Gears 5 was released a year ago, but is still the flagship exclusive of Microsoft platforms. The game is constantly supported by new content for multiplayer modes, and its technical component for a long time secured the status of a model for how to work with Unreal Engine 4… This autumn Microsoft and The coalition decided to give the fans one more gift and released a full-fledged story addition called Hivebusters…
The storyline of the addon is built around the adventures of the Scorpion squad, whose fighters we have already seen before – these are the very three heroes for whom we had to play in the “The escape“Where, assuming the role of Keegan, Mac or Lani, you had to detonate a chemical bomb in the heart of the hive, and then quickly take your feet out of there. Well, since Hivebusters is a kind of prequel to this online game, during the four-hour campaign we will be shown the events that led to the decision to send a squad on such a task. And here we can immediately say that the addition copes with the task with “Hurray”. The campaign turned out to be of medium duration – only 4-5 hours at an average level of difficulty – but at the same time it does not waste into filler episodes. Events quickly replace each other: here we are exploring an incredibly beautiful tropical island, now we are going down to an abandoned industrial complex, and after half an hour we are already shooting enemies, while drifting on a huge pressurized door in a lava flow. In general, the add-on has a noticeable shift in focus from attempts to move into a serious drama to present the plot in lighter colors, which can be seen in the dialogues, editing of cutscenes, and even the soundtrack has changed the mood – now the music in the game is more driving, which undoubtedly is beneficial. Let’s hope that the developers will maintain a similar attitude in Gears 6…
As for the detachment itself, the sensations from a more detailed acquaintance with the heroes are ambiguous. On the one hand, for a four-hour adventure, their characters are well served. In a nutshell, they will tell us about their background and let everyone show themselves on the screen. On the other hand, the limited time frame has become the reason that the relationship of the characters is developing too rapidly. Only a couple of hours pass from dismissive jokes to confession of brotherly love in an embrace. Such a dramatic change in relationships is striking and does not seem natural.
The gameplay of the add-on remains true to the series and will be familiar to anyone who has ever launched a game in the series Gears of war… At the same time, the developers develop the original ideas for the use of active skills. But if in Gears 5 the robot Jack was entirely responsible for the skills, which applied active effects to only one of the characters at a time, then in Hivebusters each of the heroes has its own skill that can be applied independently of his teammates (this is true for cooperative play, in single you are limited in the choice of skills only by your wards). At the same time, the abilities of the characters are aimed at team use. Keegan knows how to replenish the stock of ammunition for all members of the squad in a small radius, Mac creates an energy barrier in front of himself and his comrades behind him, except that Lani’s ability is intended purely for individual use and gives her additional damage in melee.
I only want to scold the add-on for the lack of new types of opponents – we have already met each of them in the Gears 5 campaign. The newcomer is only the final boss here. By the way, the latter looks very cool and is a hybrid of a bird and a lizard capable of burrowing underground.
Graphically, the addition is not far from Gears 5, but given the high quality of the technical performance of the original, Hivebusters even today does not even come close to looking like a guest from the previous generation. I especially want to note the work of the artists. The events unfold against the backdrop of luxurious backdrops, and the locations are varied and filled with details: dense jungle, as if migrating here from Uncharted 4, underground bunkers, where technical lighting in all its glory shows the charm of the interaction of light and shadow, the village abandoned by the locals – the game never ceases to delight with its views.
