Disjunction – PAX East Preview
Developed by a small team of three at New York based Ape Tribe Games, Disjunction is a top down sci-fi stealth shooter that will require players to skillfully balance both sneaky and aggressive approaches.
The game is set in The Big Apple in the year 2048. I was immediately drawn to its dystopian and cyberpunk themes that run deep throughout the story, gameplay, and modern pixel art graphical style. Those who enjoyed both the Bladerunner movies and Hotline Miami games will be right at home with Ape Tribe’s newest title.
In Disjunction you play as one of three playable characters. During the PAX East demo I played as Frank, who is a gruff and hardened New York detective tasked with taking down a Russian Mafia boss to uncover a larger overarching conspiracy. Frank possesses four unique active abilities, known as Upgrades. A Smoke Grenade ability was useful in temporarily blinding small groups of enemies, allowing the player to sneak by or quickly move in for a kill. A Shock Bolter is handy for rendering enemy thugs incapacitated, affording you just enough time to move to safety or pick them off. A First Aid ability makes replenishing health quick and easy, and will be more than vital given that death comes with only one or two enemy hits. The Deadeye upgrade grants a damage bonus for the first hit on a character.
Each one of these abilities can be leveled up multiple times using XP points earned as you progress through Disjunction. The other two characters, Joe and ZhiZhu have their own Upgrades, meaning the player will have more than enough unique elements in their arsenal. ZhiZhu has more of a tech and stealth focus as her Upgrades include the ability to summon diversion items or go invisible for a short period of time. Joe, on the other hand, prefers a more direct and heavy handed approach. His Upgrades grant enhanced armor and charge abilities among others.
Working alongside character Upgrades are passive Talents. These Talents range from better movement speed to improved infiltration or marksmanship skills. Talents can also be upgraded up to four times using the same XP points for Upgrades. Since you likely won’t have enough XP to level up each passive ability, this Talent progression tree guides you to tailor the experience to your own play style. Those favoring a more aggressive approach (as I attempted in the demo) will favor the Marksmanship and and Melee Talents. Those looking for a more stealthy experience will lean towards the Infiltration and Fitness Talents.
You’ll play as a predetermined character depending on where you are in the story. Each level is designed around the specific character’s strengths and unique upgrades, meaning you’ll have to put all of your tools to full use to progress.
Disjunction is launching sometime in the second half of 2019 for Steam and Xbox One. Given what we have seen of the game, it’s shaping up to be a great indie action title and will allow for a bespoke experience dependent on your own play style. An alpha demo is playable now on Ape Tribe’s website and we definitely encourage you to check it out.
