FBC: Firebreak

An incredibly fun and engaging Horde Shooter, it isn’t perfect, but it’s an absolute blast to play.

FBC: Firebreak is a fun fast-paced three player co-op shooter which offers a new perspective on the world of Remedy Entertainment’s Control thus separating itself from the competition. Progression could be streamlined but the core gameplay experience combined with the difficulty and clearance systems make this game an easy recommendation.

FBC: Firebreak is one of those games that can be hard to describe, yet once you get into it, this game will become very addictive. And it’s easy to see why. Control’s world is amazing, mysterious, and a pleasure to explore. The multiplayer experience is quite impressive here, and they do an amazing job at making the levels feel interesting and a delight to go through. Of course, that doesn’t make FBC: Firebreak perfect. The core gameplay loop, while fun, gets very repetitive due to the lack of randomized elements, and few levels available at launch. Right now, having only 5 levels is an issue, as you have to repeat them over and over, albeit with modifiers and various difficulty levels. I think it’s well worth playing for any team-focused FPS lovers, but keep in mind this is just a foundation. I am sure that Remedy will continue adding more levels and fun stuff for us to unlock and customize our characters with. Yet that will arrive in due time.

Sometimes the game gets in its own way by not tutorializing key points, like how to best deal with status effects and play roles dependably. But once you've gained that institutional knowledge, FBC: Firebreak is an enjoyably chaotic power fantasy, and an interesting experiment for Remedy between its bigger, weirder projects.

FBC: Firebreak is an impressive multiplayer take on the Control universe. Each Job is cleverly designed to make the most of the game’s various playstyles, while also enjoying a steep amount of replayability thanks to Job customization. It’s a multiplayer game that can give you chill, casual vibes and intense, challenging gameplay; it’s all about what you want to get out of it.

Remedy games are about the experience, and the team nailed that with FBC: Firebreak. While I wouldn’t say it’s in the upper echelon of their titles, Firebreak succeeds in being an entertaining cooperative adventure into the depths of the Oldest House. It’s fresh in a way only Remedy can make; a worthwhile experiment. Thanks to them, I’ll never look at sticky notes the same again.

Initially, I was going to give FBC: Firebreak a 6, marking it as “Fair” on our scale, but patch v1.2 shifted my perspective. It addressed several of my concerns and signals a promising direction for the game’s future. As it stands, FBC: Firebreak feels like a game with potential that hasn’t fully figured itself out yet. While it’s built on a solid co-op PvE formula and benefits from Remedy’s unique universe, it lacks the variety and depth needed to keep players engaged over time. The handful of missions wear thin quickly due to repeated objectives and static structure, and even with Corrupted Items adding some unpredictability, it’s not enough to mask the thin content. The lack of no voice or text chat makes teamwork clunky. Remedy has shown they’re listening with patch v1.2, which improved pacing and progression, but unless future updates bring significantly more content and variety, I can’t see this game having long-term staying power. For now, it feels like a solid foundation that still needs more built on top of it to truly stand out in a crowded genre.

Firebreak could be 2025's most underrated shooter — if it can hold players' attention long enough. But Remedy isn't punching above its weight anymore. It's pacing itself, for better or worse.

Despite its flaws, Firebreak is not to be dismissed. It has an interesting and engaging core. Its recognizable style, numerous crazy ideas, and constantly changing mission context could make the project vibrant and unique with serious refinement. But right now, it feels rushed. The balance needs a thorough overhaul, and the missions need tweaking to encourage player retention. For now, it's an interesting failure with enormous potential.

As someone who is not entrenched in one of the many live-service shooter games on the market right now, FBC: Firebreak felt like the multiplayer experience built for me. It has all the weird quirkiness that Remedy has been known for, with clever character classes that synergize well and the kinds of missions you would never see anywhere else. But somehow, when I jump into the game, it doesn’t feel right. The Oldest House is swarming with enemies, but somehow still feels somewhat empty. The missions feel repetitive and even tedious at times. Hopefully, Remedy can learn from this and turn this game into something great, or use the feedback for the next attempt at multiplayer.

I do think it’s worth at least downloading the game and testing it out, as I definitely have had fun with it despite its shortcomings. That said, I also don’t see myself sticking with it in its current state, but hopefully as new additions and patches roll out I’ll have reason to return to FBC: Firebreak.

FBC: Firebreak is a perfectly serviceable cooperative first-person shooter, and Remedy hits the mark it aimed for. For players looking to periodically hop in a session for a couple of Jobs will find some fun if they have a group to play with. However, the lack of an in-game voice chat makes this hard to recommend for people who exclusively play with randoms. If you’re into Remedy’s games, have a group of gamer friends, and have PS Plus Extra or Xbox Game Pass, FBC: Firebreak could be a good departure from the normal cooperative experiences out there for a weekend. But anyone looking for a game that can provide more than that should probably look elsewhere.

