While searching for gems in the IndieCade section of E3, I found the Hope fucking Diamond. At first glance, Lemnis Gate seemed like another drop in the endless ocean of futuristic first person shooters. It looked and played surprisingly well for an indie studio I’d never heard of, but I wouldn’t have called it a head-turner. Then, mid game, I noticed one player pass the controller to the other, and I almost broke my neck with the impulsive head tilt of confusion. The developer explained it as a turn-based FPS game of chess; and then my fuckin head exploded.
When games blend genres, amazing things can happen. Mix the cell-shaded FPS XIII with the loot grind of Diablo, and you get the amazing Borderlands. When daddy Halo made love to mama Portal, they birthed the badass baby Splitgate: Arena Warfare. And now Ratloop Games Canada combined the class-based team shooting of Overwatch with the time-fuckery of Looper; giving us the unique, refreshing and mind-bending Lemnis Gate. And it’s fucking awesome.
If that sounds complex and difficult to explain, it’s only because it is. But I’ll do my damndest. The defending team is tasked with keeping two objectives (computers or reactors or something) intact. The attacking team has to (you guessed it…) blow them shits up. Each team is made up of five different characters, and both have five turns (about thirty seconds each) to work toward their goal. But there’s an M. Night Shamalamalon twist: Each team is played by one person.
The attacker starts by choosing one of seven characters, each with a different weapon and ability. Shotguns, machine pistols, snipers and lasers are paired with auto-turrets, land mines, teleport grenades and acid jizz cannons. The characters have set loadouts and can only be used once per team. Then they choose to damage an objective or set up defenses while no one else is on the map. The timer counts down to zero, and the attacker’s first turn is over. Defender’s up now.
The clock turns back and the defender uses a free-roam camera to watch what their opponent just did, with a few extra seconds to pick their character and strategy. Then the clock turns back again. The defender spawns in, but they’re not alone. The attacker is there, doing exactly what they did on their turn. Every step taken, every ability used, and every shot fired is recorded, repeated and played out again and again for the rest of the game.
The defender’s in a 1-v-1, but they know exactly where the enemy is and what they’re gonna do. Hang back and snipe their face off. Rush to the objective and surround it with turrets. Mega-rush toward the enemy spawn and splooge the ground with acid. But choose wisely, because that clock is about to turn back again and give the attacker their turn to counter your counter. And now they know where you are, and what you’re gonna do. If one objective gets destroyed, the attacker wins. Otherwise, you run out the clock and the defender reigns supreme.
It’s fun, it’s fast-paced, and it’s a fuckin thinker. You have to plan ahead, and as Ike taught us, “No plan survives first contact with the enemy.” If you kill your target quickly, use your extra time to pre-fire where your opponent might go later. Don’t kill them quickly enough, and you’ll have to kill two birds with your next stone. And one tip I had to learn the hard way: Friendly fire is on.
Lemnis Gate doesn’t have a release date or firm price yet, though they assured me it’s not expensive and they definitely won’t use predatory free-to-play lootbox bullshit. From moment one it was obvious this is a true passion project. They don’t want to promise anything they can’t deliver, and won’t release it a moment before it’s ready (though they don’t see it going past Q1 of next year). I always go to IndieCade with hopes of finding something different, something bold, something that bigger studios can’t or won’t take a chance on. And this game exceeded all of them. I plan on playing it again.
And again.
And again…
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