Latest news with #FBC:Firebreak
Engadget
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Engadget
Remedy is trying to fix FBC: Firebreak in response to middling reviews and player feedback
Remedy has shared its plans to improve FBC: Firebreak, the new multiplayer Control spinoff, following a string of less-than-stellar reviews that criticized the game's rough early hours. FBC: Firebreak was announced in October 2024 as the first online multiplayer game from Remedy, and another pitstop on the way to an eventual Control 2 . The full patch notes for Remedy's first update are available to view on Steam, but in brief, the biggest change the developer is making is to how missions are unlocked. Previously, Firebreak required players to play a simpler, shorter version of the game's missions (like dealing with multiplying post-it notes or pink goo, for example), before a more complex version of the mission became available. Now those full-fat missions are available from the start, and completing one unlocks the next type. Remedy's update also rebalances the cost of cosmetics and makes it easier to see and find in-game collectibles, among other tweaks. The developer is planning to make larger changes to how FBC: Firebreak explains the synergies of in-game weapons and abilities, but those onboarding improvements will take longer to implement. Future updates adding new missions and cosmetics where already planned for the game, so fixes will presumably be worked into the existing roadmap. We enjoyed our hands-on time with FBC: Firebreak , but reviewers report a less rosy picture after playing the game over a longer period of time. Eurogamer found Firebreak charming in Remedy's typical oddball way, but also inconsistent in terms of difficulty. GameSpot noted similar messiness in the game's mission design, and also the general lack of explanation for weapons and abilities. The more damning and existential problem highlighted by TechRadar is the dearth of story in the game, something that Control generally excelled at. Remedy doesn't appear to have a plan to address any perceived narrative shortcomings in FBC: Firebreak , and since it's a multiplayer game, the company may just have different goals. FBC: Firebreak is available now for $40 on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S and PC. If you pay for Xbox Game Pass Ultimate or PlayStation Plus Game Catalog, you can play the game at no additional cost.
Time of India
a day ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Upcoming Xbox Game Pass games in June 2025
Image via Microsoft June 2025 is shaping up to be a very promising and exciting month for Xbox Game Pass subscribers. Maybe you like hardcore shooters, sometimes remastered old-school, or indie jewels; there is something new to play. Microsoft still fulfills its promise of a diverse and huge library, and this month is no different. There are solid day-one titles, best-selling games, and an ample amount of innovative new experiences, depending on how potential players like to experience their games, whether it's on console, PC, or even on the cloud. Exciting additions to Xbox Game Pass in June 2025 The following titles are scheduled to join the Xbox Game Pass library between June 17 and July 1: FBC: Firebreak (June 17 – Cloud, PC, Xbox Series X|S): A thrilling co-op shooter set in the universe of Control, making its debut on Game Pass. Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time (June 17—Console, PC): Players' favorite marsupial returns with more time-bending platforming fun. Lost in Random: The Eternal Die (June 17 – All Platforms): A quirky, ambition-driven adventure that mixes storybook charm with action. Star Trucker (June 18 – Xbox Series X|S): A space-hauling sim with retro flair and unpredictable plots. Wildfrost (June 18 – Console) : A deck-building roguelike filled with frosty foes and strategic battles. Rematch (June 19—All Platforms): A unique 5v5 multiplayer football game that combines sports with action-style pacing. Volcano Princess (June 24—All Platforms): A heartwarming RPG where you raise a future ruler in a whimsical kingdom. Against the Storm (June 26—Console, Cloud): A dark fantasy city-builder with roguelike elements expected on consoles. Warcraft I, II & III Remasters (June 26—PC): The iconic strategy games are back with updated visuals and modern UI. Call of Duty: WWII (June 30 – Console, PC): A grainy, cinematic World War II shooter joins the lineup. Little Nightmares II and Rise of the Tomb Raider (July 1 – All Platforms): Two acclaimed titles round out the month. Key highlights to be noted: Day-one releases : Two major titles— FBC: Firebreak and Rematch —are hitting Xbox Game Pass the same day they launch. That means no waiting around; you can dive in as soon as the game drops. Classical Comebacks : Strategic players are in for a treat with the remastered Warcraft trilogy. These beloved games have been given a modern upgrade, blending nostalgia with refreshed visuals and smoother UI gameplay. June 2025 delivers a compelling mix of fresh releases and treasured classics to Xbox Game Pass. Highlights range from Remedy's co-op shooter to an innovative football game, supported by strategy enthusiasts' remasters and veteran franchises like Call of Duty. Xbox Game Pass continues to strengthen its proposition by balancing exclusivity, nostalgia, and creative experimentation. Game On Season 1 kicks off with Sakshi Malik's inspiring story. Watch Episode 1 here
Tom's Guide
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Tom's Guide
Remedy's new Control co-op shooter is best played on Game Pass and PlayStation Plus — here's why
