Tom Clancy’s XDefiant

X gon’ give us a hero shooter

Someone at Ubisoft has fallen asleep with their finger on the graffiti key. Following Watch Dogs Legion and Riders Republic – all colourful sprays and goofy masks – comes Tom’s Clancy’s foray into a questionable approximation of youth culture. Except this time it’s a competitive FPS/Tom Clancy-verse crossover.

Online is obviously important to Ubisoft. But it’s been a difficult digital nut to crack. Assassin’s Creed notably dropped its multiplayer modes years ago, the servers are shutting down on the mobile-exclusive tactical Tom Clancy crossover Elite Squad (making us anxious for this attempt), and fast-paced battle royale Hyper Scape was a blip on the radar. Elite Squad aside, Tom Clancy’s had most success – both The Division 2 and Rainbow Six Siege are cracking examples of what the publisher can do in the right circumstances.

HOLDING OUT

The goal is for XDefiant to do the same in the hero shooter space (think Overwatch). In it, 6v6 teams compete across a range of maps and modes. The former features graffiti-poppin’ visuals like the rest of the game, and the latter are the likes of Escort, Deathmatch, and Domination – nothing revolutionary.

The flair comes in the customisation options, which allow you to shape individual classes. You’re free to choose primary and secondary weapons, and extra attachments and devices, plus your ultra moves, faction, traits, and abilities. All of these can be adjusted mid-match, even after you’ve respawned. It’s potentially clumsy, but in a good players’ hands it could lead to some interesting situational responses.

IMPRESSIONS

XDefiant needs more than graffiti to hook us. A new hero shooter will have to do a lot of work when we’ve already got the creative Rainbow Six Siege.

You can customise classes to your own liking, so you might not always know what an opponent can do at a glance.