Quantum Break Reviews
Quantum Break tries to master video game and TV storytelling, but fails at both.
What may seem like an ambitious project is in the fact the combination of a standard third-person shooter and the kind of cheap sci-fi drama you might find in the darkest corners of Sky TV. Visually tepid and filled with abortive gunfights and platforming, Quantum Break also struggles to contain its plot, while at the same time underselling its characters. Remedy's previous games have been characterised by a distinctive tone and knowing humour. By comparison Quantum Break is a glossy, charmless, wholly moderate outing.
While the boundaries and possibilities of storytelling within the video game medium are being explored, such missteps can be forgiven. This is, nevertheless, a costly mistake that should never be repeated.
Quantum Break is an ambitious experience, but neither the video game nor the live-action sides of this time travel story come together in a satisfactory way.
The phrase "all spark, no flare" fits like a glove for Quantum Break. It doesn't do anything wrong, but there's also nothing special about it. It looks cool, the time machine-induced apocalypse starts in a promising way, and some of the characters are quite interesting, but it doesn't take much time to realise that hidden behind the flashy shootouts, famous faces, and ambitious storytelling, is a boring and generic sci-fi tale that never really goes anywhere.
Its shortcomings aside, there’s quite a bit of enjoyment to be had with Quantum Break, thanks to its combat system. Platforming and puzzle-solving are rough around the edges, but if Remedy intends on making this a series, there’s reason to look forward to its future. But for now, especially since it can be beaten in under 10 hours, the game is best experienced during a week’s rental.
A brave attempt at cross medium entertainment, let down by leaning more one way than the other.
This is the most frustrated I've been with a shoddy port in years. There have been other high-profile trainwrecks in the recent past, like Batman: Arkham Knight and Assassin's Creed: Unity. But I didn't like those games, aside from their obvious PC woes.
If you are more interested in Quantum Break for its gameplay, you may want to hold off until a sale or rental fits your budget, but if you are looking for something that takes a daring step forward with how a video game can be made, Quantum Break is perfect for you.
It would be easy, and not without justification, to suggest glazing over the narrative chutzpah and just enjoy the game. But Quantum Break's narrative and gameplay have a habit of bumping into each other. This is a game with plenty of good ideas. Too many, perhaps, with none given the room to flourish in what is a lavish, clumsy but often entertaining cacophony.
At one point, Paul Serene emphatically states that the timeline is set, and that the advent of time fracturing and collapsing on itself can't be avoided. There is only one reality, he argues. If Quantum Break is a game fractured between two worlds, the one reality set for us as players is the one in which it's a shooter that often isn't a shooter, and a story that doesn't fully explore its narrative potential. It has intriguing ideas regarding both, but in this case, two halves don't really make a whole.
Quantum Break looks slick, but bouts of ineffective gameplay and its mixed-media construction make this a hit-and-miss experience.
A less than fruitful mix of TV show and video game, where although the individual components are competent they're never quite interesting enough to justify the peculiar set-up.
While the interactive core of Quantum Break is a serviceable ode to pulp science-fiction, the episodes are a reminder of what makes the genre enjoyable beyond metaphysical thought exercises: the ridiculousness.
quantum Break takes an interesting concept but keeps it as simple as possible, ultimately failing to grip the player with its players or horribly long "TV episodes".
The game does boast high production values with its show and captivating graphical effects, which are aided by a thoughtful story that tackles time travel with a logical, thematic bend. However, most of this obscures half of the boring characters and the show's focus on mostly uninteresting side characters. The audio may be great all around, but the fascinating visuals and gameplay are marred by unfortunate limitations, respectively from a technical and imaginative standpoint.
A successful experiment of merging live action TV with a video game, Quantum Break is an enjoyable ride through the mysteries of time travel, even as uneven presentation quality and average gameplay keep it firmly grounded in reality.
Mechanically this might not be anything special, even with the time manipulation powers, but the world and story are enough to draw you in. This is a game that knows how to paint an interesting world and immerse you in it, with a good mix of fighting, exploration and branching cinematics.
Review in Arabic | Read full review
While the base gameplay is very familiar, the new twists and turns - and the full T.V. episodes - make Quantum Break well worth experiencing.