Michael “shroud” Grzesiek is a well-known streamer and former CS:GO pro. He is regarded as an aim god and is a legend in the shooter genre. In March 2023, shroud announced that he is making his own game. For the first time, gameplay for this game can now be seen.
What kind of game is it? Shroud’s game is a tactical shooter called Spectre Divide, which is set to be released as a free-to-play title on Steam and is being developed by Mountaintop Studios. On August 3, you had the opportunity to take a first look at the gameplay during a short stress test.
A release date for Spectre Divide is currently not known. However, it states on Steam “coming soon.” Additionally, the stress test could indicate an upcoming release. Many developers use such tests to put their servers to the test right before the release.
Tactical shooter with a unique approach
What is the game about? Spectre Divide is partially a classic tactical shooter like Counter-Strike or Valorant: One team attacks, one team defends. The attackers’ goal is to plant a bomb. The defenders’ goal is to prevent the planting or defuse the planted bomb.
In addition, you earn money with each round played, which you can use to buy weapons and gadgets/abilities. These range from flashbangs to protective barriers to smoke grenades. However, there is no respawn. If all players on a team are eliminated before the bomb is successfully planted or defused, the round ends.
However, the gameplay, despite the similarities, differs significantly from CS2 and Valorant. Instead of 5v5, Spectre Divide is played in a 3v3 format. Moreover, you make much more use of aiming down sights and are also accurate while shooting on the move. The big feature of the shooter is called “Duality.”
The video provides an in-depth explanation of the game principle:
Duality: Two bodies, one brain
What makes the game unique? Spectre Divide differs in various aspects from games like CS2. However, the biggest feature is the so-called Duality system: Each player has two bodies that they can control within a round. The second body is called Spectre.
The second body opens up various tactical possibilities. For example, you can defend the A site with one of your two bodies and place the second body on the B site. When the opponents attack B, you can quickly switch to your Spectre on B with the push of a button and support your teammates in defense.
Moreover, your Spectre also provides you with a second chance. Although there is no respawn in the shooter, if your first body dies, you can continue to play with the second body.
Spectre Divide adopts a style that, according to the developers, is inspired by 90s anime. The setting and the graphic style are therefore not realistic and differ significantly from CS2. In the comments on YouTube, some players write that the shooter looks like a mix of Valorant and Borderlands. Therefore, the style might be less appealing to CS2 fans.
While Spectre Divide could become a competitor to Counter-Strike and Valorant, Sony’s new hero shooter Concord has to be compared more to Overwatch. Unfortunately, the Open Beta has not yet convinced MeinMMO editor Dariusz of the game: Sony’s new shooter for PS5 and Steam needs to make some changes if it doesn’t want to die within a week
