At its core, Blackout Protocol isn’t a particularly complicated game; it controls much like any twin-stick shooter you can imagine, and it features both temporary as well as permanent progression tracks. Where it sets itself apart, however, is that it is almost entirely focused on 3-player co-op. There’s no real balancing changes if you decide to play solo or with just one partner. Playing solo tends to be its own can of worms that we’ll get into shortly.

Before we get any further, however, it’s worth keeping in mind that Blackout Protocol is an early access title. This means that development on the game is on-going, and details of this review might end up being out-dated by the time the full release comes around, especially when it comes to smaller aspects like balancing. We also know for a fact that there will be quite a bit of content added to the game over time, including new levels, bosses, weapons, and playable characters.

"There’s no real balancing changes if you decide to play solo or with just one partner."

As it currently stands, however, Blackout Protocol isn’t in a particularly bad place. It lets you pick from four playable characters, features five levels of escalating difficulty and varied objectives, and 12 weapons, all of which are surprisingly well-balanced when it comes to use-case and niche.

To start things off, you’re given a short tutorial on the core game loop you’re going to experience throughout much of Blackout Protocol. The tutorial does a decent job in showing you how you can get permanent upgrades, how you go about unlocking weapons, and how the game generally controls. Before you get too comfortable, however, you’re thrown into a boss fight that you don’t really have any chance of beating. And that’s when the game actually begins.

Equipped with an assault rifle, a pistol, and four playable characters, you’re supposed to make your way into the building’s parking lot, and work your way deeper. The characters all play in essentially the same way when it comes to the action. Each character does, however, have a special ability that will do quite a bit to change how you play. Beaker, for example, can heal herself and nearby allies. Scalpel, on the other hand, has a special melee attack that does a lot of damage and heals her in the process. Both Boy Scout and Red have more combat-centric specials, with Boy Scot being able to slam the ground to cause damage in an area around him, and Red being able to increase weapon firing speed.

"And that’s when the game actually begins."

Things get a lot more interesting once you start unlocking weapon blueprints. Weapons have “departments” that they belong to, which can in turn be affected by the temporary power-ups you find as you play through the game. For example, the Sniper Rifle comes from the Firearms department, while the Tactical Crossbow comes from the R&D department. While this doesn’t mean much by itself, players can find Nethercubes throughout a run that give them a power boost for the duration of that run which can affect these departments. For example, grabbing a Firearms-based power-up will unlock a new perk for your SMG, while picking a Psionics-based power-up will in turn power up your Arc Cannon.

Alongside the interplay of perks and weapon departments, there are also power-ups that can affect your choice of weapons for a run. The One Way power-up, for example, encourages using two weapons from the same department for a damage boost.

Speaking of which, damage comes in two forms in Blackout Protocol: physical and mental. While physical damage directly affects health, mental damage affects the enemies Panic Gauge. Depending on which department your weapon comes from, you’ll either deal direct damage, or your shots will first chip away at the Panic Gauge which, when emptied, can cause different effects, from making the enemy drop their weapon to getting stunned for a bit. Interestingly, friendly fire is also permanently enabled, and players can just as easily take out each others’ health and Panic Gauges.

"There are also power-ups that can affect your choice of weapons for a run."

Light also plays an important role in combat and exploration. Some enemies can sneak up on you and start dealing quite a bit of mental damage if you’re not careful, with your only recourse being shining a bright light at them. Most of the time, players will have to rely on their flashlights to drive these enemies away, since they can’t be dealt with by just shooting at them. This is one of those places where a co-op partner is incredibly important, since there can be quite a few objectives that need you to focus on interacting with some machinery; having a friend to keep these things off your back will make sure that your run doesn’t come to an end prematurely.

Which brings me to one of my biggest sticking points with Blackout Protocol: if you’re a solo player, this game isn’t for you. Since it’s almost entirely balanced around having at least one co-op partner with you, the number of enemies in any given combat encounter will inevitably drain your ammo at a rapid pace. And that’s assuming that you don’t just get swarmed and killed with little fanfare. While it is possible to solo the game with a lot of preparation and grinding out some permanent upgrades, you don’t really get a chance to grind before you’re thrown into your first big encounter in the opening level. This essentially leaves you with little more than a wall that you’re going to bang your head against.

The story in Blackout Protocol isn’t particularly deep, and essentially just acts as an excuse to get you into its randomly generated levels. Players are put into the shoes of agents of the shadowy S2P Corporation, which houses subjects of seemingly unethical experiments. After suffering a containment breach in a sprawling underground research base called Section 13, agents are called in to go in and stop the experiments from running wild. There’s nothing more to the game beyond that, and the game as it currently stands doesn’t even have collectible lore entries, which seems like a bit of a let-down.

"You don’t really get a chance to grind before you’re thrown into your first big encounter in the opening level."

When it comes to visuals, Blackout Protocol is a decent looking game. While nothing to really write home about, the visual design and graphics do a good job in not only making moments feel tense and threatening, but also in making clear things that you’re supposed to notice, be it enemies, weapons, or ammo pick-ups. The game does pull off some nifty tricks with its camera, which is all-the-more impressive when you consider the fact that its levels are randomly generated. An early example of this is the first level pivoting and panning the camera to give you a different look at the parking lot you’re fighting your way through.

Blackout Protocol is an excellent first step for a game that’s just coming out in early access. While the balancing and amount of content may not quite be all the way there yet, the fact that it’s an early access game indicates that the studio will be paying close attention to player feedback. Add in the fact that the five levels currently in the game already offer a pleasant level of challenge for players to take on, especially if they’re playing as a group, and Blackout Protocol feels like a pretty decent first stab at the idea. Solo players might want to look elsewhere, however, since the balance is skewed too heavily around having multiple players in a level.

This game was reviewed on PC.

The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie

While many may see this as yet another Trails title in the long-running series, for many, it’s the conclusion of a journey that ended somewhat abruptly in 2020. The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie takes place after the events of Cold Steel 4 and sees Erebonia at peace. However, trouble begins to stir once more. This time, there are three different character paths to pursue. Lloyd Bannings and the Special Support Section seek to protect Crossbell; Rean Schwarzer and Class VII deal with the aftermath of the Great Twilight; and a mysterious individual named C butts heads with both.

Players can switch between each protagonist with the Crossroads system and venture into the True Reverie Corridor, a randomly generated dungeon with its own side content, characters, and events. Even if the wait for the next entry is long, fans can finally see the Erebonian saga come to a close when The Legend of Heroes: Trails into Reverie launches on July 7th for PS4, PS5, Nintendo Switch and PC.

Oxenfree 2: Lost Signals

Oxenfree fans can finally continue the mind-bending journey that began in 2016. Oxenfree 2: Lost Signals is set five years later and sees protagonist Riley returning to her hometown. Mysterious events are occurring again, thanks to strange electromagnetic waves, and she’s determined to find the cause. Once again, conversations play out in real time, and your choices influence the story’s direction, the bonds forged, and Riley’s personality.

You can use the new walkie-talkie to speak to (or ignore) the locals and maybe learn more about the mysterious Parentage. Space-time travel, bigger stakes and more await as everything rests on your shoulders. Oxenfree 2: Lost Signals launches on July 12th for PS4, PS5, PC, Nintendo Switch, iOS and Android, and we can’t wait to see what twists await.

Exoprimal

There have probably been enough jokes about someone at Capcom thinking, “But what if Horde mode Dino Crisis with power suits?” Nevertheless, Exoprimal looks very interesting. Set in 2040, where outbreaks of thousands of dinosaurs occur constantly, players join a squad of exosuit pilots to stem the tide. An AI known as Leviathan is used to predict the outbreaks, but before you know it, time travel is involved. What is Leviathan’s goal with its simulations, and can players resolve the mysteries of the dinosaurs?

The story unfolds through the co-op Dino Survival mode, as two squads of five players compete in various maps to complete objectives. Sometimes you may go head-to-head, but you can forgo PvP entirely. Gather clues to learn more, and pilot several different Exosuits, each with unique roles and capabilities, whether healing allies with Nimbus, tanking damage as Murasame, or taking down hordes of enemies with Zephyr.

