2020-01-01_PC_Gamer_(US_Edition

As a sequel, Ghost Recon: Breakpoint

adds none of these things. In fact,

Breakpoint adds nothing of value to

the Ghost Recon template. Instead it

transplants into Wildlands’ structure

several systems from other Ubisoft

franchises, systems that have no place

in a game like Ghost Recon.

Meanwhile, it actively

removes some features

that were present in

Wildlands, while

making others

considerably worse. In

case I’ve not made it

clear, I don’t think it’s

very good.

At least the story

isn’t likely to trigger a political

incident, although this is mainly

because it’s unlikely to trigger any

spark of emotion whatsoever.

Wildlands’ real-world setting of

Bolivia has been switched out for the

fictional island of Auroa, an offshore

Silicon Valley where your friendly

neighborhood techbro Jace Skell tries

to make the world a better place by

building killer drones. At the game’s

outset, Skell’s operation is hijacked by

a former Ghost named Walker

(played by Jon Bernthal), who plans

to use Skell’s drone army for

non-specific Nefarious Means.

Players assume the role of Nomad

(which, incidentally, also means

‘Walker’, suggesting the writers

struggled to come up

with two generic

soldier names)

deployed as part of a

large team of Ghosts to

investigate the situation

on Auroa. But the

Ghosts’ helicopters are

shot down by the

island’s weapons

system, and Nomad finds himself

alone and hunted through the forest

by Walker’s gang of mercenaries who

call themselves the Wolves.

FEEL THE BERNTHAL

There is some potential in the new

setting. The amorality and

unaccountability of modern tech

giants, particularly in their

associations with the world’s military

organizations, is a rich seam to

explore in a tactical shooter. Sadly

this potential is squandered in favor

of a more generic military tale

exploring Nomad and Walker’s

relationship, which is detailed

through long, unskippable flashback

cutscenes. Jon Bernthal does a

splendid job inhabiting the role of

Jon Bernthal, but it’s hard to take his

character seriously when every NPC

around him looks and acts like a

mannequin with a mop on its head.

The quality of the storytelling is

generally poor, but the real issue is

how insistent it is upon its own

misplaced importance. To dispense

its narrative, Breakpoint has adopted

wholesale the conversation system

from Assassin’s Creed Odyssey.

It’s virtually identical, from the

shot, reverse-shot camera angles to

the occasional (and in Breakpoint’s

case, largely pointless) dialogue

choices. Only instead of playing a

flirtatious Greek mercenary who

chats with Herodotus and argues

with Socrates, you’re a dead-eyed pile

of khaki chewing over plot exposition

with Scientist #315.

Across Breakpoint’s 30-40 hours,

you’ll sit through reams upon reams

of tedious, sometimes laughable

dialogue. My favorite line, stated

entirely seriously, is, “You might be a

Ghost, but you’re not untouchable!”

It’s quite shocking what an absurd

waste of resources Ubisoft has

plunged into Breakpoint’s narrative,

not least because it obstructs the flow

of the game far more than it ever

contributes. Conversations will often

occur mid-infiltration. In one

example I triggered a chat with a

scientist lady while enemy guards

were literally stood around us.

BREAKPOINT-LESS

Speaking of wasted resources,

Breakpoint adopts a Division-like loot

system, also known as ‘The Division’s

loot system’. But the whole concept

of loot is rendered pointless by how

Ghost Recon’s combat works. Damage

is meted out according to ballistics

NEED TO KNOW

WHAT IS IT?

Tedious and confused

open-world tactical

shooter

EXPECT TO PAY

$60

DEVELOPER

Ubisoft

PUBLISHER

Ubisoft

REVIEWED ON

Windows 10, AMD

Ryzen 5 3600, Nvidia

GTX 2080 Super, 32 GB

RAM,

MULTIPLAYER

Up to 4 player co-op, 8

player competitive

LINK

ghost-recon.

ubisoft.com

At least the

story isn’t likely

to trigger a

political

incident

G

host Recon: Wildlands was a middling experience, but it

wasn’t entirely devoid of potential. With more diverse

missions, a greater range of tactical gadgets and abilities, and

a better thought-out story, it might have succeeded in

justifying its huge world and absurd number of activities.

BOREDOMLANDS

GHOST RECON: BREAKPOINT is a tedious

open-world tactical shooter. By Rick Lane

BODGED BADGES Ghost Recon: Breakpoint features many eyebrow

raising design decisions, but the class emblems take some beating

SHARPSHOOTER

I’m down with the eagle,

eagle-eyed and all that.

But why is it carrying a

gun, while also being

targeted by a gun? Is the

eagle the sharpshooter?

FIELD MEDIC

What’s the best way to

represent healing people?

That’s right, snake with a

knife. Seems like it goes

against the Hippocratic

Oath somewhat.

PANTHER

Why does the panther

have a knife in its mouth?

It’s basically made of

knives. Also it’s covered in

lightning for some

baffling reason.

ASSAULT

Bears are strong. So

strong they can bite a gun

in half. The gun that you

use to shoot enemies as

an Assault character.

Leaving you with no gun.

REVIEW