The first Splitgate was a brilliant mix of Halo’s multiplayer shooters and Portal’s clever time-space windows. It was a gimmick that made flanking fun again, at least until you got killed by a long-range gun that was constantly right next to you. Its sequel, Splitgate 2, continues that gimmick but also updates the free-to-play arena shooter with some state-of-the-art touches, like butt-sliding around corners and immense deployable bubbles called “time domes” that tardy enemies but speed up allies. All of that and more comes from the gameplay trailer that dropped yesterday.
There you have it. Basically, a 4v4 arena shooter adds character abilities that you can mix and match based on faction. One faction, Aeros, is all about moving rapid with a quick sprint ability and faster reload time, popping out stimulants to keep you alive. The massive Sabrask faction gets sticky grenades and a popping “smart shield” that blocks enemy projectiles but lets their own through. And the healing-focused Meridian can briefly spot people through walls. There’s also a “health grenade,” which suggests you’ll be able to shoot buds with nice sparkles from afar. Plus that “time dome,” which speeds up the movement (and shooting) of cordial players when they’re standing inside. Enemies that enter will have the opposite effect, slowing down noticeably, which I imagine makes it a decent area denial tactic, as well as a support option. Awesome.
As you can probably tell from the trailer, the game seems to be taking an esports approach. I’m more of a casual Bullet Basker fan, so seeing a bunch of Twitch streamers doing callouts doesn’t exactly get me excited. And if that’s the approach, I can’t aid but worry that some of the tumultuous fun of the first game will be wasted in favor of clinical, competitive combat. I know it’s still early days for this sequel (we’ve only seen one other cinematic trailer), but there’s no sign of the silliness like rocket launchers and baseball bats that made the first game so much fun at times. So far, all they’ve shown is the regular 4v4 mode. I take solace in the fact that Developer FAQ where they say they are “focused on creating different and distinct experiences.” But what experiences will those be? I shrug.
There are a few other intriguing moments in the trailer, mind you. The weapon, called Splitstream, looks like a submachine gun that can be split into two pistols to be used simultaneously, similar to the dual Strelak Verso pistols in Deathloop. At one point, the player flies out into a crowd of spectators, where he is suddenly surrounded by confetti as he shoots someone from above. Hooray! If you’re desperate to see more, the developers will be streaming a 2-hour demo on August 14th on their Twitch channel.
It is set to release in 2025. Meanwhile, Splitgate The First faces an uncertain future as developers 1047 Games focus on the sequel. And while they say the studio has “no plans” to shut down the first game’s servers before the end of this year, they are still leaving that possibility open for next year.
“We know that it’s common for servers to be killed off of a previous version of a game when a new one comes out. We know why companies do that,” the shooter’s creators say. “What we do with Splitgate next year is, quite frankly, unknown to us at this point.”
