- 3RD-STRIKE.COM - A La Une - 19/Aug 04:06

GUNTOUCHABLES – Preview

We’ve played through our fair share of roguelites and roguelikes over the years, and while we absolutely love the genre, there aren’t that many interesting multiplayer-focused titles out there. A lot of these games often focus on solo play, and while entertaining, many of these titles would be so much more fun with friends. In comes GUNTOUCHABLES, a roguelite that is currently in Early Access. We were lucky enough to give this early build a go, and we really enjoyed what was on offer so far. In GUNTOUCHABLES, you’ll be playing as a group of preppers who are standing their ground in the midst of a mutant outbreak. There isn’t a real story to speak of in the current build, but you do get small descriptions for each of the different runs. We didn’t really miss the absence of a bigger plot, and we wouldn’t mind it if it were absent in the full release, either. The game’s presentation is also rather cool, as you’ll be treated to a lot of gore, albeit in a low-poly style. The music and sound effects are decent too, but when playing with friends, the soundscape did fade to the background for us. GUNTOUCHABLES does have a solo mode in which you can play all the available levels, while having an automated drone with a weapon to back you up. That being said, however, this roguelite shines when you can play it together with friends online. GUNTOUCHABLES supports co-op play for up to four players, which allows you to pick all the current characters and create a well-balanced team. Playing with randoms isn’t always as easy, as this is one of those games that attracts a lot of unpleasant people. Even so, co-op play is a lot of fun, and you’re able to properly carry loot and aim for additional objectives. A run always consists of a few maps you’ll have to complete objectives on, while being offered the chance to shop in between a few of those maps. At the end of a run, there’s a big boss battle waiting for you (and your team). Most objectives consist of collecting items or defending small areas. It’s all very straightforward, and the maps themselves are fairly small, making it easy to plan the ideal route to your (optional) objectives. As you run around, the threat level will always increase, and when the threat meter is full, a horde of enemies will be coming your way. These waves can turn quite intense, especially when you find yourself in a dangerous part of the map already. You also can’t run around freely, as the team needs to stay within range of each other; otherwise, the surrounding fog will damage you. This means you’ll have to move as a unit, making things a bit more tactical and intense. Each of the available characters has its own perks and skills, and different loadout options. It’s a lot of fun trying out different characters, and it’s nice to also unlock upgrades as you play the game more. There are, of course, the upgrades you can unlock during a run itself, but also passive boosts that you can unlock in between runs. The more you play a character, the more it will gain experience and level up as well. The game has a very pleasant gameplay loop this way, and it motivates players to keep pressing on with their favorite character(s). As you become better, there are also harder difficulties and modifiers you can unlock. Truth be told, at this point in time, GUNTOUCHABLES already feels like a highly polished experience. The action is on point, the servers are populated, and the overall gameplay loop is enjoyable. We didn’t have any issues with the control scheme, even when playing with a controller. Aiming can be a bit more fidgety when aiming with the right stick, but other than that, everything felt very intuitive. We hope for more content, of course, but all in all, you’re getting a lot of bang for your buck here. Conclusion While GUNTOUCHABLES is already entertaining when playing solo, we had an absolute blast when playing the game with friends. The action-packed gameplay loop is loads of fun, and we loved being able to level different classes, forming a cohesive strike team in the midst of a mutant apocalypse. While we are on the lookout for future updates, hoping to delve into new content, we see ourselves returning to what GUNTOUCHABLES has to offer quite a few times in the near future.