A Look At GR:Breakpoint Closed Beta

We already covered on these pages how the latest installment of the Ghost Recon franchise surfaced from the web, but I actually was kind of puzzled when the release date was set for next October. In the last few years, combat-themed Ubisoft games used to come out on March, with the October-November windows left for the Assassins Creeds or Watch_Dogs games. So here we are, at the beginning of September, analyzing the closed beta of Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, once again thanks to the codes provided by my good friend LordTindarus.

It is 2025, and Mr. Jace Skell, leader of Skell Tech, has built a thriving community on Auroa Island made of scientists and specialists of any kind, all enrolled with the purpose to invent and develop tomorrows technologies.

When and USS Navy ship is sunk in the near vicinities of said island, a team of CIA SpecOps is sent to uncover the truth. That is the beginning of Operation Greenstone.

It is kinda weird that out of the last 4 Ubisoft titles that I loved (counting this one as well, together with The Division 1 and 2 and GR: Wildlands) three of them start aboard a chopper, and it always doesn’t end to well. This is no exception …

The first thing that you notice is that this is no ordinary Ghost Recon since it is missing the typical party-of-four mechanics that have been present in the franchise since day one. This time, at least in the beta, you are on your own with no AI-controlled agents to help you, a choice that seems conceived to foster the players to join forces instead of playing as a lone wolf. Despite this mechanic, you still have the ability to tag and kill your opponents (up to 3 of them) but, instead of ordering the AI-controlled agents to do so, you can make use of mini-drones. As said, we are in 2025 and drones are everywhere, but you will have to buy them in shops, loot them or craft them. Like in The Division, GR: Breakpoint sports a meta area where you can meet other players, shop, craft weapons or engage in PvP activities. The PvP was not included in the beta (or, at least, I could never access it), so I can’t report back on this matter.

An interesting feature introduced in the franchise is the ability to bivouac, in a way similar to the one seen in the latest Tomb Raider trilogy. Those bivouacs both serve as fast-travel points and as crafting stations, where consuming rations and such grants you a time-limited extra buff (e.g. +20% wounds resistance for 60 minutes) like camping in Final Fantasy XV.

So, how can you make it on your own in the open world, when a small army of trained soldiers lead by a former Ghost is on hot pursuit? Well, the secret seems to lie in your enhanced capability of combining assault and stealth technics, in order to take out smaller groups of opponents or deny the drones surveillance capabilities.

The map seems to be really big, and so is the skills tree which sports four different classes: from medics to sharpshooter, passing through the mixed styles.

Using your drone and joining a party will sure make your life much easier since the game is often unforgiving and having a companion who can revive you is indeed a good thing…

… yet exploring Auroa at your own pace can be very rewarding (teammates often tend to rush through the game). I am already in love with this world and with my character and October 4th can’t come soon enough. What about you?