Into the Breach review

Recommended

by MeZev

I am completely addicted to into the breach. At first glance, it is only an n-th small tactical that really does not pay mine. 2D chart with no particular charm, looped loop, medium sound effects, no history just a context that holds in 1 sentence, a squad of 3 poor Mechs, 8x8 grids to play in 5 rounds... nothing sloppy but at the grip everything looks rather low-end. And then I dove in and I got caught up in the mechanics. The combinatorial is just staggering. Playing into the breach is like solving a matte problem in 3 strokes to chess. only 3 Mechs are on the ground (there are 10 different games to unlock) but each Mech is unique and the challenge is to make them work together since the 3 play each round. The tactical logic is totally deterministic, we know exactly where are the enemies (invaders like balèzes insects), what they threaten, what damage they will do, what are their characteristics and skills, we know exactly what is the environment, both the properties of the terrain as well as the events of the grid (nothing special, volcano, thunderstorm, aerial support...). The only unknown element is how the enemies will position themselves in the next round. A part consists in the release of 2 to 4 Islands and a final fight more or less strong depending on the number of islands that one chooses to make before. The Islands have specific terrain and opponents. On each island, you have to do 5 missions that each have their own specific objectives (destruction, protection, use of elements). The objectives are optional, their purpose is to earn rewards that will enable the evolution of the Mechs. The Mechs can be sacrificed, they are repaired from one fight to another but we lose the pilot. The Mechs can work on its own but the survival of an experienced driver who gives good bonuses is important because we can reuse one for the next campaign. The only critical point is not to lose too many buildings, they are associated with a global energy grid and if it falls to zero it's game over. Some Mechs do direct damage, some do repeated damage, others can move friends or enemies, others project shields, others have combined actions... each fight becomes a kind of mini-puzzle where we move our parts and those of the opponent while using the peculiarities of the terrain. For example, there is a skill that with a shot on an empty box between an enemy and a friend will push the enemy into the nearby water box while exiting the friend from another villain's firing line and with a little luck put him in better position for a Gir. This kind of analysis of the position and combinations of effects is permanent in into the breach and this is what makes all its salt and makes its repetitiveness all theoretical. Each small campaign of a few fights in 5 small rounds on their small grid 8x8 will be different from the previous one, because we will have chosen another sequence of missions and other Mechs that we have made evolve otherwise and suddenly the puzzles will be Different. I love this game but it will not appeal to any tactical fans. My feeling is that, in terms of intellectual approach to implement for its resolution, it is closer to failures (with a reflection on 3 more hits accessible anyway) or an invisible Inc or even a contraption maker than an XCom.