Remedy is one of my all-time favorite game developers, so when I was offered the chance to jump in and play its latest release on PS5 — the three-player co-operative first-person shooter, FBC: Firebreak — I jumped at the opportunity. Set within the enigmatic world of Control, FBC: Firebreak casts players as members of the eponymous response unit, Firebreak. The pitch, then, is essentially Left 4 Dead, Deep Rock Galactic, or even Helldivers 2 mapped out within the corridors of The Oldest House. The FBC is still contending with The Hiss (the enemies you fought as Jesse Faden in Control) and other threats, and it's down to you and your pals to fend them off. The game's launched on Steam, the Epic Games Store, and on Xbox and PlayStation consoles. It costs $39/£32 at launch, but is also available to play day one via PC Game Pass, Game Pass Ultimate, and on PlayStation Plus (on the Extra/Premium tiers)... and that's definitely the way to play. FBC: Firebreak is Remedy Entertainment's new three-player co-operative first-person shooter. Set in the world of Control, it sees players volunteering to take a stand within the Federal Bureau of Control's (FBC) headquarters, which is still under siege from the Hiss and other otherworldly anomalies. Players choose one of three character classes and put their weapons and wacky gear to use in a variety of objective-based missions as they defend The Oldest House during the ongoing assault. Additional platforms: $39 @ Steam | $39 @ Xbox Store I put dozens of hours into Helldivers 2 in total, but eventually burned out on the gameplay loop not long after the 50-hour mark. FBC: Firebreak, unfortunately, is a game that I don't think can even sustain anywhere near that kind of playtime. Admittedly, Remedy has been up front about not wanting FBC: Firebreak to be an all-encompassing live-service experience that capitalizes players' attention and punishes them if they can't (or don't want to) log in every single day. It's a refreshing stance, at least: I'm sure I can't be the only player who doesn't want to feel trapped by another game that wants me to log in for bland, daily quests or minimal rewards. Unfortunately, though, FBC: Firebreak arrives feeling like a fairly shallow experience, even as a game designed for only occasional co-op play. The mission types (or 'Jobs') that you'll be taking on just aren't that engaging. Take 'Paper Chase,' for example. Here, you'll be tasked with eradicating thousands of self-replicating sticky notes (and avoiding being consumed by them in the process). It's a unique mission type, but it's not that fun to play in practice. "Paper Chase" ultimately is little more than running around, gunning down waves of Control's 'Hiss' enemies, occasionally facing "Powerful" sub-bosses, or shooting 'shufflers' (FBC members who've been turned into sprinting sticky note monsters). Meanwhile, you're left trying to find ways to destroy sticky notes glued all over each section of the level. Once you're done, rush back to call the elevator, defending your position while you wait, and leave: job done. Missions offer you a choice of difficulty settings and "Levels", but these only really expand the number of map sections and increase the number of objectives you'll have to complete Missions offer you a choice of difficulty settings and "Levels", but these only really expand the number of map sections and increase the number of objectives you'll have to complete. Sure, the top-level caps things off with a big set piece... but after confronting "Sticky Ricky" a few times, that, too, will grow stale. Missions at the top difficulty level can be further complicated by Altered Items, objects that cause environmental effects such as augmenting gravity or causing enemy corpses to explode, but these don't liven the experience up significantly enough, either. Given other missions task you with riveting objectives like stuffing a container full of radioactive pearls harvested from giant leeches or shooting pink gunk off turbines, I'd have welcomed more out-there diversions. Realistically, after only a few runs through every Job, I already feel like I'd seen everything FBC: Firebreak has to offer. Worse still, playing beyond that point only made me more confident in my opinion. It doesn't help that the game also feels a tad stingy when it comes to offering up the necessary resources to work through your Requisitions table and build out your combat options. You start with a choice of the three Kits, each of which gives you a tool used to complete different tasks within a level (a wrench for repairing or building useful bits of tech in the field, for example), a weapon, and a grenade. Completing missions will earn you Samples, which you can use these to unlock new cosmetic armor sets, weapons, sprays and other gear items, or you can spend them on 'Research', unlocking perks (which confer typical abilities like longer sprint times and faster reloads to elemental weapon augments and some more left-field options). I'd suggest avoiding cosmetics, where you can. You'll need to spend Samples on new duds to unlock fresh pages of gear, but I'd bet players would much rather have the resources to expand their arsenal. You'll want to replace your substandard equipment if you plan to invest more time in Firebreak. Plus, it's worth remembering this is an FPS; it's not like you're going to be spending much time looking at that sweet new helmet you just bought for your intrepid FBC agent, is it? I think FBC: Firebreak will only really land for players who can make the experience fun for themselves, making it more of a hangout game. The Firebreakers themselves are fun enough to inhabit; combat feels punchy, and Remedy's humor and tone are still there, but what I've played hasn't convinced me to stick around. The gunplay's solid, but the progression and repetitive nature of the game's Jobs left me feeling stifled, and I'm convinced only the most unlock-hungry fans will want to commit to its grinds. Ultimately, this is precisely why I recommend curious players should only check FBC: Firebreak out via Game Pass or PlayStation Plus. That way, you can hop in for a few hours, see what the game's got to offer, and leave. You'll get to see what Remedy's cooked up, safe in the knowledge you've only invested your time (and a subscription fee) into a co-op shooter that just doesn't stand out in this crowded market.