Exoprimal launches on July 14th for Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, PS5 and PC, and is also coming to Game Pass on day one.

Pikmin 4

What happens when Captain Olimar crash-lands on a planet and the Rescue Corps sent to retrieve him also crashes? It’s the job of a recruit, aka You, to save everyone, once again corralling and commanding hordes of Pikmin to help.

Releasing on July 21st for Nintendo Switch, Pikmin 4 allows for customizing your character, collecting treasures and exploring the environment to rescue any castaways. A new dog-like creature Oatchi helps out, serving as a mount and also battling some of the hostile monsters that abound. Players can also explore at night, tackling tougher threats and using the new Glow Pikmin.

Throw in a mysterious individual who also seems to be after the castaways, leading to Dandori Battles, where you compete to gather the most objects, and Pikmin 4 seems to have a lot in store for series fans. Newcomers can download a free demo from the eShop, allowing them to sample the gameplay and transfer progress to continue in the full game.

Remnant 2

Defying expectations, Remnant: From the Ashes went from relatively no buzz to a beloved third-person shooter Souls-like that sold over 3 million copies. With Remnant 2, Gunfire Games is going much bigger with new worlds, weapons, armor, enemies, bosses and an increased scale. Taking place nearly 20 years after the events of Subject 2923, Ward 13 is at peace. However, with The Root continuing to spread to other worlds via The Labyrinth, players suit up to try and stop it.

Instead of classes, players have Archetypes, which allow for multi-classing and mixing and matching Skills and Traits. The random world generation is also kicked up a notch, as you’ll explore new biomes with unique quests and enemies on each playthrough, leading to more replay value. Remnant 2 is out on July 25th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5 and PC.

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart (PC)

Roughly two years and several other PS5 titles on PC later, Insomniac Games’ Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart is finally coming to Steam and the Epic Games Store. Launching on July 26th, it supports 21:9 and 32:9 Ultra-wide displays. For the triple monitor owners, it even has 48:9 support. Ray-traced reflections are a given, but you also get unlocked frame rates and ray-traced shadows for exteriors.

There’s support for the haptic feedback and dynamic triggers on DualSense in addition to the keyboard and mouse (not to mention other controller options). Upscaling solutions like Nvidia DLSS 3, AMD FSR2, Intel XeSS and Insomniac’s Temporal Injection are also supported. If this isn’t enough, you can also use DLAA to improve the image quality and Reflex for more responsive controls.

Honestly, just hearing that Nixxes is handling the port is good enough for us, as Ratchet and Clank: Rift Apart is an incredible dimension-hopping 3D platformer.

Disney Illusion Island

Remember that gorgeous-looking 2D platformer starring Mickey, Minnie, Donald and Goofy that Disney announced? Good news – it’s not dead. Disney Illusion Island recently received a new trailer ahead of its July 28th release, and it looks as sharp as ever. The story sees Mickey and the crew venturing to Monoth Island to recover three books. Along with platforming challenges and puzzles, they’ll take on bosses with their unique abilities and delve more into the island’s various mysteries.

The hand-drawn animation, familiar voices and charming soundtrack will draw you in, and there’s also four-player couch co-op support with unique skills for helping each other out. With its adorable visuals and sleek presentation, Disney Illusion Island could fill the hole that Rayman Origins and Legends have left for party platformers.

F1 Manager 2023

It’s easy to be wary of F1 Manager 2023, especially considering how Frontier Developments handled the post-launch support of its predecessor. Nevertheless, with 23 races, new tracks like the Las Vegas Strip Circuit, and the new Race Replay for reliving the 2023 FIA Formula One World Championship, there are some interesting bells and whistles. You can also embody a team during big moments in the season using Race Moments.

Frontier also promises better drive AI and “refinements to racing lines, overtakes and incidents.” F1 Manager 2023 launches on July 31st for PS4, PS5, PC, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S. Hopefully, it’s a step up from its predecessor.

