Breach (XBLA)

[Flawless]

Atomic Games Breaches the Xbox

Raleigh, North Carolina - Atomic Games, a developer of simulations for US military and intelligence agencies and a pioneer in military action games, announced Breach™ today. Breach is a first-person multiplayer shooter that literally blows the floor out from under conventional military shooters. Breach introduces new kinds of destruction that haven't been seen in any other game, unveils an Active Cover System which allows players to take advantage of any cover as it is ripped apart, and adds in unique, true-to-life spy gadgets which all changes the very nature of multiplayer combat.

Breach uses Atomic's innovative Hydrogen Engine to give players inventive ways to use destruction so they can stun, manipulate, and eliminate their opponents with a new toolbox of tactics. For the first time, virtual warriors can punch holes through floors to get the drop on enemies below, breach both interior and exterior walls, crush enemy fighters by collapsing ceilings and balconies, and even shoot away individual bricks to create "shooter's holes." Breach is the first game to mix Atomic's ground-breaking Active Cover System, which lets players attach instantly to cover, quickly pop in and out of cover, and peak and blind-fire from behind cover, with an environment in which virtually anything that can be used for cover can also be destroyed. As walls get eaten away from bullets and explosions, characters will be able to use the new openings to return fire without leaving the protection of remaining cover.

Players will take on the roles of some of the most elite field operatives in the US. CIA Special Activities Division officers are the teams sent in on real-life black operations when no one can ever know the US was involved. Atomic is using expertise it developed creating training systems for the world's leading military and intelligence organizations to bring the secret world of black operations to life with accurate weapons, gear, and real-life spy gadgets which virtual operators can use with real world tactics to defeat the enemy.

Breach also aims to disrupt the way video games are priced and purchased. Breach can be downloaded through the Xbox LIVE Arcade for the Xbox 360 video game and entertainment system from Microsoft. On this platform, Breach offers the kinds of innovation and features expected in a full packaged game.

Videos:

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[Flawless]

Re: Breach (XBLA)

IGN Hands-on

Breach is a multiplayer-only shooter for up to 16 people. The focus here is on destructible environments -- think Battlefield 1943, but with even more devastating opportunities. This is a very fast-paced game and it'll only take one or two bullets to put you down. There are five classes total with four available right away: Rifleman, Gunner, Sniper, and Support. After you've mastered a couple of these classes you'll unlock Recon, which is meant for advanced players. You'll earn experience points as you play that can be used to purchase weapon upgrades and fancy gadgets. One such gadget is the Bionic Ear, which amplifies and isolates the sound of your enemy with an audio and visual effect to help you locate the jerk.

Three maps will be included with the game along with a nighttime version of one of them. After players have collectively caused a certain amount of destruction, Atomic will unlock a fourth map for the community.

Breach will include four game modes: Infiltration requires your team to claim certain areas of the map; Operations has you searching for randomly placed bioweapons canisters; Convoy finds one team escorting a truck to an exit point while the other team tries to stop them; and then there is the ever popular Team Deathmatch.

Atomic wants to give gamers the feature set of a retail title at the price of an XBLA game. It does look great for a downloadable title with highly detailed environments and an advanced physics engine. You can probably expect Breach to be priced at $15, which is what Microsoft usually charges for its "premium" XBLA games.

[Eton Rifles]

Re: Breach (XBLA)

Looks interesting. I'll be keeping my eyes on this.

[jaosming]

Re: Breach (XBLA)

This came out last week. I tried the 360 demo ($15) and ended up buying the PC version on sale for $12 (normally $20). Multiplayer only game.

Connectivity
The 360 version had MAJOR lag issues. I couldn't connect to matches, stay in a match, but the short time I did get into a game it was a lot of fun.

The PC version on the other hand ran a lot better. I was able to get better connections but still had issues. The PC version got a better dedicated server over the weekend and since then I have had 0 lag issues.

Gameplay
Do NOT buy this expecting something that will tear you away from CoD, BC2, or any other shooter....you will be disappointed. This game isn't fast paced like those games...it's got more of a Counter Strike feel and pace.

The 4 maps (1 night version of a map is included too) are pretty big, and while playing in a full 8v8 server things can get a bit hectic, but you can always get away from the fight if needed. The problem I run into is when I enter a 4v4 server or 5v5.....the maps are just too big for those amounts and there is no scaling to take care of it. Its usually only a problem in TDM gametypes with campers/snipers though.....

...and on that note, this game favors the sniper rifle. If you can snipe, then this is the game for you. Most TDM games I've played are sniper fights, which can be really fun, but I know that is not some people's cup of tea. The active cover system helps balance that though. As rifleman can keep in cover while they dodge sniper bullets and use blind fire to kill them. Just don't expect to run at them like in CoD to take them out.....also never count on the knife for anything in this game.

Game Modes
TDM as I said usually turns into a sniper fight. It goes to 50 kills and while it doesn't do anything special or different from other games, it is still fun.

