Double Helix raised quite a few eyebrows back in 2013 when, shortly after wrapping up work on Xbox One beat ’em up Killer Instinct, the studio announced that it was jumping ship from Microsoft to join online retailer Amazon for their next project.
A few years have passed since then, but the two parties have finally revealed what they’ve been working on all this time. Breakaway, which is described as a four-vs-four competitive arena game, was announced for PC yesterday during TwitchCon 2016.
Combining eSports with a mythological setting, Breakaway will feature total Twitch integration, with the focus being on quick matches rather than long, protracted ones seen in the likes of Dota 2 and League of Legends.
Although it doesn’t appear to adhere to the rigid MOBA framework popularized by the aforementioned titles, Breakaway certainly shares many of its motifs. The holy trinity of melee, ranged and magic characters is front and centre, with each group being populated with iconic characters from legend.
Morgan Le Fay, Vlad the Impaler and Spartacus are just some of the icons revealed so far, and we imagine you can come to pretty safe conclusions on your own as to which style they’ll be using to do battle. Speaking of which, arenas are remarkably small in comparison to traditional arenas, but without the presence of AI-controlled minions to kill, you shouldn’t be left wanting for space.
Replacing minions is what Double Helix is calling ‘Buildables’, various devices that players can pump out to help teammates, including catapults, ballistas and healing shrines.
No release date for Breakaway was announced during the reveal show, but Double Helix has confirmed that the title will enter alpha shortly after the conclusion of Twitchcon. Stay tuned for more news and, hopefully, a trailer at some point in the near future.
