BREAK ARTS II is the latest game to make the leap from mobile to PC, but unlike other titles that try this BREAK ARTS II comes with some notable improvements and enhancements that will have fans of futuristic robot racing games knocking down the Steam store door. That’s right…I just said, “robot racing” and we’re talking cool robots…robots with more potential upgrades and cosmetic options than all the Armored Core games combined. And sure; you’ll spend a majority of you game time tinkering in the Garage, but when you do finally get around to racing, prepare for the insane thrills and speeds we’ve come to expect from games like WipeOut and F-Zero.
BREAK ARTS II is all about building the most awesome robot battle racer you can imagine, and the only limit to the customization options truly is your imagination. There are so many pieces and parts to sort through and the selection of paintable areas and limitless color pallet will melt your brain. And once you have constructed your Optimus Prime of the racing league, prepare for some of the most fabulous tracks you’ve seen in this type of racing game. It’s like TRON, but with a million colors instead of three. Courses are loaded with details and effects, and it all whips by at a locked 60fps at 4K resolution on a 1080ti card.
The actual racing is great with a bit of power management in the turbo boost department as well as lining up the perfect shots to take out your opponents. There is even this awesome 180-spin move where you keep going at top-speed while flipping around to shoot racers behind you. Suck it, Mario Kart! Robots are under constant acceleration so you only need to worry about boosting and staying out of the deceleration zones. Some of the curvier tracks will send you off course, which slows you down faster than gravel on an F1 track, so prepare to boost when you’re back on the track. There is also an innovative side-dash move to avoid or perhaps cause collisions.
I didn’t experience any racer AI issues like rubber banding or last-second victories, but the game does require that you frequently upgrade your robot to stay competitive. You’ll earn Capital which is a mix of XP and currency that will eventually unlock tiered artistic ranks, which in turn grant you more parts with which to customize your robot. All parts are unlocked by ranking up so there is no in-game purchases or DLC to create a pay-to-win scenario.
The process of building the ultimate racing bot is fairly in-depth when you look into all the components and how they all factor in to the delicate balancing act of power and speed. You can test your Data Load using the handy test track available right from the garage. This is quite possibly the most intricate garage tweaking I’ve seen outside of a Gran Turismo game, with an unparalleled ability to create a competitive racer that suits your own play style. And once you have all the stats figured out it’s time to customize your look with awesome paint and custom weapons that you can create from scratch. You even have the ability to add “joints” to your model that lets you articulate them in new custom poses.
BREAK ARTS II is a high energy racing game fueled by visuals and a soundtrack not unlike Gundam or Zone of Enders, and when you combine it with the freedom of unlimited creation and customization in the Garage; you might find yourself spending more time building your robot than racing it. A single-player campaign makes up the core of the game while Quick Races and online matches will keep you playing long after. With a style and attitude mirroring games like Rez Infinite, BREAK ARTS II is as much an experience as a game. Prepare to have your mind blown.
