Brink: Thinking And Killing

The wait for Splash Damage's hybrid single/multiplayer shooter Brink feels oh-so-long now. From mutterings to concept art to proof of concept to concept to ooh-that-looks-ace to last month's hands-on sessions (which RPS hasn't actually yet had, mostly due to haphazard GamesCom scheduling on our part), the near-future team-barney has very much been made flesh. It's been a long time coming, but all of sudden we're theoretically now just a couple of seasons away from release. Spring 2011? Oh, that'd be grand. Here's why the big-faced factional warfare game matters to its creators....

The high-risk gamble is, of course, pouring a a meaty, satisfying singleplayer gravy over mechanics that seem to fundamentally stem from multiplayer man-killing. Despite the commonality of the targeting reticule, these are two schools of design that have so very often failed to co-exist. Brink is trying to make that happen, which is precisely why my beadiest eye has been staring at it with unblinking interest all these long months.