Blacklight: Retribution

Blacklight: Retribution is an interesting free-to-play (F2P) FPS that has recently made its way to Steam. Developed by Zombie Studios and released in April this year; it adds to the growing library of excellent F2P games available on PC.

As an entirely multiplayer game, there is no story. Set in the near future, two teams of up to eight players fight over various locations in different game modes. Currently the game includes a standard set of objectives such as Team Deathmatch and King of the Hill. But also has other modes such as Netwar, which requires players to hold set locations whilst capturing a randomly spawning flag. The server filters in the lobby are extensive, allowing you to quickly find a server running your preferred map or game mode.

When you log in for the first time, the game prompts you run through the tutorial. It covers the basic controls as well as being a handy point to fine tune various control settings. At the end it introduces the equipment you will be able to use in battle.

As you kill your opponents and take objectives you earn Combat Points which you can spend on the equipment. Using the Hard Suit mini-mech is a lot of fun. It’s armed with both a minigun and a rail gun making it extremely powerful. But with its poor manoeuvrability, the pilot is vulnerable to enemies using hit and run attacks. The flamethrower is an excellent counter-weapon; able to cook the pilot inside without causing too much damage, leaving behind the Hard Suit for you to steal.

The Hyper Reality Visor (HRV) is a key feature of the game, which combined with the equipment, makes the game stand out in the crowded FPS market. It allows a quick glimpse of the battlefield, highlighting all players and objectives. After each use there’s a long recharge, but it really alters the dynamic of the genre.

I often find myself using it to flank opponents, calculating a safe route to my target. It also highlights players using stealth, allowing you a chance to counter before their surprise assault. It’s easy to become dependent on HRV, using it to check every corner before sticking your head out. But it does lead to some awkward situations, as it takes a frantic second to swap back to normal vision. On many occasions I used HRV only to discover someone just round the corner, leaving me hopping around like a madman trying to dodge incoming fire whilst fumbling for a gun.

The overall balance of the game is excellent. There are various viable builds such as fast melee, close range SMG, through to that sniper who always manages to headshot you from the other side of the map. I find close range fire-fights to be especially satisfying. The fast move speed of characters leads to wild sprays of bullets, often ending in close knife fights with the victor scrambling to reload before their next encounter.

This is down to the well designed in-game economy. At the end of each match you earn GP based on your performance. This can be spent on weapon parts, body armour and gear; either to rent for a few days at a cheap price, or to unlock permanently. There are a lot of options. Each weapon is broken down into individual parts such as barrel, stock, sights and receiver. The receiver defines the weapon type: assault rifle, revolver, light machinegun which you then tailor to your preference. Detailed stats are provided allowing you to tweak everything ‘till you get a weapon Goldilocks would be proud of.

Unfortunately you don’t get access to all the options when you start. Some of the more exotic equipment is locked until you reach a high enough level. I’m not against including levelling systems, but they are over used in FPS games. Zombie Studios has used it as opportunity to give free rental equipment as you level; which is nice reward and sensible promotion tool.

All the aesthetic customisation except the emblem is bought with real money. Your emblem is used to distinguish yourself on the scoreboard as well as appearing as a snazzy badge on your character. You can purchase camouflage for both your character and weapons. Also there is a large range of taunt animations and voice packs.

The art direction is superb. Although the setting is the standard grey-brown future we have come to expect from this generation. It’s brought alive by the striking orange and teal colour scheme of the HRV view. There’s only one problem, headshots are ridiculously gratuitous. Despite the helmets appearing to be very sturdy pieces of armour, they are in fact balloons protecting your water melon of a head. A single shot can leave a bloody stump of neck with a nice bit of spine showing. Zombie Studious did develop the Saw games; but they didn’t need to bring the gore here.

The inclusion of female character models sees Blacklight taking a big stride ahead of the rest of the genre. A reflection of changing attitudes within the industry to the growth in the female gaming demographic.

Blacklight: Retribution is definitely a stand-out F2P title, worthy of downloading by anyone looking for an FPS. The real question is if Zombie Studios can keep adding content, and grow the player base as Planetside 2 moves closer to release.