Atmospheric Co-op-Shooter, that spoils its entertaining battles with unfinished game design and a lack of variety.

It reminds me of the games I loved as a kid, and without all the dark patterns modern games use to keep players hooked (and paying), it’s certainly one of the most ethical multiplayer games you can play this year.

As Remedy's first co-op shooter, FBC: Firebreak is a successful experiment, and while it doesn't quite match up to the best in the genre, the Oldest House is still a good stage for some creepy, frenetic action.

FBC: Firebreak has some potential and its Control-style oddness works well, but the rest doesn't particularly stand out, and the limited in-game content doesn't help.

FBC: Firebreak unfortunately fails to impress: despite the undeniable talent of the team at Remedy Entertainment, this co-op shooter set in the Control universe has very little in common with Jesse Faden’s gripping adventure, opting instead to deliver an experience that feels not only underdeveloped but also poorly presented. There are certainly enjoyable moments, and with the right team (you can invite friends via code, by the way) everything becomes more fun, but the content is undeniably sparse, the progression far too slow, and the action quickly becomes repetitive.

FBC: Firebreak delivers a solid cooperative framework with a few clever mechanics, but struggles to stand out. While it captures the visual identity of Control, its repetitive mission structure, shallow progression, and lack of narrative depth limit its lasting appeal. Best enjoyed in short bursts with friends, it feels more like a side project than a meaningful expansion of the Remedy universe.

FBC: Firebreak is Remedy’s intriguing foray into the cooperative genre, but it ultimately lacks the strengths needed to stand out among its peers.

FBC: Firebreak offers strong co-op gameplay, solid gunplay, and an atmospheric world, but is held back by repetitive missions, low difficulty, and a lack of communication options. For 40 euros, it's fun for a few evenings, but it lacks a compelling reason to keep coming back.

FBC: Firebreak feels like a really solid pitch. Sadly, the game at release doesn’t progress past the pitch and never feels fully complete. The lack of variety in the repetitive missions, the barebones character customization and lack of any of Remedy’s interesting stories makes this very hard to recommend. While on its own it’s far from the worst game ever, it simply cannot compare to any of its competitors, even at their launch, let alone in their current state after many updates.

Control was a 9, and Alan Wake 2 was a 10 for me. I love Remedy’s games – normally – but FBC Firebreak seems to have lost their usual magic in a search for a wider audience. I get it, but I do not like it, and I think it hurts the title in the long run.

I quite like FBC: Firebreak, but I wish I could like it more. There's the amusing ideas of plaguing players with haunted sticky notes and rubber ducks, there's discovering unique level quirks for how to deal with picking up radioactive orbs safely, and the inherent joy of getting through tense backs-to-the-wall moments with allies by your side, but those moments of delight dissipate through a clunky user interface, abbreviated mission structure and too few levels to take on. This can still grow into something special, but Remedy might have to explore new directions to manage that.

FBC: Firebreak is a compelling co-op shooter that, despite its good looks, doesn’t have the depth to keep things interesting long-term.

FBC: Firebreak tries to keep the Control universe alive with a cooperative proposal, but fails due to a lack of depth, variety and creativity. With repetitive missions, recycled enemies and a poorly explored narrative, the game becomes a forgettable experience from Remedy.

In an era where everyone’s chasing the next big thing in multiplayer, FBC: Firebreak dares to be weird, borderline, and at times deliberately off-putting. It’s a game that doesn’t demand your daily grind, doesn’t punish you for skipping a week, and doesn’t crave your undivided loyalty. And maybe that’s exactly why it ends up having something to say. Maybe not much — but it says it with a style that sticks. If you’ve got two friends and a few hours to spare for some paranormal chaos, with zero expectations for emotional depth or narrative weight, FBC: Firebreak is well worth the price of admission.

The mysterious worldbuilding of Control and Remedy’s signature presentation still shine through. However, repetitive mission structures, sluggish progression, and a steep early-game barrier make this surreal stage feel less captivating. While the fresh gimmicks and cooperative elements offer clear appeal, the game needs both stronger early engagement and more lasting motivation to truly stand out.

Remedy’s first foray into multiplayer action is a shaky step into the unknown. While its bizarre, paranormally-tinged world retains plenty of clever ideas, the action quickly turns bland and repetitive, hampered further by a lack of meaningful content. Fans of Control will enjoy the occasional nods and Easter eggs, but others may try it, have some fleeting fun, and move on just as fast.

