New Free2Play shooter on Steam delights players: “Best free CoD option”

On September 8, 2022, Shatterline, a new shooter, was released on Steam (PC). Since the release, more than 21,000 players have played simultaneously and praise the Free2Play game. MeinMMO introduces you to the new shooter.

What is this shooter? Ukrainian indie studio Frag Lab has released Shatterline in Early Access on Steam. The shooter is roughly based on classics like Call of Duty and also offers its own elements such as a co-op mode.

Shatterline is currently still in development, which is why not all content is available yet. The developers also note that the game is constantly being worked on and new features are being added later. But mistakes cannot be ruled out.

Shatterline is already a huge hit for fans. The game has 75% positive reviews on Steam and many players are calling it a better free alternative to Call of Duty – or an ideal pastime while waiting for the upcoming CoD: Modern Warfare 2.

Here’s Shatterline Early Access gameplay:

What Shatterline offers: At its core, Shatterline is an arena shooter with a roguelike co-op mode (“Expedition”) and various maps with 4 PvP modes that you know from the shooter genre:

• Team Deathmatch
• “Conquest”
• “Plant-the-Bomb” (search and destroy, cf. Counter-Strike)
• escort

For the game modes you have 8 playable characters (“operatives”) with different origins, equipped with different skills and equipment items. However, the equipment can be adjusted in the game and partly made using a crafting system.

In addition, Shatterline offers a selection of 25 weapons that you can change with attachments, similar to the weapon smith from Call of Duty.

You can Download Shatterline for free on Steam, the download is only about 19.2 GB, making it slimmer than Call of Duty traditional. The game is funded through a store where you can buy cosmetics for premium currency.

75% positive on Steam: “Everything currently missing from CoD”

This is how Shatterline arrives: Since release, over 21,000 players have played Shatterline simultaneously and the average is over 11,000 (via steamcharts). Among other things, the players praise the gunplay and the scope. Compared to current AAA shooters, it is exactly “to the point”. Steam user Pim is leaving in his review detailed positive and negative points.

The balancing is okay, even if there are one or the other ability that seems too strong, while others are almost useless. However, Shatterline is ideal for just playing a few rounds. Some fans call it “the best free CoD option” that offers “everything that’s currently missing from CoD”.

Meanwhile, there are concerns about monetization in particular. It is still okay, but with a view to the crafting system it could shift in an ugly Pay2Win direction. The devs should also keep an eye on balancing so as not to get out of hand.

There are also bugs, which is normal for an Early Access title. A player notes that in Shatterline, the full name and hometown would be displayed. However, given the many positive reviews, it is difficult to confirm whether this is really a problem.

Have you tried Shatterline yet? What’s your opinion on the game? Tell us in the comments!

If you’re looking for another free alternative, check out Overwatch 2. Blizzard’s big shooter title was released on October 4th and already impressed us in the preliminary test:

2 hours in Overwatch 2 is enough to show me what I’ve loved about this game for 6 years