LawBreakers Review Roundup

Gears of War creator Cliff Bleszinski is finally back with a new game, LawBreakers, and it's out now on PS4 and PC. The hero shooter has been frequently compared to Overwatch, but Bleszinski and developer Boss Key have tried hard to differentiate it.

Although LawBreakers shares much in common with other hero shooters, it also features some riffs on tried-and-true shooter mechanics. These changes include low-gravity zones and very high mobility.

Critics have now had a chance to check the game out, and their reception has been generally positive. GameSpot critic Miguel Concepcion wrote that the game is accessible to newcomers and shooter veterans alike. "What counts is that its fresh anti-gravity mechanics transcend its first-glance novel appeal and create limitless combat situations that will be new and inviting to many shooter fans," he said.

For a broader view of critical opinion, check out our review roundup below or head over to GameSpot sister site Metacritic.

• Game: LawBreakers
• Developer: Boss Key
• Platform: PC, PlayStation 4
• Release Date: August 8
• Price: US $30 / £25 / AU $45

GameSpot -- 8/10 on PC, 7/10 on PS4

"One sign of any worthwhile team-based shooter is a level of accessibility where everyone feels they can contribute no matter their play style, and LawBreakers succeeds in this manner. And while the lack of Deathmatch is a lost opportunity, its sufficient playlist of modes offers a viable outlet to flaunt your kill/death ratio, even if it's at the expense of team success. What counts is that its fresh anti-gravity mechanics transcends its first-glance novel appeal and creates limitless combat situations that will be new and inviting to many shooter fans." -- Miguel Concepcion [Full review]

Destructoid -- 8.5/10

"Boss Key's philosophy allows for a more old-school arena shooter approach where skill-based twitch reaction is more important than team composition. That's not a knock on any other game, it's just a different feel that Boss Key was going for with LawBreakers, and succeeded. It might not have the flair of a few other games on the market, but it has strong bones that can grow over time." -- Chris Carter [Full review]

PC Gamer -- 84/100

"In this mini-renaissance the genre is in the midst of, LawBreakers asserts itself as a complex, physical, and deep competitive shooter. It's an uncompromising game that doesn't make apologies for its high skill ceiling, but isn't so exclusionary that only those with pristine reflexes can enjoy it. There's a quiet gracefulness to managing the Battle Medic's hoverpack, knowing when to toggle the hover on and off to conserve fuel. It's a treat to play an FPS where some of the roles demand more left-hand coordination than they do mouse aim." -- Evan Lahti [Full review]

Game Informer -- 7.75/10

"Lawbreakers delivers in terms of neat weapons, lightning-fast kills, and aspirational skills. You'll look back in awe at performing feats like landing a triple kill while blasting yourself backwards into a zero-g environment. Despite the adrenaline-fueled highs, the title falls back to earth due to uninteresting environments, generic characters, and a lack of variety. Even with an admirable effort to capture the spirit of the core arena-shooter and offer players a chance to show off their skills, the hero-shooter space is inundated with choices, and LawBreakers doesn't offer much to stand out amongst the rest of the pack." -- Daniel Tack [Full review]

GameRevolution -- 4/5

"Boss Key Productions' first crack at making a first-person shooter has resulted in something that stands out from the competition, scratching the itch of players looking for a classic arcade shooter experience, with the benefits of modern game design." -- Jonathan Leack [Full review]

IGN -- 7.7/10 (In Progress)

"Even if some of its game modes don’t quite hit home, it's managed to make simply moving around feel great. I look forward to playing more and learning how to fall with style in the most deadly way I can. The big question I still have is whether my patience will wear thin with LawBreakers' grab bag matchmaking queue. It hasn't yet, and until it does I'll still be rocket-boosting around with glee most of the time." -- Tom Marks [Full Review]