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Splitgate

Splitgate

The arena shooter genre gets that more diverse with the portal slinging title from 1047 Games.

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You've probably already heard of Splitgate ever since it skyrocketed to success over the past few weeks. The arena shooter by 1047 Games previously intended to launch in late July, before becoming immensely popular (going from around 4,000 players to over 170,000 in a matter of weeks), leading to an insurmountable server demand from its audience. Ultimately, this has caused the developer to indefinitely delay the release of the game while it scrambles to improve its server capacity, but to make up for that decision, the game will be remaining in open beta for the foreseeable future.

I've spent a bunch of time, checking the game out, and have come to the conclusion that this is one of the finest arena shooters we've seen in a long time, which is all the more impressive considering just how competitive the genre is.

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So, what is Splitgate you ask? It's a multiplayer shooter that pits teams of players against one another over a series of maps, delivering intense FPS action. Think Halo in this regard, as the maps are generally quite small, and the gunplay takes priority over pretty much every other mechanic available. But, "pretty much" is a vital part of that statement, because another major aspect of what makes Splitgate so unique is its implementation of portals. You can spawn portals on specific walls and floors around each map, and you can travel through these, shoot through them, and use them as vision for oncoming threats. In this regard, it's a lot alike Portal.

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I've seen the phrase "Halo meets Portal'' thrown around a fair amount when it comes to Splitgate, and rightly so, because this is pretty much what the game is. What 1047 Games has created is an incredibly fluid feeling and polished arena shooter that is very difficult to find a flaw with, if you are a fan of the genre. It is worth mentioning that the arena shooter genre is often quite hardcore in its nature, so don't expect to come to Splitgate for a casual and easy-going experience.

Yet, if you like Halo and PvP games then Splitgate won't hesitate to entertain. The gunplay is top notch, and it doesn't matter whether you use the Assault Rifle or the longer range Sniper Rifle, each weapon has its strengths and weaknesses that allows it to fit into the experience. It's the sort of balance where you don't feel at a disadvantage when wielding a certain weapon, because there are always methods to find value from it, especially with the portals in mind that can completely eliminate range from the question when dealing with lengthy sightlines, therefore making shotguns and SMGs an incredibly valuable secondary weapon.

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When it comes down to the portals in general, 1047 Games has built a system that has simplicity at the forefront. You press a button to create a yellow portal, another button for a purple portal, and then shazam, you have yourself a pathway to travel through. You can then also easily delete portals by placing another or via a different input entirely, so while the system has depth in how you use it, the core mechanics are about as straightforward as it gets, and this extends to the movement.

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Splitgate is not an intensely demanding game when it comes to controls. You can sprint, crouch, and jump, the typical shooter systems, in fact the only area where it goes the extra step is with the jetpack that allows you to stay airborne a tad longer. This feature is not an intrusive one however, as the jetpack runs out of charge in around a second and takes a moment to recuperate before you can use it again - so don't worry about those nightmares of a Pharah player raining hell from the peaks of a level's skybox, because that is just simply not how they are designed.

The point is, Splitgate is a game that doesn't try to overcomplicate things. 1047 Games has stripped the arena shooter genre to its core, perfected the FPS systems, and then added a few other elements that allows the title to be a truly unique product, and what this makes for is one of the most engaging and exciting shooter experiences in a long time. Considering we're still in open beta, it's hard not to see Splitgate as anything less than fantastic, especially since it's free to play, with loot boxes and microtransactions simply there to add cosmetics for fans looking to personalise their character. This is definitely a game worth taking a crack at, even if you might find yourself in a player queue every time you log on at the moment in time.

Splitgate

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