Hyper Light Breaker's first gameplay trailer shows off stylish action and fast-paced traversal
The 3D roguelike hits early access this Fall
Last year, developer Heart Machine announced they were adapting the 2D pixelated action of Hyper Light Drifter for their 3D co-op sequel, Hyper Light Breaker. Earlier in January, we learned that Breaker’s roguelike structure would include procedurally generated open worlds, and we’ve now seen them in action thanks to its first gameplay trailer. Breaker doesn’t look as effortlessly stylish as its predecessor, but its bullet-hell action and fast-paced traversal have me eager to learn more when it launches into early access this Fall.
Hyper Light Breaker stitches together each biome, Pangea-style, to create the “Infinite Open Worlds" shown in the trailer above. You’ll only see the game’s dilapidated ruins, hot-pink deserts, and lush alien forests once... until you die and everything is remixed anew. It's expectedly pretty, even though I feel the original’s vibrant, kaleidoscopic style has been lost in the transition to 3D.
Our first looks at combat are still exciting, though. The original handgun returns alongside an all-new array of tools such as a hoverboard (brilliant) and a glider (even better.) Hackin’ and slashin’ is still the primary form of attack and it looks just as cool here as it did in Hyper Light Drifter. This time around, you’ll be able to modify your loadouts with other weapons like clawed gauntlets and a hefty hammer, on top of your classic sword.
Our review of the first Hyper Light Drifter called it “absolutely wonderful.” We threw particular praise at its “ridiculously lovely pixel graphics that are constantly breathtaking” and “clever world that evokes classic 8- and 16-bit classics.” High praise from six years ago, but we’ll see if Hyper Light Breaker can fill those (very large) shoes when it launches into early access on Steam this Fall.