Spellbreak

Note: The game is currently in Alpha stage, so in order to play it you must first sign up to be an Alpha tester. You will then receive a key via email that can be redeemed in the Epic Games launcher.

Battle royale games have become the latest trend in the online gaming community, and with the arrival of so many new titles, finding a way to make yours stand out is a must. We've all seen or played the battle royale games where you get your guns and start shooting , but some games try to adopt a more arcane approach to the genre. Spellbreak is a new battle royale RPG featuring epic magic combat. Weave spectacular spell combinations and craft strategic builds in your quest for survival.

In order to feel much more familiar to veteran battle royale players, the game is still played from a third-person perspective, with the camera being placed above the avatar's shoulder, with a cross-hair present for you to target your enemies. Spellbreak features the same tropes you're used to seeing in battle royale games, just as aerial deployment on a large map, randomly hidden supplies and weapons and more.

One of the first things you'll notice about Spellbreak is the way it looks, and that itself is enough to make you go through your first match. The game uses a pixel-shaded art style that is also semi-animated, similar to Fortnite. More so, because you're dealing with magical effects, expect to always have jagged icicles appear out of nowhere, firewalls appearing right in front of you and more. Because of this, you'll need a beefy video card if you don't want to feel the occasional FPS drops right in the middle of a fight.

Probably the core feature of the game is the way you choose your weaponry. Instead of going around looting machine guns, sniper rifles and pistols, in this game you equip elemental gauntlets that let you get control of a certain power. For example, poison gauntlets will throw out poison in a cone, and leave a puddle that damages all enemies caught in it, while fire gauntlets will through medium-ranged explosive projectiles. The catch with Spellbreak is that you can use two gauntlets alternatively, and can even create special combos when mixing certain elemental attacks (setting a pool of poison ablaze with a fire attack will make it explode for massive damage). More so, there are also environmental interactions involving your attacks, such as zapping a pool of water, stunning everyone in it.

Like all other battle royale games, the match is finished when only one mage is left standing, and once you are dead you get the option of spectating the people left alive, or leaving the match altogether. One thing worth mentioning is that you cannot join a new match until the one you left is over, so you might as well spectate and see how others play, thus passively improving your own skills.

Spellbreak features great graphics, good controls, spectacular special effects due to the magical theme and a player base big enough to make matchmaking worthwhile. It is a title that shows great promise, and is definitely worth trying.