I don’t envy the builders behind Harmony. The hero shooter subgenre is a troublesome house to interrupt into, and cultivating a devoted playerbase is even more durable. After seeing Harmony’s gameplay reveal final month and its lukewarm response, I might have instructed you Firewalk Studios’ debut title would seemingly fall flat on its face.
Nevertheless, after spending a number of hours with Harmony earlier this month, it’s clear that PlayStation and Firewalk Studios have constructed a strong basis for its sci-fi multiplayer shooter. Mechanically, Harmony sits someplace between Overwatch and Valorant. Gun fight performs a giant position within the moment-to-moment gameplay, however quick response instances and pinpoint accuracy aren’t the be-all end-all of firefights. Every hero, or Freegunner as they’re referred to as, boasts a novel major weapon, a definite motion type, and two major skills. The prolonged time to kill lets all these totally different skills shine with out undermining the tight and responsive gunplay. Success requires good staff composition, an understanding of every character’s skills, and a little bit of uncooked talent.
Whereas most Freegunners nonetheless match into a conventional role–such as a help or tank–they really feel a bit extra versatile than their Overwatch counterparts. You’d suppose Star Little one, the blue and pink behemoth with a big well being pool, could be the perfect tank. However due to his well-rounded kit–including a major skill that basically turns him right into a wrecking ball that prices throughout the battlefield–and his shotgun that doubles as an axe, he can match into an offensive DPS position with hit-and-run ways. Within the again half of 1 recreation, I racked up a half dozen kills by outflanking the enemy staff.
All 10 of the Freegunner’s I examined out felt lethal in their very own manner, whereas nonetheless enjoying in direction of particular roles. Vale is a sniper geared up with a bolt-action sniper rifle, a pistol, proximity mines, and an enhanced vertical leap. She thrives at vary the place she will decide off weakened enemies, however due to her journey mines, she will additionally management the movement of the battlefield. All three maps I performed consisted of three interconnected lanes, and whereas a pair journey mines rigorously positioned alongside one in every of these corridors seemingly received’t cease an enemy staff, they’re certain to sluggish them down.
In the meantime, Lennox is Harmony’s Cole Cassidy, previously McCree. Armed with a six shooter, explosive throwing knives, and a self-heal skill, Lennox appears like your customary high-skill DPS character. Lining up headshots is vital, and activating his skills on the proper time can get you out of some sticky conditions. Lennox captures that prime threat, excessive reward playstyle. His self-heal makes him viable for lone wolf ways, and for those who can constantly land headshots, most enemies received’t final lengthy.
My favourite Freegunner was Haymar, a crossbow wielding spellcaster that may hover across the map. Her Flameshot Bow fires an incendiary bolt that may deal vital harm on direct hits. Her skills include a blinding flash that disorients enemies and a wall of fireside that may create chokepoints. Flying round fight zones basically flash banging enemies and laying down partitions of fireside whereas teammates cleaned up the stragglers was a blast.
Freegunners and their skills aren’t set in stone, both. Firewalk Studios hopes to maintain fight contemporary with one thing referred to as Fight Traits. Every Freegunner has a set of Fight Traits that act as perks. For instance, Lennox had one that allow him robotically reload when he dodged. This felt a little bit unbalanced in a PvP setting–especially when the primary disadvantage of revolver is its sluggish reload speed–but it undoubtedly has me curious how these Fight Traits may have an effect on a Freegunner and their position throughout the staff.
Firewalk Studios has opted to lean into that asymmetry of its characters.
Versatile Freegunner roles and Fight Traits feed into Harmony’s uneven fight. Every Freegunner has their very own set of strengths and weaknesses due to their diverse well being swimming pools, weapons, and skills. This implies some heroes could pair nicely with one another whereas others don’t. For instance, there’s a help character named Daw who can put down AOE heal stations and drive fields that block all incoming and outgoing hearth. Daw is nice for holding down aims and protecting Star Little one lined at lengthy vary. Nevertheless, my staff shortly discovered that Daw’s drive subject skill may negatively impression all of our medium to lengthy vary heroes at essential moments. Jabali alternatively can heal teammates with a bit extra precision due to his therapeutic orbs, much like Zenyatta’s Orbs of Concord from Overwatch. Seeing how all these totally different Freegunners may praise one another and counter the opposite staff’s makes firefights really feel dynamic and unpredictable.
Firewalk Studios has opted to lean into that asymmetry of its characters. Whereas this may undoubtedly make particular matchups troublesome, this imbalance forces you to work as a staff, and use your character’s complete equipment. After all, the Firewalk Studios staff can be monitoring stability as soon as the sport results in gamers arms, however based on Claude Jerome, the lead gameplay designer, that asymmetry is essential to Harmony’s heroes.
This asymmetry is just not mirrored in Harmony’s recreation modes and map design. I had the possibility to take a look at three totally different recreation sorts: Trophy Hunt which is principally Kill Confirmed from Name of Responsibility, and Cargo Run and Conflict Level that are spherical base modes with no respawn. As somebody who’s performed over 500 hours of Rainbow Six: Siege, Cargo Run and Conflict Level have been the highlights for me. The restricted respawn and goal primarily based gameplay required a degree of coordination that you simply don’t at all times get in staff deathmatch type modes. In contrast to Siege and Valorant, Harmony’s symmetrical maps meant that each groups have been at an excellent enjoying subject at first of every spherical. This makes it simpler to concentrate on staff composition relative to your staff quite than your beginning location.
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Harmony’s mechanics could tread a variety of acquainted floor throughout the hero shooter style, however the way in which Firewalk Studios’ heroes, maps, and recreation modes praise one another feels contemporary. Every Freegunner has simply sufficient flexibility to interrupt out of their position if they should, the simplistic arena-style maps prioritize good skill utilization over intimate map data, and the sport modes are simply sophisticated sufficient to encourage teamwork. I’m curious to see if and the way Harmony holds up with extra maps, characters, and recreation modes within the combine.
Whereas I used to be impressed by the fight, I’m not fully offered on the universe and the story Harmony hopes to inform. Freegunner’s are outlaws that velocity across the galaxy in search of journey. Every week, Firewalk Studios will launch a two minute vignette that performs while you boot up the sport. These vignettes will form an ongoing narrative that gamers will expertise collectively.
Earlier than my hands-on session, the studio confirmed us the primary one, and its tone gave off a we-have-Guardians-of-the-Galaxy-at-home type of vibe. Perhaps it may construct to one thing extra fascinating, or possibly I’ve simply grown uninterested in that Marvel-esque tone, nevertheless it didn’t do a lot for me within the second. I additionally surprise how Harmony plans to onboard new gamers in the event that they’ve missed the primary few weeks of the story. In response to the devs, they’ll make all these vignettes obtainable on YouTube, however I can’t think about gamers will actively search these out.