Web Release
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Web Release
Path Tracing Comes to DOOM: The Dark Ages, Plus DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation launching with FBC: Firebreak and a new GeForce Game Ready Driver
This week, DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation and full ray tracing is launching in FBC: Firebreak, while DOOM: The Dark Ages receives a path tracing upgrade that adds DLSS Ray Reconstruction, amplifying image quality in the critically acclaimed shooter. NVIDIA is also releasing a new GeForce Game Ready Driver that includes day-zero support for FBC: Firebreak, DOOM: The Dark Ages' new update and REMATCH, a new multiplayer sports game featuring DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation. Remedy Entertainment's new three-player cooperative first-person shooter, FBC: Firebreak, is set in the same Federal Bureau of Control players reclaimed from supernatural invaders in the graphically spectacular Control. This time, as one of the FBC's fearless first responders, gamers and their teams are on call to confront everything from reality-warping Corrupted Items to otherworldly monsters, no matter the odds. FBC: Firebreak on PC features the full suite of RTX technology developed for Remedy's Alan Wake 2, giving GeForce RTX gamers the definitive PC gaming experience. Activate DLSS 4 for the highest levels of performance, enable DLSS Ray Reconstruction to enhance ray tracing fidelity and frame rates and crank the Ray Tracing Preset to max to enable full ray tracing. All GeForce RTX gamers benefit from NVIDIA RTX Mega Geometry when ray tracing is enabled, which reduces CPU and GPU Bounding Volume Hierarchies build and update times while also reducing VRAM consumption. On average, DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation, DLSS Super Resolution and DLSS Ray Reconstruction multiply performance by 9.3X at 4K max settings on GeForce RTX 50 Series desktop GPUs. Gamers can play FBC: Firebreak with full ray tracing at almost 200 frames per second on the GeForce RTX 5070 Ti, at nearly 250 frames per second on the GeForce RTX 5080 and at 360 frames per second on the GeForce RTX 5090, the fastest consumer gaming graphics card available. Bethesda Softworks and id Software are adding path tracing and DLSS Ray Reconstruction to DOOM: The Dark Ages on June 18th, making the battle against Hell all the more immersive. Path tracing takes the quality of ray-traced lighting to the next level, reflecting additional detail and game elements on surfaces. NVIDIA Spatial Hash Radiance Cache (SHaRC) technology is leveraged to performantly compute path-traced light, while NVIDIA Shader Execution Reordering further accelerates performance on GeForce RTX GPUs, and DLSS Ray Reconstruction further enhances image quality and performance. Using DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation, DLSS Super Resolution and DLSS Ray Reconstruction, performance at 4K is multiplied by an average of 6.8X on the GeForce RTX 5090 and GeForce RTX 5080, enabling Ultra Preset, path traced DOOM: The Dark Ages gameplay at up to 230 frames per second. Wired Productions and Caged Element's Warhammer 40,000: Speed Freeks is an action combat racing game that recently exited Early Access. Now, GeForce RTX gamers joining the high-Orktane racing will discover support for DLSS Super Resolution, significantly accelerating frame rates. Sloclap, creators of the critically acclaimed Sifu, are launching REMATCH on June 19th with Advanced Access available now via the purchase of Pro and Elite editions of the game. This 5v5 multiplayer football/soccer sports game sees players compete online in fast-paced, skill-based matches, free from offsides and fouls. When the game boots up, players can enable DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation, DLSS Frame Generation and DLSS Super Resolution to accelerate the frame rates of each football match. Editor's Notes:
Web Release
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Web Release
FBC
Path Tracing Comes to DOOM: The Dark Ages, Plus DLSS 4 with Multi Frame Generation launching with FBC: Firebreak and a new GeForce Game Ready Driver