There is a retrieval gametype where you try to grab a canister and plant it on the other team's side of the map. All of the maps are set up very well for these you get this side I get the other team modes.

Infiltration is your standard domination gametype. This one is a LOT of fun with the destruction aspect of the game. Blowing out walls to surprise anyone puppy guarding the control point is a blast (haha).

Sole Survivor is a no respawn gametype.....pretty much everyone hides and it can get drawn out....but its a nice, short, gametype.

Convoy is the best though. You either escort or try to destroy a couple of hummers and there are roadblocks to blow up too. The back hummer has a triple shot 'nade launcher that just decimates buildings where the attackers hide but is balanced since you are a very easy sniper target.

The Destruction
It's satisfying...but when you look closely at it....it could be a lot better. There is nothing better than taking down a wall and surprising the enemy inside, but just looking at the destruction part, it falls flat. If you start a private game just to blow crap up you'll notice that concrete floors and certain pillars can't crumble. Also the ground doesn't deform and trees don't fall. The best part of it though are the shacks that make great sniper traps. Snipers love those shacks and if they get on a tear they rarely move from them...so find an RPG and take that sucker down in a heap of wood.

Gadgets/Perks
The gadgets in this game are pretty awesome. You can get sticky grenades or a vest to begin with, and as you level up (every 2000? 2500? XP) you get more to buy (with XP). There's a sonic imager that can let you see through walls, proximity mines, and my personal favorite, Sniper IR detector. Snipers show up with a lens flash on your screen when they are looking through their scopes kinda like Far Cry 2.....very VERY helpful.

The perks are nice too, but useless when you unlock and buy Bad ***. It doubles XP but halves your health....which doesnt matter much in hardcore games (which I usually play). There is also a sprint for longer, throw 'nades farther, more ammo, faster ADS & Reload, and an agility perk that evidently lets you move as fast as CoD.

Weapons are unlocked by getting 2000XP and then 3000XP in a certain class. So for snipers, once I earn 2000Xp in that class I unlocked the 2nd sniper rifle, then after another 3000XP I earned the .50 Cal.

Overall
This game was well worth the $12 I spent on it and I would be very happy at the normal $20 price point as well. However the 360 version seems to be having issues right now with servers that match you up with people in Europe. The community team at the official forums are on the ball (kind of like Marcus was here with NBA Live) and rushed out the dedicated server fix for the PC version in 3 days. An update is impending for the 360 version, so if your only choice is XBLA....wait to see what the update does to the lag issues. A lot of reviews that reviewed gameplay before the release were very positive, ~8/10 range, so the good game without lag is there, but the reviews and public response post-release have been 5-6's because of the connectivity issues.

On the PC it is run through steamworks, with achievements and friend invites that seem to work fine. IMO this is a PC game with hopefully a modding community coming soon. And you can use a 360 controller if you want on the PC version.

Personally, I love this game, it's a lot of fun and breath of fresh air from CoD and BC2. It has its connectivity issues, but other than that it is a pretty solid game. With that, I'll leave you with the most satisfying thing you can do in this game.

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:wink:

[Sausage]

Re: Breach (XBLA)

Played the demo several times, but I just couldn't get into it. It was for the 360, so it was also very choppy.

[Kramer5150]

Re: Breach (XBLA)

Nice write up Jaosming,
I couldn't agree more with everything you mentioned...and that vid ......that was just awesome...LOL .
I do agree that the game is rough around the edges on the 360,but as you mentioned,the guys from Atomic seem to be on it,and are working on the problems.

Overall,I'm happy with my purchase,and as soon as they get the lag and connectivity issues sorted,this will (imo) be a solid change of pace from the other shooters.

[VinylOne]

Re: Breach (XBLA)

i saw it at best buy for PC decided to check up on game rankings and it got a really bad score. pass

[allBthere]

Re: Breach (XBLA)

I'll be buying in the next week or so.

[jaosming]

Re: Breach (XBLA)

looks like there was a game fixing update for the 360

http://breachgame.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=759

Here's a list of the major issues addressed with the update:

- All known crashes fixed
- Many fixes to reduce lag
- Online game performance improved by more than 33%
- Bug that caused Sole Survivor games to end in draw fixed
- Bug that caused invisible canister in Retrieval games fixed
- Bug that caused Vendetta icon to appear incorrectly fixed
- Server Browser can now sort by number of players
- Server Browser can now be manipulated with mouse scroll wheel
- Fixed bugs related to Friendly Fire settings
- Better ability for a game with lag to recover when bandwidth improves
- Other minor bug fixes

The trial timer has been reset for all players and an additional 30 minutes has been added. So, all players will now have 60 minutes of trial time before buying breach. This includes players who already maxed out their original 30 minutes.

[Sausage]

Re: Breach (XBLA)

If anybody has played it recently, can you post a mini-review post 1st patch.