Heroes of Raw Data Iliff shares the roster of Raw Data's two Early Access heroes and their weapons & unlockable abilities. Bishop – Dual Pistols Bishop is what Iliff calls a "gun cleric", a sort of gunslinger-meets-martial-artist who relies on powerful pistols to deal medium range damage. As Bishop, you can do some gun spinning to add a little flavor to your combat style, and you'll have a range of powerful abilities once you unlock all of his talents. Proximity Reload - reload your pistols instantly by touching them to your hip or lower back. [gfycat data_id="SingleUnsightlyHamadryad" data_autoplay=true data_controls=false] Charged Shot – charge your pistols by holding the triggers to fire a powerful shot that penetrates enemies and cover. Timewarp – Momentary slow motion for high action awesomeness (and to buy yourself some time). [gfycat data_id="SardonicBaggyFly" data_autoplay=true data_controls=false] Bulletstorm – Turns Bishop's pistols into fully automatic guns firing "self-replicating nano rounds" which don't deplete your standard clips. Iliff tells me the there's another ability planned for Bishop which will be seen following the game's Early Access launch: the Fusion Charge shot, which will allow players to charge both of their guns while held together to fire a powerful ball of energy. Saija – Energy Blade Saija is the second character you'll be able to play at Raw Data's Early Access launch. She's what Iliff calls a "cyber ninja", and her speciality is getting up close and personal with her energy blade to tear the game's synthetic enemies to pieces. Just because she's using a sword doesn't mean she won't be deadly at range however, unlocking her abilities give players several fun ways to do damage at a distance. [caption id="attachment_50591" align="aligncenter" width="640"] Concept art for Saija's katana[/caption] Shuriken Stream – Allows players to aim at enemies and fire ethereal shurikens. [gfycat data_id="EducatedTediousAzurevasesponge" data_autoplay=true data_controls=false] Sword Throw – Use Saija's katana like a deadly boomerang. Depending upon how you throw it will yield different results. Throw it horizontally to strike a wide group of enemies together, or concentrate all the damage into one enemy with a vertical throw. You can even use the direction of your throw to optimize the blade's path through the greatest number of enemies. Counter – Hold your swords together to charge the blade for a powerful swing which can take our enemies in one hit. This also enhances Saija's ability to reflect projectiles by making them more likely to bounce back at enemies. [gfycat data_id="PleasingDiscreteAfricanfisheagle" data_autoplay=true data_controls=false] Gravity Push – Lets you shove enemies based on your hand movements. Great for throwing enemies off the edge or holding them in the air for teammates to take out. [gfycat data_id="WebbedTatteredCapeghostfrog" data_autoplay=true data_controls=false] Levitation Smash – Launches Saija into the air to slam back down for an area-of-effect blast. Iliff tells me that Saija is also planned to get a Telekinesis ability which will allow her to pinpoint enemies and throw them from afar. Continue Reading on Page 2... The Next Two Heroes At least two more heroes are coming to Raw Data by the time the game launches, and possibly even more than that, says Iliff. Street Mercenary – Shotgun The Street Mercenary will wield the deadly shotgun and also use his fists for brawling with enemies who get even closer. One of the mercs planned unlocks is a grenade launcher augmentation for his shotgun. Rogue Hunter – Bow Then there's the Rogue Hunter who will wield a bow. Iliff described him as an "older hooded guy with a beard" who has "lots of tricks with his compound bow." The hunter excels at ranged combat and will be able to cloak to prevent enemies from targeting him. Iliff says that the team is experimenting with different types of arrows to give the hunter unique utility. One can imagine homing arrows, multi arrows, penetrating arrows, and plenty more. Locomotion [gfycat data_id="NarrowRaggedHedgehog" data_autoplay=true data_controls=false] Earlier iterations of Raw Data had players standing in one place as waves of enemies came to them. But Iliff says that movement is vital to Raw Data's frenetic combat. For the Early Access launch, Survios has settled on a dash mechanic. This differs from a blink/teleport by letting the user see the world move around them (albeit quickly to avoid the potential for nausea). Iliff says that they picked dashing because it helps players maintain their orientation in the midst of combat. "We experimented with blinking and fades but users would get confused," he said. "[With dashing] when you’re in that combat, if you can dash across the map, you can time it perfectly and position it perfectly and teleport right behind a guy and take him out with a sword.” Players will only be able to dash a short distance at a time in most cases, though there will be beacons located on the map that can be dashed to at any distance, making for quick traversal to strategic points. Iliff tells me that they're considering adding optional stick movement for players who don't get sick from that type of locomotion. Objective and Meta Game The objective of any Raw Data level is to defend the data core from hordes of enemies. Players will do so across 4 levels in Early Access, and 12 levels when the game hits its full release. Iliff says that these levels are not merely different set dressing, but a campaign and story for players to experience. While unlocking hero abilities will give players progression throughout the campaign, there's also a meta game that happens in each round as players are able to purchase and strategically place turrets to aid in their defense of the data core. Oculus Rift Support and What's Next for Survios When I asked Iliff about whether or not Raw Data would see Rift support, he said "We're a platform agnostic studio, so we want to support them in the future, but currently our focus is on Vive." As Oculus isn't planning to ship their Touch VR controllers until Q4 2016, it's understandable that Suvrios is focusing on the Vive when it comes to Raw Data. Once Touch does launch, there's still questions as to if/how Raw Data could be adapted for the front-facing gameplay which Oculus is encouraging. Iliff says that the studio hopes to have the full version of Raw Data out the door before the end of 2016. As for what else the studio is working on, he confirmed that other titles are in the works, but would only leave me with this tease: "We aren’t announcing [other titles] at the moment. But I think it’s going to be some really cool stuff, and we’re doing stuff that has nothing to do with guns and violence—as much as I like that stuff—there’s lots of other cool genres we can work on." For those of you that have read this far, you deserve to know that there's two Steam keys for Raw Data hiding somewhere in the article above.