If time traveling was real, I’m sure a lot of gamers would have fast-forwarded to the day Remedy’s Quantum Break finally released on Xbox One and Windows 10. We’ve been waiting for this one for a long time and were impressed with its gameplay when we wrote our preview. Today, we’re proud to say we completed the impressive story of Jack Joyce and his battle against Paul Serene and the end of time.
Remedy did it again
The talented Remedy studio that brought us Max Payne and Alan Wake in the past, developed Quantum Break. Quantum Break feels like an aggressive love baby of those two games. It features the incredible slow-motion parts of Max Payne combined with the mysterious and compelling story of Alan Wake. Remedy is master in storytelling and they really nailed the story in Quantum Break. Never before have we seen a story this impressive and that well executed on a gaming console before.
The story isn’t that easy to follow and it will demand all of your attention to keep up with its high pace. At the core, it’s a story of Jack Joyce and his brother, trying to stop the owner of Monarch Solutions Industries ‘Paul Serene’ from ending the world as we all know it. It’s a story where time traveling is real, a time where it caused a lot of problems. The machine released an insane amount of Chronon that will end the time, as we know it. You can compare it to an egg; it can only take as much pressure until it breaks. As said before, it’s a rather complex story where you’re forced to travel between time and space in order to save your brother and stop Paul Serene from taking over the world.
A story like this is extremely hard to tell and we’re sure a lot of other studios would have struggled to make it believable but Remedy didn’t have those problems at all. To create a believable story they even combined the world of video games with the world of a real live show like Game of Thrones. This unique combination of virtual and real characters is without a doubt the one thing that transforms Quantum Break into a pioneer game we’ll still speak of for years to come.
Is this still a game?
The graphics of Quantum Break are insanely impressive. I’ve got parents, a sister and a girlfriend all running around my television screen wondering if I was watching the show or actually playing the game. The technology behind the game isn’t cheap but it really pays off the moment you start playing. The cast of playable characters is truly impressive and makes everything even more believable. Jack Joyce is played by Shawn “X-Men Iceman” Ashmore and Paul Serene by Aiden “Littlefinger” Gillen from Game of Thrones.
Remedy did it again!
The cast is impressive and thanks to the technology behind the game, you really believe every word they are saying. This also comes with a downside, however. All the graphical power went to the presentation of the main characters, resulting in a lot of identical enemies. Remedy tried to hide this by giving the enemies the same outfit but even under those outfits they still remain the same computer generated characters. It’s nothing game breaking but it’s somewhat disappointing to see that the regular enemies didn’t get the same visual treatment.
You influence the show
The best part about the story is the ability to affect the timeline. After each segment, you take control over Paul, leader of Monarch Industries. Monarch is a powerful organization that wants to harvest the true power of the time machine and wants to enroll a ‘Lifeboat protocol’ to save certain people from getting killed during the end of time. In order to stay alive, Paul needs to take important decisions called Time Junctions. These play a crucial role in the further development of the story.
These decisions aren’t easy to make since they offer opposite directions each time. Do you continue fighting for Monarch until the bitter end and let others betray you? Or do you surrender your organization to handle things personally? These decisions have a huge impact on the story of the live-action show that’s followed after you made a decision. These Time Junctions will result in the death of certain characters on the show, depending on your choice.
It’s impressive to see that the director managed to direct different episodes, depending on your choice, but still managed to keep things believable and didn’t leave any loose ends at the conclusion of the story. The live series are impressive to watch but aren’t of the same quality as high-budget Hollywood productions of course. You’ll be able to enjoy the series for sure but you’ll see some strange CGI elements popping up from time to time. That being said, it’s really fun to see how the show continuous if you replay the game and make different choices, it’s then that you’ll truly see the consequences of your decisions.
These consequences are also found in the game but aren’t as drastic as on the show. The game will follow a set of missions even when you make different choices. The only differences you’ll find in the game are other cut scenes and other characters that are helping you out. If you compare to consequences to the ones found in the show, you might be disappointed that your choices don’t really affect the way you experience the missions that much. That being said, it’s still worth giving Quantum Break a second run once you finished it!
Impressive gameplay
Since Quantum Break is a very story-driven game, it’s no surprise that a lot of the money went into creating a believable story but where does that leave the actual gameplay? Well, in short, you won’t be disappointed! At first sight, Quantum Break looks like your typical, cover-based third person shooter but that’s not entirely true thanks to your special time powers. Due to the explosion of the time machine, Jack was granted with some special abilities to control time, abilities that can come in rather handy in combat. We already discussed the three basic abilities in our preview but just as we thought, it doesn’t stop there.
