One of 2025’s Most Underrated Shooters Just Got a Massive Update That Finally Makes It Worth Playing

We’ve seen so many shooters come and go in just the past year that it makes one wonder whether it’s even worth releasing one in today’s unstable industry. Highguard went surprisingly quickly at the start of 2026, and many are already decreeing that the unreleased and frankly fantastic-looking Last Flag is destined to fail. It was only two years ago that Concord flopped so hard it allegedly cost Sony $400 million. I, for one, am saddened whenever a game is unceremoniously killed off long before its time, which is why I’m always grateful when developers have the capacity to stick by a title for a long time.

That was the case with the somewhat controversial yet severely underrated first-person shooter, FBC: Firebreak from Remedy Entertainment. Firebreak launched to mixed reviews, something that should have been a death sentence then and there. However, perhaps thanks to its placement on PlayStation Plus, the game persevered and has maintained enough of a dedicated player base to see it all the way to its final update. Said update is enormous, and one that I believe will get heads turning and bums in seats as FBC: Firebreak is finally worth playing.

FBC: Firebreak’s Final Update Is Massive

We don’t really get a lot of co-operative shooters in the vein of Left 4 Dead anymore. The genre, which once felt like it was destined to become a staple in the gaming industry, seemed to evaporate, with only the likes of Back 4 Blood really attempting to reboot it. Well, that and FBC: Firebreak, the bizarre and unfortunately maligned co-operative shooter set within the fascinating Control universe, specifically the ever-changing and endlessly nightmare-inducing Oldest House location. I was always fascinated by Firebreak, if only thanks to its surreal imagery and phenomenal use of the Oldest House, but negative reviews put me off from playing it initially.

Fortunately, Remedy Entertainment was somewhat committed to fixing the game and deployed several updates to try to tweak the experience to better match the expectations of those actually still playing it. FBC: Firebreak’s numerous updates weren’t ever enough to truly shift player sentiment, and it seems like the studio has somewhat given up on it, launching its final update less than a year after launch. However, all things considered, I’d deem FBC: Firebreak a pretty strong debut online multiplayer title from Remedy Entertainment, a developer better known for its extremely cinematic and linear single-player titles.

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Sure, FBC: Firebreak isn’t the greatest FPS ever made, but it is a lot of fun, and its handful of more experimental mechanics, coupled with the incredible environment design carried over from Control, do help set it apart from the competition. The final update adds a slew of new maps, introduces the Friend Pass to make it even more accessible to newcomers, and slashes the price in half. It is now a truly definitive version of the game, a far more robust experience than at launch and with plenty of content to keep anyone entertained for a game night or two. Even at full price, I felt it was worth it, but at $20, it feels like a steal, especially if you’ve been craving this style of game for quite some time.

We Need More Games Like FBC: Firebreak

I think what makes FBC: Firebreak’s relative failure so unfortunate is that games like it are a rare breed. Sure, the friendslop genre has proven pretty effective at delivering co-operative experiences that evoke similar emotions, but the structure, chaos, and viscerality of titles like Firebreak, coupled with their lore and worldbuilding, offer a more enriching and engrossing experience. There’s a reason why Left 4 Dead 2 worked so effectively, and while FBC: Firebreak didn’t quite suss it out in time to garner a similar level of acclaim, it did enough to satiate the desire for something akin to it.

I also believe that this type of spin-off, one that takes inspiration from and further explores the lore of the base game while offering a completely different type of experience, is much-needed. FBC: Firebreak serves as a pretty entertaining stopgap between Control and its direct sequel. Sure, it may not be quite as lore-driven as its predecessor, but the ability to still be within this world under a new and exciting context is welcome. Too few IP experiment with new mechanics and genres or indeed even get spin-offs in the same way, and I think that’s a genuine shame.

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While it is reassuring that FBC: Firebreak will continue to be kept online for the foreseeable future, I sincerely hope that its failure to attract a dedicated fanbase doesn’t deter Remedy Entertainment from trying something similar in the future. I’m not even all that particularly bothered by multiplayer titles, but even I can appreciate the attempt to do something different. We’re very close to reaching a point where no matter what a developer does, it is destined to fail. Stick too closely to the formula of any given genre, like Concord, and you’ll be shut down in a matter of weeks. Attempt to do something a little different while reviving a dying genre, and you’ll end up with a final update after less than a year. I’m not saying games that try either of these are guaranteed to fail, nor am I trying to overlook the issues both of those aforementioned games had that also contributed to their failures.

However, I would like to think that we can avoid reaching a point in which our expectations are so high and our minds so jaded that we fail to give anything a chance, especially with games in a genre inherently designed to evolve over time. FBC: Firebreak may end up a footnote in an otherwise oversaturated flood of failed multiplayer shooters, but I’d like to think that, especially with its final update, it can be recognized for having tried something a little different, offered fans of Control a novel approach to a familiar world they love, and delivered a game in a genre that is so poorly represented anymore. I hope FBC: Firebreak sticks around for another few years and is maybe even revisited with a sequel down the line, as there’s potential here, as illustrated by all of its updates, and the possibility for a true Left 4 Dead successor to arise from its ashes.

Are you going to try FBC: Firebreak now that its final update has launched? Leave a comment below and join the conversation now in the ComicBook Forum!