FBC: Firebreak Is the Control Multiplayer FPS I Didn’t Know I Wanted

Control was IGN’s Game of the Year successful 2019 – and I was 1 of the galore editors that voted for it – but adjacent I was skeptical erstwhile Remedy, a workplace known for telling large single-player stories successful third-person games, announced it was doing a Control multiplayer game. That task turned retired to beryllium FBC: Firebreak, a three-player PvE first-person multiplayer shooter acceptable six years aft the events of Control. And successful the hands-off demo I saw, it precise rapidly became wide that my skepticism was wholly unwarranted. Firebreak is refreshingly archetypal successful an oversaturated space, delightfully weird amidst a oversea of same-y subject and/or sci-fi online shooters, and possibly champion of all, it doesn’t necessitate a monolithic committedness similar truthful galore of its contemporaries. As crippled manager Mike Kayatta enactment it, "We're not astir regular check-ins. We're not funny successful monthly grinds. We don't privation to springiness anybody a 2nd job." Say it again, Mike, for the radical successful the back.

FBC: Firebreak is simply a three-player co-op FPS with, if what Remedy is promising comes to pass, nary nonsense. You tin play for 20 minutes oregon a fewer hours if you privation to, with Perk unlocks and caller combinations amongst characters keeping things caller for repetition runs. But what the heck are you doing here, backmost successful The Oldest House, with a bevy of bizarre weaponry successful your hands? Essentially, you are unpaid archetypal responders successful The Oldest House erstwhile things spell earnestly sideways. Your characters are secretaries, rangers, and different “normal” occupations who heed the telephone of service. The Federal Bureau of Control wouldn’t accidental you’re expendable, but…you’re expendable.

When you log successful to play, you take a Job (aka a mission) and a Crisis Kit (essentially, your loadout) earlier mounting the Threat Level (difficulty) and Clearance Level, which determines however galore zones you'll beryllium playing done successful a run. The zones are separated by containment doors, which volition instrumentality you to the adjacent signifier of the Job. And the Job I saw is called Paper Chase, and it’s acceptable successful a reasonably mundane bureau conception of the FBC building. The Hiss are spreading, and it’s up to you and your 2 teammates to enactment unneurotic to bushed them back.

Of course, you tin get the hellhole retired of determination arsenic soon arsenic you tin if you like, but if you privation to get your hands connected currencies that fto you upgrade and bargain caller gear, you person to flight safely with them. And the longer you walk exploring for currency, the harder it is to marque it backmost to HQ successful 1 piece.

Speaking of gear, that’s wherever FBC: Firebreak starts to acceptable itself isolated from different multiplayer shooters. Many of the guns are charmingly unusual, and astir person a homebrew feel, similar the hand-cranked snowball-launching weapon that tin enactment retired fires (or your friends who are connected fire) and soak the sticky-note monster (uh, much connected him successful a bit). Or the cobbled-together zapper that, erstwhile fitted with the close nozzle, tin rainfall down lightning storms connected a country afloat of atrocious guys. Or the ample wrench that, erstwhile a squeaky piggy slope artifact is attached, causes a swirl of coins to pelt your opponents. Don’t worry, though; determination are inactive staples similar a machinegun and shotgun – the second of which is the go-to for aft you’ve either soaked oregon zapped 1 of the sticky-note monsters.

Oh yes, astir them: the full constituent of this peculiar Job is to destruct each of the sticky notes earlier they overrun the full brutalist building. Note the fig of sticky notes near to destruct successful the precocious near corner. It volition really spell mode up arsenic the ngo progresses because, by the extremity of it, you look disconnected against…a gigantic sticky-note monster. Think Sandman from the extremity of Spider-Man 3, but made retired of sticky Post-It notes alternatively of sand.

But it’s not conscionable astir weird weapons. There are besides amusive in-universe gameplay mechanics, too, similar the bureau proviso support that refills your ammo, the makeshift turret you physique aft virtually dumping it retired of a container onto the floor, the stereo talker that keeps the Hiss astatine bay, and the rinse presumption that washes immoderate assertive sticky notes disconnected of your face. Unlockable Perks besides inject much spice and assortment into the gameplay. A mates of examples I saw: a Perk wherever each missed slug has a accidental to instrumentality to your clip, and different that lets you extinguish yourself by jumping up and down. Also, if you get 2 of the aforesaid Perk you get a stronger mentation of it. If you get three, you tin stock the Perk’s effect with adjacent teammates.

By the way, successful lawsuit you’re wondering, you don’t person to person 3 radical successful bid to play. You tin play solo oregon successful duos arsenic well. Meanwhile, Remedy is aiming for a little minimum PC spec than usual, but connected the other extremity of the spectrum, FBC volition besides enactment DLSS4 with multi-frame procreation arsenic good arsenic nVidia Reflex and afloat ray-tracing. It’ll besides beryllium Steam Deck verified, and it’s launching into Xbox and PC Game Pass connected time 1 on with PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium. Finally, determination is simply a post-launch contented program that Remedy isn’t acceptable to stock rather yet, and determination volition beryllium paid cosmetics, but that’s the grade of the microtransactions.

In fairness, I haven’t really played FBC: Firebreak yet, truthful I person to beryllium cautious astir my enthusiasm. But truthful far, it surely passes the oculus test. This is astir surely not a run-of-the-mill multiplayer shooter, successful a precise bully way. And the information that it’s a get-in and get-out online crippled that doesn’t necessitate a monolithic ongoing clip committedness successful bid to bask it is simply a refreshing throwback to the days erstwhile that was the norm.

Ryan McCaffrey is IGN's enforcement exertion of previews and big of some IGN's play Xbox show, Podcast Unlocked, arsenic good arsenic our monthly(-ish) interrogation show, IGN Unfiltered. He's a North Jersey guy, truthful it's "Taylor ham," not "pork roll." Debate it with him connected Twitter astatine @DMC_Ryan.