MeinMMO editor Dariusz has taken a look at the beta of Spectre Divide and is already a big fan after just a few hours. Find out here what makes shroud’s tactical shooter so good.
Spectre Divide is a tactical shooter developed by Mountaintop Studios. The gameplay follows the classic gameplay of tactical shooters like Valorant and Counter-Strike, but has a few special features.
If you haven’t heard of Spectre Divide yet, I’ll briefly explain what kind of game it is. Simply open the text “What is Spectre Divide?” There you will find a summary of the game.
What is Spectre Divide?
In Spectre Divide you have the same goal as in CS or Valorant. One team defends, one team attacks. The attackers’ goal is to plant a bomb. The defenders’ goal is to prevent the bomb from being planted or to defuse the planted bomb. You also collect money with each round you play, which you then use to buy weapons and gadgets.
However, Spectre Divide has a few important differences:
And of course the big special feature: you have 2 bodies that you can control, not just one. You can switch to this second body, called Spectre, at the touch of a button. The second body can be used tactically and, for example, stand on the spot where your main body is not. Or you can place it so that flanking enemies can be intercepted with it. Or you can use the Spectre as a second chance, because there is no respawn.
You have the choice how to use your Spectre.
Here we have already introduced you to Spectre Divide in detail:
Give the people movement and visors!
I’ve now played Spectre Divide for almost 6 hours. After playing the short stress test on August 3rd, which only lasted a few hours, I jumped straight into the closed beta on August 13th. I’ve actually been looking forward to the beta for a few days, because I already had a lot of fun with the stress test.
Spectre Divide simply does a few things differently than Valorant and Counter-Strike, which bothered me a bit about the two genre giants. Unfortunately, two of these points are central gameplay aspects of the shooters:
To say that these two points “bothered” me is perhaps a bit of an exaggeration. But I said to friends years ago: If I could shoot while running in Valorant like I can in Rainbow Six: Siege and using the scope was more important, I wouldn’t play anything else.
In Spectre Divide, scopes are important. At long range, you won’t hit much with hip fire. Plus, you don’t lose any accuracy when moving. You can spam “A” and “D” wonderfully. Tactical shooter with scope use and movement? I love it!
Spectre Divide gives detailed insights into the gameplay of the shooter
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Unique gameplay through multiple bodies
Of course, the great special feature of Spectre Divide is also a plus point that I really like – not only because I have a second chance with the second body if I have once again rashly entered into a gunfight that I could only lose.
But that’s actually a big advantage. Instead of waiting several minutes for your four remaining players to win or lose the round, you can get back into the fight. This simply gives you more actual playing time and fewer breaks. It also means you have less time to blame your fellow players or insult opponents.
Regardless, the principle of two bodies really does offer countless tactical possibilities. We had a few situations in which we cleverly outplayed the opponents with the second body and were then happy that it actually worked.
A very simple example: Fake an attack on the A spot with the second body, but attack the B spot. The opponents switch to their bodies on “A” and you have a few seconds to get to the spot and position yourself well.
There are really countless other ways to use the two bodies tactically and it’s just great fun.
The perfect size for groups of friends
I’ve been playing tactical shooters for a few years now. One thing I’ve seen over and over again: the teams almost never consist of 5 players playing together. Yet most tactical shooters are designed for 5v5 matches.
Of course, my experience in the games is not representative of the entire player base, but there have been large community discussions on the topic before. In Rainbow Six: Siege, for example, players have been demanding for years that there be separate matchmaking for solo players, 2/3-person teams, and full 5-person squads.
Whether that’s a good idea is debatable. But the players are talking about it because it affects them. A team consisting of a squad of 2 and a squad of 3 is simply at a disadvantage against 5 experienced players in their fixed constellation. However, many players are unable to put together a squad of five when they are spontaneously gaming after work. Let’s be honest: someone is always missing.
Spectre Divide is 3v3. This makes it much easier to fill a full team. You don’t have to rely on random players, who can be really toxic in the worst case scenario. But even if there are only two of you in Spectre Divide, it’s much better than playing a 5v5 game with two or three people. You can have a significant influence on the mood of your team.
You are two thirds of the team. If you communicate a lot, are friendly and encourage your random teammate, there is a high chance that he will not behave toxically either. However, even three of you won’t be able to calm down two toxic randoms in Valorant.
The conclusion: The best PvP shooter 2024
For me, Spectre Divide is the best PvP shooter of 2024 so far – even if it is only a closed beta so far. The gameplay is familiar, but still unique. You quickly become familiar with the basic gameplay and can then try to play well tactically. The matches are already exciting, intense and all without bugs or server problems – at least I haven’t had any yet.
For me, XDefiant is the biggest competitor for the title of “best PvP shooter 2024”, but Ubisoft’s title is simply missing a lot for me. The progression system could be better, shots are still sometimes not registered properly and there are also a ton of bugs. I really enjoy playing XDefiant and have been checking it out since its release, but it just hasn’t left as positive a lasting impression as Spectre Divide.
Delta Force: Hawk Ops could be a really good PvP shooter with the Battlefield mode, but I haven’t been able to test the alpha yet. In terms of innovation, I don’t see it having as much of an impact as Spectre Divide. A 3v3 tactical shooter with 2 bodies is really unique.
And what else? All the extraction shooters like Gray Zone Warfare or Arena: Breakout Infinite feel too similar. I’d better not even start on the massive performance problems. And Sony’s new hero shooter Concord isn’t very promising either: Sony’s new shooter for PS5 and Steam needs to change a lot if it doesn’t want to die within a week