Glassbreakers preview: A god among tabletop games
I have a very rocky relationship with VR. When headsets first started popping up, I wasn't interested due to the high price. However, as soon as I put one on for the first time, I was hooked. The immersion is unparalleled. Traditional consoles cannot match the feeling that you are part of that world. Yet, once I purchased my own headset, a PS VR, I was extremely disappointed. Partly because the first game I tried was Transference, but mostly because most games I played made me extremely nauseous. VR and I were not to be, whether that was Resident Evil 7 or Rez Infinite. The only game I could play for more than 15 minutes at a time was Astro Bot, with its unique perspective.
Astro Bot is excellent, but one perfect game was not enough for me to consider upgrading my headset or exploring another model. I still considered myself VR curious, but was cautious of my limits and my desire to vomit every time a headset came into the vicinity. However, Glassbreakers is a tabletop simulator, and I believed that this new take on VR could be stable enough for me to keep my lunch down. And my assumption was correct on this point, there was no nausea to be found. What I didn't predict is how Glassbreakers would become one of the best games I tried during the entirety of Gamescom.
Glassbreakers is a tabletop simulator, and one of the best games I tried at Gamescom 2023
Polyarc
Developer Polyarc is well known for the Moss games, which both gained critical acclaim in the VR circuit. However, this is a completely different project, only linked by the forest creatures seen in both games. These act more as an Easter egg for long-time Polyarc fans, but you don't need any knowledge of Moss in order to enjoy Glassbreakers. Once you put on your headset you are greeted by a cupboard of possibilities. A spinning wheel on your left will allow you to select which of your forest minions you wish to take into battle, while the wheel on the right will let you customize them. Each have their own strengths and weaknesses, and customization is purely cosmetic.
You can also customize your look in the game. You'll face off against another player, and the pair of you will appear like masked cultists high above the board. Again, these don't offer you any buffs, but it's interesting how you can recognize another player by their look. What Glassbreakers nails is the "easy to pick up, difficult to master" gameplay style. You have three champions, and each character only carries one special ability. They will auto-attack as soon as an enemy is in range, and you can send them out and recall them with just one flick of the controller. This is important as the board is huge, giving you an even greater sense of being a God over these cute fighters, and you pull your way across the board and back in order to see all of it.
You have three champions, and each character only carries one special ability.
Polyarc
The battles take place in real time, and this adds to the energy of each short match. The play area has surprising depth to it, and you will find yourself fully extending your reach. As the title suggests, there are different glass orbs around the board, and you'll have to take at least two if you hope to take down the enemy base. While all of this seems simple, there are small strategies that won't seem apparent when you first start to play. One example is that the glass orbs hit back as you attack them, but they will only attack the first champion that approaches. There are optimizations to be made, such as sending in your tank first, allowing a safe path for your attackers to deal the majority of damage.
In my short 30-minute hands-on session, I figured out that when your characters respawn – which they can do in certain areas of the map – they can push enemy characters out of the way, helping you gain back control. I'm sure there will be plenty of these small techniques that will become part of the meta, but I'll have to leave that for the experts to uncover. I left my 30-minute session wanting more, and that is proof of how strong the concept is.
Battles take place in real time, which adds to the energy of each short match.
Polyarc
Glassbreakers would not be nearly as powerful without VR. You feel huge above an already impressive playing field, with your forest creatures moving nimbly and battling beneath you. Polyarc clearly understands the platform, and I was incredibly impressed by what the team could do, even when working in a completely new genre. For those who have VR, it's definitely a must-have game, and for those without, it's one worth considering purchasing a headset for. I know I will.
