Prior to release, Evolve received a largely positive reception and won the Best of Show Awards at Electronic Entertainment Expo 2014 and Gamescom 2014.

However, it received criticism for its progression system and light narrative, gameplay, as well as a large amount of downloadable content prepared.

The game is set in a fictional future where humans have successfully discovered ways to survive outside Earth and have begun colonizing other planets.

Humans arrived at Shear, a distant planet located in the "Far Arm" of space, and began creating colonies and industrial factories.

As the colonisation progressed, humans began to meet resistance from alien life-forms, known as Monsters, that had the ability to evolve by consuming local wildlife.

In Evacuation, each match gives the winning side an advantage in the next map, such as having a toxic gas the Monster is immune to, or autonomous gun turrets to assist the Hunters.

Evolve's creative director, Phil Robb, and lead designer, Chris Ashton, are the co-founders of Turtle Rock Studios alongside Mike Booth.

[31] However, the Evolve project was put on hold, as Turtle Rock thought that the technology at that time was not advanced enough to handle the game's design.

Instead of typical big game animals such as elephants and lions, the team imagined it to be a "King Kong",[28] which changed to an alien monster.

[28] The developer also intentionally chose not to make Evolve action-packed all the time, and introduced segments that would require players to slow down and track the Monster.

Robb explained that the design team wanted to create a contrast, so that players could appreciate the action and chaotic moments after experiencing the less exciting segments.

Early playtesters complained about the game mechanic, as they thought that this would bring an unfair disadvantage to the Hunters, since they do not "evolve" like the Monster.

Ashton added that such game mechanics can create a "turning the tables" feeling for the Hunters, and that he thought that the sudden change in strategy – from offensive to defensive – could help deliver a dynamic experience to the players.

As the design team felt that Far Cry and Crysis set new standards for in-game environments, they decided to utilize CryEngine for Evolve.

[38] The team had designed more than three monsters, but many of them were dropped due to technical issues with Evolve's artificial intelligence system, abilities that were deemed to be too powerful, and animation problems.

Even though the representatives from these publishers were excited about their pitch after they knew that it would be an extension to the Tank mode in Left 4 Dead, they questioned the ability of Turtle Rock making a triple-A video game,[32] and were uncertain whether it was a project they should invest in.

[28] After multiple failures, the Turtle Rock team looked for a business partner, a company that supported the idea and was in need of a co-operative shooter to fit into their game's lineup.

[29] However, they were outbid by Take-Two Interactive, which paid $11 million to acquire the game and to secure the rights to the entire franchise, and its publishing label.

[64] On January 21, 2015, a mobile game titled Evolve: Hunter's Quest appeared briefly on the iOS App Store and was later removed.

Players who download the app can also unlock unique game art and watch replays of online matches from a top-down view.

[67] Funko also made several toys for Evolve, including 6 inches (15 cm) tall figurines of Markov, Val, Hank, Maggie and Goliath, each part of the first characters available to a player.

[72] Despite Turtle Rock claiming that all DLC maps would be free to all players, the high number of paid DLCs has attracted criticism from fans who feel that it constitutes a large amount of content being deliberately withheld to be sold.

Vince Ingenito, from IGN, thought that the system was smart and has successfully delivered a unique multiplayer experience for players.

[101] Anthony LaBella of Game Revolution praised the asymmetrical idea and felt that the distinct gameplay elements between monsters and hunters successfully introduce Evolve to a broad audience.

[100] Jeff Marchiafava, from Game Informer, also felt the structure to be limited, and that Evolve, even with all the modes, had failed to offer enough variety and challenges to players.

[103] David Meikleham from GamesRadar praised Evolve's shooting mechanic, but complained that the action presented on-screen can become too chaotic for players to handle.

[109] Financial analyst Doug Creutz, of the Cowen Group, estimated only 300,000 physical copies were sold in Evolve's launch month, and by its current sales rate, a well-below average figure for the triple-A gaming industry.

Creutz stated that Evolve may be "too niche to reach a wide audience", adding that the negative reception to its DLC plan has hindered its success considerably.

[110] Despite such estimations, Karl Slatoff, President of Take-Two Interactive, stated that Evolve has achieved an "incredibly successful" launch and that the company was very satisfied with the sales of the game.

[111] Take-Two CEO Strauss Zelnick considered the property one of their "permanent" franchises, joining Grand Theft Auto, BioShock and Red Dead.