'LawBreakers' PC Open Beta Runs From June 30-July 5

Gravity is so inconvenient. Wouldn't it be nice to float around, leap through the air, and perform acrobatic stunts without having to worry about breaking your neck? That question--along with a whole mess of violence--forms the foundation of LawBreakers. The game is former Epic Games designer Cliff Bleszinski's first major project since the Gears of War series, and it's available on PC in an open beta from now through July 5.

LawBreakers is a team-based first-person shooter that pits the police (Law) and criminals (Breakers) against each other in various game modes. Perhaps the best comparison is to Blizzard's team-based FPS, Overwatch, mixed with the aesthetic sensibilities Bleszinski showed in Gears of War. Where much of Overwatch is bright and colorful, LawBreakers seems to revel in a muted color scheme punctuated by splashes of blood.

The game also emphasizes vertical movement far more than other shooters. Many characters can jump more than once, and some areas feature gravitational anomalies that let you stay airborne for longer than usual. Other games usually feature some kind of high ground, sure, but in LawBreakers you have to constantly watch out for enemy players flying over your head or scurrying under you as they try to take your life.

We got our first glimpse at LawBreakers two years ago when we played an early alpha build. The game has offered several alphas and betas since then, with this new "Rise Up" open beta seeming to be the last one before LawBreakers' release on August 8. The full game will be available on PC and PS4, but the Rise Up beta is restricted to the PC, so console players will have to wait a little while longer to get their hands on the title.

You can download the LawBreakers beta from Steam now; you'll be able to play the game until the Rise Up open beta concludes at 9am PT on July 5. Boss Key Productions, the development studio behind LawBreakers, has published a series of tutorials on YouTube to get you up to speed on how the game works. Nvidia has also released a Game Ready driver to optimize performance for anyone with the company's graphics cards.

LawBreakers will be available in two editions: a $30 base game and a $40 "Deadzo Deluxe" edition with additional in-game items.