It seems likeSplitgatebecame a viral gaming sensation overnight. It’s become so popular thatfans are waiting inSplitgate’s online queues for over an hourjust to be able to play its Early Access multiplayer matches. Luckily, the game seems to be worth the wait as the mix between old schoolHalo: Combat Evolveddeathmatches and Valve’s scientific puzzlerPortalhas proven to be quite fun. It’s currently the viral multiplayer game that’s closing out the end of the summer similar toFall GuysandAmong Uslast year.
Splitgateseems like it’s going to stay in the public eye for quite a while as it isn’t even a full release yet and many fans who are waiting patiently to try it out have been sent away due to the long queue times. Once it gets a full release, it’ll likely keep its current fans and bring in everyone who wanted to try it out but couldn’t commit the time to wait. As it gears up to leave Early Access, some fans have requested the game should include sliding and other more modern shooter mechanics. While that may result inSplitgatecontinuing to be a fun multiplayer shooter, the game doesn’t necessarily need to include such modern mechanics.
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Embracing the Era of Shooters Past
In an industry oversaturated with AAA free-to-play shooters, it’s a little curious how an indie game with an extremely small team likeSplitgatewas able to capture the attention of so many fans so quickly. It’s only after hearing the elevator pitch of “Halobut with a Portal Gun” and playing a few rounds that the game’s popularity really begins to click. It feels like an homage to an older era of shooters like the originalHalotrilogy as well as classic arena shooters likeQuakeandDoom.
While there’s plenty of merit to allowing players to get a little more complicated with their abilities such as ingames likeTitanfall 2andCall of Duty: Warzone,Splitgatereally feels like a blast from the past in terms of each players' options. A lot of the game’s charm comes from feeling like a modern take on a seemingly outdated gameplay style. IfSplitgatewere to add more modern mechanics like sliding, it might take away some of that classic shooter feel that the game emulates so well.
What Sets Splitgate Apart
WhileSplitgatehas a lot going for itthat makes it feel like a unique gaming experience, the way that it really captures the essence of older titles is something of a breath of fresh air. Plenty of mainstream shooters play virtually identically and, while there’s nothing wrong with that,Splitgatefeels so inspired as a result. By adding in more modern mechanics, 1047 Games might risk losing one of the main drawing factors to what makes the game so much fun to play.
Splitgateis definitely a fast-paced shooter, but by increasing the speed to match other modern first-person shooters, it might also begin to slip into the AAA homogeny that sometimes plagues new releases. As it is right now,Splitgatereally feels like it’s set itself apart from the rest of the FPS crowd and if it begins to look to more modern games for inspiration, it may lose some of its die-hard player base. There’s certainly time formajor changes to come toSplitgateas it’s still in Early Access and has next-gen updates on the way, but hopefully, as the game changes, it doesn’t lose what makes it great in the first place: its simplicity as an homage to shooters of consoles past.
Splitgateleaves Early Access in August on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
