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Kotaku Reacts To Into The Breach

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Kotaku Reacts To Into The Breach

Since we’ve gotten our hands on Into The Breach over at Kotaku, we haven’t been able to stop playing and talking about it. Here’s a selection of our best tweets, stories, and screenshots.

On February 8, apropros of nothing, news editor Jason Schreier said this in Slack:

Good luck playing anything else once you all get Into The Breach.
Jason Schreier

He had gotten an advance copy of the game, and was loving it, describing it as “kaiju chess.” 

As much as I loved FTL, the previous game from developer Subset Games, I wasn’t as sure that this one would grab me. Some people on staff were more excited than others, however.

Two weeks later, a lot of our staff is playing Into The Breach non-stop and are loving it. As per usual, Jason was annoyingly right about everything. When I later messaged him that every night I have to talk myself out of a “quick session” of Into The Breach, all he said to me was, “Yeah it’s a real problem.” He did warn me.

The game is that elegant kaiju chess that Jason promised. It’s also a stressful nightmare that is incredibly easy to lose. It’s always fair, which somehow makes it all the more frustrating. We’re all managing our stress in our own way.

Tips For Playing Into The Breach: 1. you will get upset 2. punch everything
Luke Plunkett

Some of our stories from the game are lengthy, fan-fiction epics. Eric Van Allen, who doesn’t have a problem and can stop at any time, sent me this novel about the first time he won the game.

At the end of the first island, all was going well until I realised I had left a shot wide-open on the corporate tower, with barely any power remaining. No turn reset available, I had one mech left to move – a rookie, a starter, piloting the rocket-launching crawler. Did I take the hit to reputation and go to a new island at next-to-no power, or make the sacrifice?

The rookie stepped in the way, taking the hit and departing. I’d like to think in some way, my old time-traveller was shaken. He had “died” so often, but always departed the timeline and jumped back again.

Here was an honest sacrifice, made for the corporate overlords who begrudgingly requested our help when it suited their interests. No more, he thought. That rookie would be the last death.

Surprisingly moving, Eric! Here’s an anecdote from Heather Alexandra:

I’ve only played about 40 minutes since Into the Breach was released, but it’s already sunk its hooks into me. Had to blow up one of my own dudes to save the world and cried all night. 10/10, will play again.

I think Ethan Gach really sums up the appeal of this game:

Into the Breach is the perfect game for sipping some whiskey and listening to some sinister 80s synth-pop while you watch your little robot people continually fail to save the world.

I had a Russian guy on my team and swore I’d always save him whenever time reset, but almost immediately I found a better dude from a space pod and had to break that promise. Such is life in the Breach.

As much as we’ve all been enjoying Into The Breach, there is one thing that could improve it.

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At Kotaku, we independently select and write about stuff we love and think you'll like too. We have affiliate and advertising partnerships, which means we may collect a share of sales or other compensation from the links on this page. BTW – prices are accurate and items in stock at the time of posting.

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