Lemnis Gate nails its innovative combo of arena shooting and turn-based strategy but still feels like it’s living in the past in a few key areas.
Lemnis Gate has competition as one of 2021’s multiplayer-focused first-person shooters that adds strategy elements thanks to time travel. While it’s a fantastic concept, the other game it will likely be compared to (Nimble Giant Entertainment’s Quantum League) found only a small, dedicated following before ceasing future updates. Thanks to a Game Pass release and some interesting mechanical tweaks, Lemnis Gate feels like it dodges that fate and provides the more complete strategy shooter experience.
Each match in Lemnis Gate plays out over several quick turns. Players pick one of the varied hero characters and try to outwit their opponents in a very limited timeframe. If a character dies, players have the opportunity to cycle back in the next round and take out the hero who killed them, letting them live and play out the rest of their turn uninterrupted. Therefore, unlike FPS mainstays like Halo, team scores can go up and down between each round as players steal kills or prevent flag captures after they’ve already happened. It takes a few tries to really get the hang of it, but the concept is innovative enough to be worth the investment.
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