Breach is the new game created by QC Games, an independent game developer comprised of AAA veterans (BioWare) and a lot of other cutting-edge creators. This alone should justify checking out the game and that was exactly what I thought when I was at Gamescom. I simply needed to see what the team came up with after all those years. After seeing and playing Breach, I was impressed. It’s a genre I don’t play that much but I think Breach might be that one game to pull me in. It’s looking very promising, to say the least!
Let me tell you a story
Now imagine this: you have an appointment to check out Breach during one of the busiest days at Gamescom. You meet up with your cool PR-guy, he takes you away from the public booth and moves you to a trailer behind the building where a duo of energetic developers is eager to show off Breach. It’s clear that they are very proud of their product and I must admit, their enthusiasm was infectious. Before I could play the game, one of them told me the story of Jesus… Or not really, they told me the story of Breach:
70,000 years ago, humanity was on the verge of extinction until a group of Immortals created the Veil, splitting Earth into two realities: one reality that features the Earth we know, and an alternate Earth where mythological creatures thrive. Now the Veil has been shattered and the two worlds are collapsing into each other with catastrophic consequences. Players take control of heroes who have been imbued with “The Spark” to master magical abilities. Travel across the world to iconic locations that have been breached by this mystical parallel Earth and clash against legendary mythological enemies as well as an unexplained malevolent spirit, the Veil Demon.
It’s an interesting take on mythology and what I like most about it, is the fact that the team can draw inspiration from a lot of different legends. The demo was located in a new version of Egypt since that’s basically the pinnacle of mythology but the full release will also tackle more obscure legends such as Baba Yaga. The lore from which the developers can take inspiration is really deep so I can’t wait to see what they come up with once the full version release somewhere next year.
Create your own hero
Since the story and lore are already on point, it’s time to discuss the game itself. First things first, you have to select a character and a class. No need to worry here, this isn’t your traditional co-op RPG. In Breach, you can change the classes every time you want, so you’re never stuck with a class if you don’t really like it. During my hands-on, I picked the gunslinger since this one is closest to the games I like to play. I really like third person shooters so this class was a perfect match for me. Of course, Breach is more than just a classic third-person action game so my new hero had some really cool tricks up his sleeve. I could use different skills like increasing the fire rate of my bullets, adding an echo character to deliver extra damage or even use an ultra attack when I played long enough to load it. Adding these skills to your character adds a deep RPG layer to the game and I think gamers will love it. Customization goes rather deep and although I couldn’t test it all, it really looks like you can have access to a lot of skills and a lot of classes. The game even encourages you to try new classes by giving you bonuses that can only be activated by other classes as a bonus after completing some missions.
Defeat those enemies
I really liked getting to know the different classes but what I liked the most, was the gameplay itself. I went on a journey with two other journalists and my cool PR-guy to clear out different levels filled with enemies. One level forced us to defeat all enemies while another tasked us to take over several points of interest before the time runs out. It’s cool to see this variation in gameplay and I’m sure this will only increase in the final game. The entire time, you’re working your way up to the boss of that area but you’re not playing alone. The Veil Demon is also constantly at play and if he wins the round, he’s able to make it a lot more difficult in the next round. For example, if the Veil Demon wins enough rounds, he can send a strong mini-boss to the heroes, who will then have to battle fiercely to survive. If the heroes win, on the other hand, they’ll eventually unlock powerful new skills to take down the boss. This constant struggle for power during the ‘normal’ levels is what makes Breach unique, you’re not just competing against the monster on the map, you’re also competing against the strong Veil Demon, a creature that can also be controlled by a human player, to make things even more interesting!
Become the Veil Demon
Playing as the Veil Demon adds a whole new layer to the game and before you ask something, it’s different than in Evolve and even different than in Fable Legends. As Veil Demon, you can place traps to damage the heroes or place certain obstacles to divide them. There are even different classes for the demon too. One type of demon was specialized in setting traps while another could place mythical laser beams that will attack the heroes at sight. As Veil Demon, you can hover over the field and even take control over the enemies. That way, you can overwrite the CPU and take full control over the enemy, even using its special skills. If you’re good enough, you can send over a strong mini-boss and although you’re never forced to do so, you can even control that powerful creature too. I couldn’t test it out that long during my hands-on but I think a lot of gamers will fall in love with the amount of freedom and amount of options you get by playing the Veil Demon, it adds a whole different level of competition to the game and it’s simply something that hasn’t been done before on this scale. Color me excited!
Early Conclusion:
After spending some time with Breach, I must say I was truly impressed. It’s a genre I normally don’t touch but I think this might be the one to pull me in. The variation and options are close to endless and I really like how the developer thought of everything. It’s coming to Steam Early Access later this year with the Free-To-Play full launch in 2019, I simply can’t wait to see and play more of it. You might want to add this to your wish lists!
