“Disintegration” is an interesting game that feels familiar but tries to be bold and brave by taking a first-person shooter and combining it with real-time tactics, something many of its contemporaries haven’t explored.
The game had a one-day technical beta that featured the multiplayer portion of the game. It does not currently have a set release date for the full game.
You play from a first-person point of view, shoot enemies and control squad members to use their tactics for strategy throughout the game.
You have a platoon of three members and they all serve a role with their own abilities. They can throw a grenade or unleash a force field which can slow down incoming damaging projectiles.
“Disintegration” was developed by “Halo” co-creator Marcus Lehto who is currently the creative director of V1 Interactive.
But unlike “Halo” where you play from the perspective of a soldier, it is played from a pilot’s point of view.
You’re riding a vehicle called a “grav cycle,” which is basically a hovering bike with guns attached to it.
As a player, you’re limited to one or two weapons as a “grav cycle pilot.” In the multiplayer component, you can choose from seven different load out options or roles.
All of the design choices within the game makes “Disintegration” shine with its experimental blending of two genres, first-person shooters and real-time tactics. This game that allows players to figure out different ways to strategize each load out.
The player must micromanage their units efficiently if they want to survive the battlefield and lead their team to victory.
The weapons offered to players felt visceral and sounded realistic. The miniguns sounded fast and light while the cannons were heavy and punchy.
However, this game lacks a charm that will keep you from playing extensively.
It’s not a game that’ll keep you wanting to come back for more, like the “Halo” games did for the masses.
“Disintegration” doesn’t seem to borrow any aspects from “Halo.” Other than the satisfying gunplay, the game’s clunky movement feels abnormal.
While playing, there were noticeable stuttering frame rate issues and lag spikes.
The game runs at 30 frames per second which makes it playable, but there were moments where the game dropped to around 10 frames which makes the controls feel sluggish and unresponsive.
It was shocking how poorly optimized the game runs on the Xbox One version. The game gave my console a hard workout to maintain its performance.
The lag spike would throw off my aim and I would swing randomly while trying to aim at my opponent. It was aggravating.
It was smart to release this beta to the public instead of releasing it on launch day with its prior bugs. It could have proved unsuccessful for V1 Interactive to make a name for themselves.
Despite my criticism toward the game, it seemed promising enough that I would consider picking it up at a later time, but not something I’d pay for on launch day. But, I will still keep an eye on it when the price drops.
