Ghost Recon: Breakpoint is set to release on October 4th, 2019 on all platforms. Now, it may share the name Ghost Recon with 2017's Ghost Recon: Wildlands, but how similar will the two titles be? Considering one took place in a real country and the other will have players traversing a man-made fictitious island, they're pretty different at their core. Like most games taking place in the same franchise, they do share quite a bit in common if you simply look beyond face value. Let's look at 5 ways Ghost Recon: Breakpoint will be like Wildlands and 5 way it will be entirely different.
10 Different: Environment Variety
Despite Ghost Recon: Wildlands being a fun game that offered plenty to do, the environment was all one note as the countryside was a South American desert with most of the variety coming from hills and valleys. Since Auroa is a man-made island it offers Ubisoft the ability to through a wide variety of environments at the player without it feeling weird or out of place. During the reveal event, they showcased tropical, snowy, muddy, volcanic, coastline, and forest-type environments that you'll be able to explore in Ghost Recon: Breakpoint.
9 Same: Driving Will Be Fun
Though the driving isn't on the level of a Forza Horizon game Ghost Recon: Wildlands featured vehicles that felt good enough, and given an open landscape, players were provided with the blank canvas to go wild in.
Ghost Recon: Breakpoint has already revealed trucks, planes, and some really neat all-terrain vehicles. It seems like the focus will be more on you maneuvering with your boots on the ground, but vehicles could come in handy and be a blast in certain situations, just like its predecessor.
8 Different: Raids
Now, raids aren't anything new for Ubisoft seeing as the first raid for The Division 2 recently was released. It will, however, be a whole new experience for those familiar with Ghost Recon: Wildlands. It seems like Ghost Recon: Breakpoint wants to give you the option to play the campaign single-player, but once you're done saving Auroa from Cole D. Walker and company they want you to find friends and go raiding. Hopefully, they find a way to make matchmaking easy and intuitive, and maybe tune the raid so console players can also finish it.
7 Same: Teamwork Will Be Important
Like previously stated raids are going to be an exciting new addition to Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, but that doesn't mean teamwork wasn't important in Ghost Recon: Wildlands. Whether you were using 3 A.I. teammates or partnering up with real people, teamwork mattered. With the inclusion of raids and other player vs. player modes in GR: Breakpoint it seems like they're doubling down on this philosophy. At E3 2019, Ubisoft announced that A.I. partners would return to single-player due to overwhelming community feedback. Thankfully they're willing to listen to their fans.
6 Different: Jon Bernthal's Performance
Jon Bernthal is an actor most notably recognized for his portrayal of Shane in The Walking Dead and Frank Castle in The Punisher. Though he's acted in numerous films and television shows he's best known for playing men who are trained in firearms and abide by their own sense of justice and morality.
Cole Walker is who Bernthal will be playing in Ghost Recon: Breakpoint and will be the main antagonist of the game. It seems like Ubisoft wants to take the story and performance up a notch and make players really feel a sense of fear on Auroa.
5 Same: Gadgets & Gear
Ghost Recon: Wildlands gave the player tons of gadgets and gear to experiment with and find out what fits their own unique playstyle. Considering Ghost Recon: Breakpoint is taking place on an island built around a tech-based billionaire it's safe to say gadgets and gear will be in play in a major way. If the gameplay demo is any indication for the full experience then your personal drone will be a key piece in your tactical dismantling of the opposition. The interesting thing will be if reliance on the tech around you might hinder your combat abilities when an E.M.P. removes them from use momentarily.
4 Different: The Story Will Be Impactful
One of the critical flaws of Ghost Recon: Wildlands is that its story ultimately fell flat. The primary antagonist lacked any nuance, and it was beat-for-beat what you'd assume to happen if given the same narrative setup. With Ubisoft bringing in Jon Bernthal it seems that the story and its impact on the player are of utmost importance. It will still likely features many of the same tropes of the genre, but the fact that it's being written by ex-military means that it will at least feature a true sense of authenticity. Come November we'll all find out how impactful it is.
3 Same: Shooting Will Feel Great
Tom Clancy games need to always nail one thing, if not anything else, the shooting. Despite having an open-world to explore and gadgets to experiment with, Ghost Recon: Wildlands succeeding because the guns felt good and the shooting was handled with care and attention.
There are hundreds of open-world games, and titles like Watch Dogs 2 allow you to use gadgets. It's the mixture of those plus solid shooting mechanics that will set Ghost Recon: Breakpoint apart this Fall. Early impressions could signal the shooting even being a step above its predecessor.
2 Different: You're The Hunted
In Ghost Recon: Wildlands you often felt as though you were the most skilled operative in the entire country. It took the video game power fantasy and injected it into the fight to end a war on drugs. If early trailers are any indication of the type of setting you're going to be in during Ghost Recon: Breakpoint, then it's almost a complete turn on the formula. You're going to be hunted by the Wolves, and feel like you're really trapped behind enemy lines. This vulnerable position could really change your play-style and journey through Auroa.
1 Same: Tons Of Post-Launch Content
In the last 3-5 years, Ubisoft has really set the standard in terms of provided frequent and satisfactory post-launch content for their ongoing titles such as Ghost Recon: Wildlands, The Division 2, For Honor, and Rainbow Six: Siege. With the announcement of Ghost Recon: Breakpoint they doubled down on this stance and committed once again to providing more content if you invest in their game. Despite receiving relatively mediocre reviews, Ghost Recon: Wildlands was one of the best-selling games in the year it released and built a community with their constant updates.