Jack has control over six different time powers in the game, let’s run them down real quick:
– Time Vision: Your Eagle Eye in the game, used to mark enemies or points of interests. You’ll be using the Time Vision a lot to scout the environment for enemies or clues to advance. The Time Vision can also track fractures in time to rewind the time in order to get more intel or bring back objects from the past to your current locations. Of all time powers, this one is used the most.
– Time Stop: An impressive way to get rid of your enemies. With Time Stop, Jack can create a vacuum of time, freezing each and everyone that’s trapped in it. You can stop enemies from moving or objects from falling down on you. It’s best combined with a lot of bullets when you’re taking down the heavy enemies. Ever fired a dozen of bullets on your target at once? Well, it’s certainly possible now!
– Time Shield: As the name already suggests, Time Shield operates as your mobile, hm, shield. It’s a powerful shield that can stop the bullets of your enemies and it gives you more time to scout your environment or reload your gun. Nothing special but very crucial if you want to stay alive!
– Time Dodge: This is an interesting technique. Using Time Dodge, Jack can ‘teleport’ away from where he was standing. It’s easy to use; you just push the button, pick the direction you want to go and ‘poof’ jack teleports to his new spot. This is a great trick to get away from the bullets when your health is low but it can also be transformed into an aggressive takedown when you aim for the enemy while using Time Dodge. This is a very useful tool to escape dangerous situations or to confuse your enemies.
– Time Blast: This is the most powerful power you have. Time Blast is Jack’ power bomb consisting out of broken time. Using Time Blast you can take down several enemies at once or even bring down the stronger enemies more easily. It’s best used against groups of enemies since killing only one enemy with a Time Blast is a true overkill. Keep in mind that this power needs some time to ‘reload’. Planning your attacks precisely is crucial for surviving!
– Time Rush: The last and final power is Time Rush and can be considered as an upgrade of the Time Dodge. In Time Rush, you’re able to slow everything down while you’re still able to run at full speed. This is a power you’ll need to escape from falling obstacles or enemies. It’s a great power to get you out of dangerous situations and just like with the Time Dodge power, you can take down the enemies with just one impressive move.
As you can see, Jack isn’t your ordinary hero, learning how and when to use these powers is crucial if you want to finish the game. Because Jack has these powerful moves, the enemies aren’t that easy to take out. The more you advance in the game, the stronger the enemies will get, introducing tank-like characters or characters that are protected with a shield. At some points, the enemies will employ a certain device that will disable your powers completely so you’ll have to trust on your human reflexes.
The battles in Quantum Break offer a lot of fun thanks to the strong AI of your enemies in combination with your special powers. If you want to survive, you’ll need to learn when and where you can best use your powers during battle. It’s also great to see that your powers can get upgraded throughout the game, keeping things fresh until the very end.
More than just battles
Keep in mind that this still is a Remedy production however and that this game offers a lot more than just battles. Besides the battles, you’ll spend most time discovering your environment. The game is literally filled with additional narratives spread over the different levels. If you want to find everything there is to know about the story, you’ll need to look for those hidden items. Unlike the main story, these additional files aren’t voice acted so not everybody will enjoy reading them. We’re sure a lot of gamers will on the other hand since these extra files offer a lot of new insights in the world of Quantum Break.
Besides that, the game is also filled with Alan Wake references and your obligatory Sam Lake face from time to time. It’s great to see that Remedy is keeping their tradition alive and fans of the studio will enjoy those little Easter Eggs for sure.
Last but not least, the game also offers small sections of puzzle solving where you’ll need to use your time powers and brains in order to advance. The game shows you where to go using strong visual hints but some of the puzzles need some clever thinking to solve. It’s great to have those intermissions between the aggressive battles since it gives the gamers a little more time to really appreciate the beauty of the game. Remedy did it before but they once again found the right balance between action and exploration.
Conclusion:
Quantum Break had a lot to prove and turned out to be the masterpiece we hoped for the day it was first revealed. Remedy created an unforgettable story where the virtual and real world collides in a way we never thought possible. It offers a great ride filled with impressive visuals, action-packed battles, clever puzzles and an unforgettable story. It won’t take you that long to finish but it’s worth replaying thanks to the Time Junctions and hidden files all over the world. If you’re looking for an impressive game on your Xbox One or Windows 10 platform, Quantum Break will most certainly leave its mark.
