Everyone who played Cyberpunk 2077 knows the dangers of Night City, complete with dangerous cyber psychos appearing on its streets. Widespread AI and augmentations, combined with many Cyberpunk 2077 the gang's penchant for violence and carnage means that anyone who walks its streets must be tough to survive. Theoretically, they are not alone. The NCPD's MaxTac (Maximum Force Tactical Division) exists as a special tactical ops team, an extreme Swat team, to deal with cyber psychosis and threats of a similar nature. Anyone who has gone on a massive crime spree Cyberpunk 2077 know how punishing MaxTac can be, but a brand new swat simulator on Steam essentially putting the players in MaxTac's shoes.
There are plenty of Swat simulators available in the gaming space, but few come close to replicating the high-intensity, moment-to-moment decision-making and danger associated with Swat operations. Ready or not is one of the best Swat simulators out there, and the new one Steam games, called Defectiveessentially borrows its gameplay loop, putting players in a MaxTac-like role and letting them loose in a cyberpunk dystopia.
Available for wishlist on Steam, Defective is still under development, but everything shown by empty vessels is promising. Essentially, players take on the role of a cyberpunk SWAT team as they face hostile AI and cyber threats from The System, the controlling AI. Its authoritative rule has created a police system under The System, a group of rogue cops or a variety of gangs. Players will need to equip themselves with state-of-the-art weapons and technology to accomplish objectives such as smuggling weapons, assassinating targets, or arresting suspects, to name a few.
Cyberpunk Swat mission in defect
While key details about its story elements are barebones at the moment, Defective has detailed how co-op and PVP work (although co-op is not exclusive to the PVP matches). Essentially, each team enters the city/match with their own mission and represents a different interest. It is possible for quest items to dynamically intersect with others, although they don't always do so. It's described as “four simultaneous co-op missions happening in the same space” that sometimes directly oppose each other.
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4v4v4v4 game loop
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Deploy with a squad, representing one of several factions, and gear up with weapons and gear.
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Pursue multi-phase objectives that evolve or change mid-battle.
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Environments are destructible or interactable, e.g. destroying walls, flipping furniture to cover them, and even using trash and dust for distractions.
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There are unique cyberpunk systems rooted in the game. For example, it is possible to hijack enemy bodies.
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Teammates or medical stations are required to survive. Resource management is a must.
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Each match reflects a city that is affected by goals and player interactions.
Laws do not exist here, only the System does
An example of mission objectives for a Defective the squad comes with primary and secondary objectives that are progression locked. How or if players solve these items can determine how the next objective unfolds. Some goals already outlined could be finishing off a rogue AI, arresting high-priority targets, or completing a REPO (although it's unclear what that means at this point).
For example, the system's faction may attempt to extract valuable enemy data, reboot local systems to harm both citizens and gangs, and otherwise remove all traces that they were ever there. Some FPS games fall down by having too few objectives that are too easy, but it's clear that Defect at least has an interesting handful already confirmed. There are even end states designated as “Neural Failstate Triggered.”
Defects Steam game features at a glance
- Cyberpunk squad shooter takes place in a dystopian city ruled by a cold, authoritarian AI
- Multiple play styles: deep single player, tactical co-op with friends or frantic 4v4v4v4 PvP battles
- Dynamic battles with multiple objectives it changed in the middle of the match
- Tactical Troop Coordination: gear up together, capture pickups and use advanced weapons and technology to survive.
- Multiplayer across platforms with both online and LAN support, plus full controller compatibility.
- Contains a level editor for custom scenarios and mod-friendly gameplay.
Defective gives a premium on Gunplay and Immersion
Where simulation games can live or die is how well they simulate the experience. Ready or nots simulation of SWAT scenarios helps take that game to the next level, while the deep lore and urban design of Cyberpunk 2077 helping the world feel realistic, if more dystopian than the real world. Combining the two is a daunting task, no doubt, but Defective is well aware of this fact.
The world of Defective is a smog-covered city where an AI has abused the population to the point of self-destruction. To reflect this, the city looks and feels like a war zone. “Every back alley, every hole in the wall, and every rooftop” is designed with collective defense in mind, according to the developer, contributing to both immersion and tactical scenarios. Its maps and areas are similarly designed.
An example is the wall, a narrow bulkhead space surrounded by some sort of factory – probably powered by the system. Another is graffiti-infested sewers that are oppressive in smell, sight lines and construction, with multiple human living spaces under the system's thumb. Even simple areas, such as a boiler room or a place designated as Corner 2B, are tightly designed. The benefit is twofold: players feel oppressed by the system and fights will be hard pressed, as fights in a swat simulator game should be.
Cyberpunk 2077 and Swat Simulator Fans should keep an eye out for defects
Of course, the idea and execution of a game are two completely different processes. It will be interesting to see how well Defective may deliver on its own goals and promises, but the sheer inspiration of such a game should inspire fans to follow it closely. Between the forces of Cyberpunk 2077 as part of the genre and the austerity befitting gun games a la Ready or not, Defective could be something special…if it doesn't fall on the System, that is.