Jagged Alliance 3

The latest entry in the classic squad-based tactical strategy series, Jagged Alliance 3, sees players assembling a team of mercenaries to rescue the President of Grand Chien and defeat The Legion. Mercenaries come with different personalities and quirks, and some familiar faces are returning. However, all tactical decisions rest with the player, whether you’re customizing weapons and load-outs, battling enemy forces or capturing territory.

Jagged Alliance 3 offers an open structure with plenty of freedom, and you can experience the campaign alone or with a friend in co-op. It’s out on July 14th, exclusively for PC. Will it end up with fewer issues than developer Haemimont Games’ Park Beyond? One can certainly hope.

The Expanse: A Telltale Series Episode 1

Telltale Games is working with Alcon and Deck Nine Games for a new narrative adventure based on the popular sci-fi series, The Expanse. As a prequel to the TV series, it sees Camina Drummer (played by Cara Gee) and her crew on the Artemis exploring The Belt, salvaging space ships and having all kinds of run-ins.

As with classic Telltale titles, your decisions matter and can be the difference between valuable supplies or your crewmate losing a leg. The Expanse: A Telltale Series launches July 27th for Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PS4, PS5 and PC via the Epic Games Store. However, this marks the debut of Episode 1 – four more episodes are coming, each releasing two weeks afterwards.

Synapse

Among the many new titles coming to PlayStation VR2 is Synapse, a first-person shooter from nDreams starring David Hayter and Jennifer Hale. As an operative tasked with investigating Colonel Peter Conrad, who is threatening a world-ending catastrophe, you venture into the latter’s mind, battling through surreal environments while gathering clues on his weapon.

The Heart of Darkness inspiration isn’t exactly subtle, but seeing Hayter play Conrad, lending his signature charisma to what should be an intriguing villain, will be interesting. It also doesn’t hurt that the shooting and visuals look good. Synapse is out on July 4th for PlayStation VR2.

Ed-0: Zombie Uprising

From Lancarse, the team behind duds like The Diofield Chronicle, comes Ed-0: Zombie Uprising. Though it has some role-playing elements, this is a hack-and-slash dungeon crawler with randomly generated environments where you slay hordes of zombies in the Edo period. Play as a Samurai, Sumo Wrestler or Ninja, discover over 150 items and skills, and battle bosses.

Will this result in the zombies not turning Japan into a deadman wonderland? Probably not, but it should make for some mindless fun. Ed-0: Zombie Uprising is currently available in early access for PC but exits on July 13th while also being available for Xbox Series X/S and PS5.

Atelier Marie Remake: The Alchemist of Salburg

You may be familiar with the Atelier series, specifically Ryza and Sophie, but how about returning to where it all began? Atelier Marie: The Alchemist of Salburg kickstarted the RPG series, and it’s getting the remake treatment on July 12th on PS4, PS5, PC and Nintendo Switch. The visuals are updated, with cute 3D character models and stages, while event illustrations are now animated.

Thankfully, the tutorial, exploration and collecting of materials have been improved. Long-time fans can look forward to new events and characters, but if you’re dreading the five-year time limit that past Atelier games are known for, don’t worry, as the new Unlimited Mode lets you play at your own pace.

Blackout Protocol

A twin-stick co-op shooter with rogue-lite elements vaguely based on the SCP? That’s Blackout Protocol in a nutshell. It launches on July 20th for PC as an early access title and sees the S2P Corporation venturing through Sector 13 to deal with supernatural entities. Shrouded in darkness, you must deal with randomly changing environments and friendly fire, using light to guide the way.

Some entities react differently to being illuminated, further adding to the unpredictability and your Panic Gauge, which can result in debilitating conditions. With skills that carry over between runs, you have to survive more than a few deaths to reach the bottom.

Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara

If you’re looking for a more laid-back platforming experience, Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara may be worth checking out. It sees Koa and Napopo journeying through the world of Mara (which some may recognize from Summer in Mara) and discovering all kinds of things, from pirates to volcanoes. There are collectables to collect and secrets to uncover, but those keen on speedrunning also have options.

With eight different levels, skins to unlock, characters to meet, and sailing, Koa and the Five Pirates of Mara promises a fun, colorful adventure. It releases on July 27th for PS4, PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, PC and Nintendo Switch.