Bethesda's Brink, a sea-steading styled first person shooter, released on May 10, 2011. Is it worth the buy, or is it just another bland shooter?

Publisher: Bethesda Softworks

Developer: Splash Damage

Release date: May 10, 2011

Platforms: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, PC

Today's game market is over saturated with bland shooter after bland shooter. Little blame can be placed on the developers, though, as that seems to be the most popular type of game among the mainstream video game player. Very rarely does a game as stylized as Brink come around -- the last of these types I can recall were Borderlands and Red Steel 2.

As I said in my preview yesterday, Brink takes place on a floating city known as The Ark, an island situated off the coast of San Francisco. The Ark was created to sustain human life in the event of a catastrophe, but was originally only able to house 5,000 people. The world was eventually flooded, and The Ark became home to 50,000 people. Due to the overcrowding and civil unrest, two factions were formed that are at battle with one another: the Resistance and the Security.

Those who enjoy single player experiences in shooters will have to look elsewhere. Despite having a fantastic setting, Brink's single player mode is essentially multiplayer with bots. It's very similar to Battlefield 2 in that single player missions pit the player, with a team of AI controlled characters, against an opposing team of AI characters. It's pretty disappointing, as I was expecting a campaign on the level of Call of Duty at the least.

Luckily, the multiplayer component in Brink is pretty great despite some nagging lag issues. There are four different classes for players to select, each with varying strengths and weaknesses: Soldier, Medic, Engineer, and Operative. Character customization is pretty deep too, as players are able to alter the appearance of their character with a bevy of options. Multiplayer gameplay is essentially identical to singleplayer, except AI opponents are replaced with real players. Up to 16 players can be in a match at one time, with eight player teams as either the Resistance or the Security. Matches focus on team based, strategic elements where an "Objective Wheel" will appear on screen and inform players of different primary and secondary objectives to complete.

Brink's SMART system (Smooth Movement Across Random Terrain) is the highlight of the game. It allows players to basically aim at one side of the room, and their player will automatically jump across a chasm to get to the other side. It can be used to cross all types of different obstacles, including large pits, stairs, and alarm systems. With the later of those, players can aim at the alarm system and the SMART system will make the player's character run and slide right underneath it. It's a very useful system that hopefully is implemented in future FPS games.

Closing Comments

Brink isn't a revolutionary shooter, but that doesn't matter -- neither is Call of Duty. When you compare Bethesda and Splash Damage's latest title to the current market of shooters, Brink is certainly a breath of fresh air. It features a fantastic art style and setting, a great multiplayer component, and the highly innovative SMART mechanic. It does fall short on the singleplayer mode, and some issues like lag and the feeling as if the game could have used more development time hold it back.

8/10 -- Great. Buy it.

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