To ensure the game is up to snuff, the team will host another beta before the commercial launch, which users can sign up for here. PlayStation users will be able to dig into the closed beta starting June 28, and Steam’s beta will begin on June 30. Regardless of platform, the beta will end on the morning of July 3, so that Boss Key has plenty of time to make changes and smooth out any issues.
Which, apparently, has already happened. Early beta testers said the game could be faster and brought to light some balance issues with the shotgun — not a surprise for anyone who has played an FPS recently. This round will reflect the updated pace of the game, as well as some more mechanical issues that have been solved. Boss Key lead Cliff Bleszinski, a former Epic Games developer who worked on games like Unreal Tournament and the Gears of War franchise, has a lot riding on Lawbreakers, and it draws heavily on the speedy arena shooters of yore that he worked on.
In an ever-evolving world of first-person shooters and class-based action games, Lawbreakers will have to work hard to set itself apart from the competition. If the lightning-fast, ever-moving gameplay videos are any indication, this title will be in a genre all its own. When it launches on August 8, it will only cost $30, without locking players out of any features or requiring them to build up credits or gear found in free-to-play games.