What a bizarre, improbable thing this is. If Control was all about a fairly standard action game with world-beating set dressing, it feels like Firebreak has worked backwards from that set dressing to build all its actual ideas from. It really is a game about fixing furnaces and picking up Post-its, but it wants you to do it with strangers, and, heck, why not have a little interference from the Hiss as you go? It’s pretty much Control fan fiction - and I mean that even if you don't get the mission in which you're fixing giant fans.

The unique co-op approach captures the edgy feel of Control, but still offers only a sloppy experience.

FBC: Firebreak is bursting with personality and fascinating concepts, but collapses under the weight of underwhelming gunplay and shallow progression. Though the game’s setting shines through and the later stages of the game are full of incredible concepts, until major gameplay improvements are made, the game feels more like a concept pitch than a polished product.

FBC: Firebreak is a cooperative spin-off that seems intriguing on paper but unfortunately lacks substantial content. With only five missions—rather simplistic ones at that—unremarkable classes, a limited variety of enemies, and uninspired weapons, the investment of time and money may not be justified. On top of that, the artificially slow progression system is reminiscent of the worst live-service practices. It might have some appeal if played with a close-knit group of friends, but engagement risks being short-lived.

FBC: Firebreak should be a slam dunk for Remedy, with a unique elemental combat co-op hook and action that unfolds in the coolest parts of the studio’s connected universe. Sadly, dull, uninspired missions and a failure to capitalize on Remedy’s imagination hold the developer’s first proper multiplayer outing back massively. There could be something special here with future updates, but I’m struggling to see a future for it.

Despite being competent on many levels, FBC: Firebreak is an exceedingly familiar cooperative experience you have likely played before. Remedy’s signature flair for visual design and return to a familiar and beloved video game locale might be enough for absolute die-hard fans, but it is tough to see who the target audience for this entry into the RCU was envisioned for. While not a total misfire, FBC: Firebreak feels destined to be a footnote from the world of Alan Wake.

Firebreak may be a bit of a wait-and-see situation: it doesn't feel like it has enough meat on its bones to justify its $40 asking price, not to mention its paid battle passes. Firebreak has the bones of a truly exceptional co-op game, and hopefully, Remedy will get the chance to deliver it.

FBC: Firebreak's madcap mission conceits are delightfully silly, but balancing issues and limited replay value hinder the fun.

FBC: Firebreak brings us a few interesting moments during a short visit to the Remedy universe. But there is not enough content, guns, cool boss fights, exciting rewards. Not only Firebreak is much worse than single-player Remedy games, it could learn a few things from other co-op shooters as well.

Firebreak is a new direction in expanding Remedy’s connected universe, but the art direction and aesthetics can only do so much of the heavy lifting when the other aspects aren’t bringing as much to the table. The end result doesn’t stack up to the source material that inspired it, and to this Remedy fan, it could and should be so much better.

So yeah, FBC: Firebreak is just fine. If you're looking for something mindless to play with some friends one weekend, this'll get the job done. I'm sure that its lowered retail price–it's going for $40 USD–and launch on some subscription services is going to entice a fair few. But if you're expecting anything as fun or curious as Control, something that encourages you to plumb it for mysteries, or even something daring enough to commit to a new tone and style and substance, allow me to caution you. FBC: Firebreak is not that game. It's regrettably emptier.

FBC Firebreak delivers an experience that is, at best, competent and, at worst, tedious. Given the glut of options in the multiplayer FPS market and the $40 price tag this game carries, it is hard to suggest it to anyone.

It's an amusingly quirky notion, but it wears thin as you empty bullets into pile after pile of stationary stationery. [Issue#413, p.114]

While the fundamental idea of ​​FBC: Firebreak is entirely relevant, Remedy completely misses its multiplayer turn due to inconsistent and counterintuitive systems that are made even more incomprehensible by the stubborn absence of any decent tutorials. Despite the Finnish studio's many talents, no one has ensured the bare minimum for a premium multiplayer game in 2025. Very tight content, absence of basic communication tools... nothing impossible to adjust in the medium term, but for once, we're going to say it: an early access period would have been welcome to correct the obvious before crashing into a launch that's already been publicly crucified. Losing control happens even to the best.

FBC: Firebreak is a first-person PvE shooter that wears the skin of a game that people actually like. It’s not bad, it really isn’t, but none of my teammates want to play it again. I just hope that when Alan Wake 3 and Control 2 roll around the characters of FBC: Firebreak won’t be important, because I’m going to forget that this ever happened in less than six months, and it’ll just be another paranatural event for the conspiracy mags.

I'm going to wonder for a long time how this could have happened. Remedy stumbles like a bunch of toddlers out of the starting blocks of their shooter ambition and delivers the least fun shooter I've played in years. Yes, even that one other game was more fun than this. That's saying something.