Disintegration review: V1 Interactive’s new FPS is a game-changer
V1 Interactive’s first major release, Disintegration, is a hit.
Title: Disintegration
Developer: V1 Interactive
Publisher: Private Division
Platforms: PlayStation 4 (version reviewed), Xbox One, PC
Release Date: June 16, 2020
When you think shooters, the one that sticks in the mind of many happens to be Crytek’s Crysis series. And as a long-time FPS gamer, it pains me to say this but… move over Crysis. Disintegration is here on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC and you’ll understand why it caught my attention immediately.
Disintegration is from a small studio of just 30 people and I’d be remiss if I didn’t add part of the note from Marcus Lehto that exudes happiness and elation.
"I’d like to personally thank you for spending time to play through my studio’s debut game. We are a small team of only 30 developers, both seasoned and new to the industry. While small, I’m super proud of how talented and eager everyone here at V1 Interactive is and find it impressive that we were able to build such an ambitious game.We are very excited for you to finally be playing a game that is incredibly different from your typical shooter. I’ll ask that you set aside your preconceived notions of how a first-person shooter is meant to be played and look at Disintegration with fresh eyes."
V1 interactive hit it on the head off the bat. Once you get through the tutorial,the game opens with a solid cutscene boasting amazing graphics that made me question if my standard PlayStation 4 was a PlayStation 4 Pro. That’s just the glory of the Unreal Engine that powers this game.
Of course, you meet the main character Romer Shoal who is in the process of escaping an enemy force. Graphically, I was hooked and in love. Even if you aren’t into first-person shooters, it’s easy to appreciate the environment and atmosphere brought to life in Disintegration.
Disintegration‘s gameplay offers multiple options that caters to the traditional first-person shooter gamer and real-time strategy fan. The FPS playstyle will see your squad automatically attack things but they won’t use their skills. The RTS playstyle, which is probably recommended for newer FPS gamers, lets you rely on your squad to do the work while you manage their unit abilities and assign Primary Pulse Orders and Priority Target Orders. There’s also a mixed playstyle that combines the RPS and RTS mechanics to get the best of both worlds.
If you play with a focus on RTS, you can have your squad follow you. Wherever you look, they are in front of you. When you issue a Pulse Order, they move to another location, staying low and attacking what is in their line of sight without fail. When facing huge, boss-like enemies, you can have your squad focus all your attacks on the single target. There’s also a stagger system which proves incredibly useful when you master it.
I did have some trouble learning the controls but it was easier to go through the tutorial and learn things. What I didn’t happen to understand was how the enemies could shoot and connect from so far away while I couldn’t see them. That was interesting to play through and provided a different layer to the game than I was expecting. You will also be relieved to know you can revive your downed partners so long as you get to their brains in time. Fail to do that, and its game over.
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The story itself does enough to capture your attention early on. It’s your standard post-apocalyptic, sci-fi setting in which society has collapsed due to climate change and scientists, in an effort to reduce demands on the Earth’s resources, have developed a unique technique to transfer the human brain into a robotic body. In typical sci-fi fashion, power corrupts and a militant group known as Rayonne has attempted to seize control over humanity.
Disintegration is a solid first entry into what could be a promising new IP form V1 Interactive. While the story of saving the last of the natural humans isn’t anything out of the box, Disintegration’s stunning graphics, gorgeous visuals and unique and effective gameplay make it a
8.5. From the graphics to the gameplay, Disintegration breathes new life into the first-person shooter genre. The first-person shooter and real-time strategy elements mix nicely and the story will grab your attention early on. Disintegration is a solid new IP that will hopefully grow with future installments, should V1 Interactive choose to expand on this universe.. V1 Interactive. . Disintegration
A copy of this game was provided to App Trigger for the purpose of this review. All scores are ranked out of 10, with .5 increments. Click here to learn more about our Review Policy.