Thick Thighs Save Lives
NeoGAF's Physical Games Advocate Extraordinaire

Game Information
Game Title: FBC: Firebreak
Platforms:
PC (Jun 17, 2025)
PlayStation 5 (Jun 17, 2025)
Xbox Series X/S (Jun 17, 2025)
Review Aggregator:
OpenCritic - 75 average - 53% recommended

Metacritic - 67 average based on 12 Critic Reviews

Critic Reviews
AltChar - Semir Omerovic - 80 / 100
FBC: Firebreak isn't a revolutionary co-op shooter, but it is a very solid and surprisingly confident first attempt by Remedy to step into a new space. It borrows familiar mechanics and wraps them in the kind of surreal, stylish atmosphere that fans of Control will eat up. The shooting is solid, the content is respectable, and the tension ramps up nicely when things go sideways.
FBC: Firebreak takes the strangeness of the Control universe and applies it to a genuinely fun and challenging co-op shooter.
Despite being competent on many levels, FBC: Firebreak is an exceedingly familiar cooperative experience you have likely played before. Remedy's signature flair for visual design and return to a familiar and beloved video game locale might be enough for absolute die-hard fans, but it is tough to see who the target audience for this entry into the RCU was envisioned for. While not a total misfire, FBC: Firebreak feels destined to be a footnote from the world of Alan Wake.
Quote not yet available
An incredibly fun and engaging Horde Shooter, it isn't perfect, but it's an absolute blast to play!
As Remedy's first co-op shooter, FBC: Firebreak is a successful experiment, and while it doesn't quite match up to the best in the genre, the Oldest House is still a good stage for some creepy, frenetic action.
FBC: Firebreak is a successful co-op PvE shooter with fresh ideas, charming chaos and an audiovisual style that clearly stands out from the genre standards. The title really comes into its own when played as a team. Whether during hectic repairs under enemy pressure, tactically coordinated boss battles or curious shower moments.
FBC: Firebreak is a good option for players looking for a cooperative experience where strategy comes first.
FBC: Firebreak stings a little, because it has so much of what we're looking for in a co-op shooter. It's got the killer world and aesthetic, it's got quirky powers and role based kits, it's got tight first-person gameplay, and doesn't require you to grind things out for dozens of hours. However, despite all of that, Firebreak's just fine, and ironically lacks the fire that we expect from Remedy's output. It's a fun, casual time, but you'll play it, you'll finish it, and before long you'll forget about it and wish you had been playing Control 2 instead.
FBC has deemed you worthy of cleaning the Oldest House and as a good corporate employee, you will obey. Go solo or take up to two of your friends, put on the Crisis Kit, choose the desired job site and get to the cleaning, Firebreaker! And most important of all, never forget to take a quick shower with your fellow cleaners, as the everpresent paranatural and Hiss lurk all aroound you.
Being set in the world of control and as a handyman is enough to sell it on its own, although some polish and content is needed.
Quote not yet available
Obviously I can't give definitive judgments yet and I hope with all my heart that I'm wrong, because there are interesting bases that deserve to be explored in depth with the right times. And, perhaps, also with the inevitable updates of the case, if the game is given time to grow adequately.
FBC Firebreak is a chaotic, engaging romp that gleefully retains Remedy's quirkiness throughout.
FBC: Firebreak is an excellent online co-op experience made by the creative minds behind Control. It is an approachable game with no FOMO systems that also includes a highly engaging gameplay loop with unique objectives and mechanics.
FBC: Firebreak is a fun fast-paced three player co-op shooter which offers a new perspective on the world of Remedy Entertainment's Control thus separating itself from the competition. Progression could be streamlined but the core gameplay experience combined with the difficulty and clearance systems make this game an easy recommendation.
Remember the mess Federal Bureau of Control director Jesse Faden made in Control? I'll wager you didn't consider for a single moment who mi...
Control was a 9, and Alan Wake 2 was a 10 for me. I love Remedy's games, normally, FBC Firebreak seems to have lost their usual magic in a search for a wider audience. I get it, but I do not like it, and I think it hurts the title in the long run.
Last edited: