Is Spectre Divide Any Good?

Two weeks after Spectre Divide hit the Steam store, many wonder if the new CS2 and VALORANT rival has been receiving a mixed rating.

Spectre Divide Has Benn Struggling So Far

Spectre Divide’s full version was released on Steam on September 3 and thousands of players have already tried its novel features. The game brings the new core concept of Duality to the genre, allowing players to control an additional character. This effectively makes the 3v3 game into a 6v6 and opens a ton of tactical and gameplay possibilities.

However, it seems that the ambitious title with unique gameplay concepts and unique art style isn’t fairing all too well. Spectre Divide has received a lot of negative reviews over the past few days, meaning it has a “mixed” rating, according to its official Steam page.

This might come as somewhat of a surprise, as the game was praised before its official release. Its unique gameplay concepts were lauded as a great alternative to other tactical shooters like Counter-Strike 2 or VALORANT. However, now that Spectre Divide has been fully released, it’s received quite a bit of negative attention.

With that being the case newer players may want to know if the game really offers what the devs promised and if it’s worth playing now.

What Do Players Say About the Gameplay of Spectre Divide?

With over 12,000 reviews on Steam alone, the game has already received quite a lot of attention. However, these reviews are split about 50/50 into positive and negative. While many have praised the game, just as many have found faults in it. So let’s start with their concerns first.

One major problem many players seem to have is the gameplay itself. While even many of the negative reviews praised Spectre Divide’s unique concept of duality, they also say it’s not implemented great. Many players say the gunplay is somewhat boring. “The gunplay, instead of being about precision is a more COD style,” one review says. And while the player doesn’t mind this style, they say that “when you mix it with slower, more precise movement it just feels….. bland… with a low skill ceiling.”

Another gripe for many players is the maps and how they are designed. Many think that the maps while looking ok thanks to Spectre Divide’s art style, aren’t very special and don’t bring anything new to the table. Others say that the maps feel a bit too big for the low 3vs3 player numbers. This issue is compounded by the fact that the sprinting speed in the game is somewhat slow. “imo they should of started with smaller ones to get people used to the game more then expand size later,” one player recommends.

You will encounter these issues when you enter a match, but it turns out even doing so is a problem, as the matchmaking system doesn’t seem optimized, according to many players. “Players are often assigned to the first available server, regardless of the ping, leading to matches where you are constantly ping-diffed by opponents,” one user summarized the issue.

What Else Do Players Dislike about the Game?

Another thing many fans have pointed out as an issue is the multitude of bugs and problems that seem to plague the game. Frequent crashes have poisoned much of the experience of many fans. It is somewhat to be expected as the game recently launched. In recent years, it has become an unenviable trend even for AAA games to launch with a ton of issues. If that’s the case, then it shouldn’t be surprising that a relatively small developer such as Mountaintop Studios also has these troubles. That being said, these bugs and crashes rightfully annoy players.

It also seems that the in-game store is a huge dealbreaker for many. It seems that Spectre Divide’s cosmetics are rather expensive, compared to other games. “The Shop is an insult. One player skin is 20$?? and the founder pack is 70$???” one reviewer eloquently wrote.

What Do Players Like About Spectre Divide?

While the game has undergone a lot of criticism, not all seems bad. A multitude of positive reviews have praised the Duality concept introduced by the game, something that even a lot of the negative reviews agree with. Many fans have said that this brings a whole new dimension to the tactical shooter genre. Naturally, Spectre Divide is often compared to VALORANT and it seems that a lot of the players who have liked it have come from the latter game.

Another positive about the new shooter is its aesthetic. Many have praised the cyberpunk style of the game as well as the comic book-like textures. Players have also liked the cosmetics in Spectre Divide. However, even they often argue that the process can be quite high.

Interestingly, a lot of the players who gave positive reviews have come from the beta days. In fact, Spectre Divide’s beta dominated the Steam charts a few weeks ago, breaking some records. It seems that many of those players have liked the game so much that they have continued playing it upon full release.

Conclusions

So, is Spectre Divide a good or a bad game? Unfortunately, there doesn’t seem to be a definitive answer, as for every good thing the game shows, there is one bad, and vice versa. There also seems to be a big divide between what players like. Some praise the gunplay, while others blast it. Some like the movement, saying it’s fun, while others say it’s bland and boring.

However, both sides also agree on some things. The Duality concept often seems to get praise from many players. But both sides also often agree that the prices for cosmetics seem pretty high.

Ultimately, the best way to say for yourself is to try the game. Fortunately, it’s free on Steam.