It looks like Cliff Bleszinski is changing up the rules. The guy behind famed titles like "Gears of War" and "Unreal Tournament" had unveiled his studio's debut project, a competitive shooter called "LawBreakers." Any game made under his direction would be bound to be a hit through mechanics and delivery alone, but the icing on this cake was that the game was free-to-play.
However, appearing at GDC 2016, Cliffy B delivered some unfortunate news: "LawBreakers" is free no more. Instead it will be released as a "digital premium title," and at launch, it will be exclusive to Steam.
Why, you ask? Bleszinski argued that gamers are particularly weary of titles that claim to be free. They often question how companies expect to make money off free titles and fear the loathed micro-transactions would be their answer. Furthermore, he insisted that using a digital premium model would allow everyone to play on a level playing field.
"As the game continued to take shape, we realized free-to-play wasn't the right fit for what we're building," Bleszinski says. "'LawBreakers' is a competitive game at heart and that means balance is a big priority to me, my team, and our community. Using a digital premium model helps ensure an even playing field by giving fans access to every available role without any barriers."
The move puts "Lawbreakers" in line with other titles such as Blizzard's "Overwatch" and Gearbox Software's "Battleborn," both of which arrive in May and feature traditional paid models. This in turn led to the announcement of a second change that's coming to "LawBreakers:" art style.
Much like entries such as "Gears of War" that featured a dark and gritty art style, Bleszinski announced that "LawBreakers" will also have an art style to reflect his previous work - something that was noticeably absent in the original reveal trailer.
"We decided to take a step back and explore how we could dial up the maturity in 'LawBreakers,' going back to our original vision," Bleszinski says. "The new look and feel embraces the innovative and vertical nature of our game elevated by violence, intensity and competition."
Other specifics such as pricing and release dates are unknown. For now, all that's known is that it will be less than $60 and should be coming out before the end of the year. Bleszinski has noted that despite the game being PC exclusive, he does intend to bring the game to consoles if the studio finds a good partner to handle the port.
