Synced - Nanomachines, son!

The shooter genre can be an incredibly tough one to break into. With established titles like Fortnite, Apex Legends, CS:GO, and the behemoth that is Call of Duty already dominating the field, it does appear difficult to make a new shooter stand out. That doesn't mean developers won't try, though, and the latest attempt to break in with a new IP is Synced.

Coming from NExT Studios and Level Infinite, Synced is a third-person, co-op shooter set in a not-so-distant future where humanity has all but been wiped out by nanotechnology. The survivors - known as Runners - head into the Meridian, where they can fight back against the nanos with standard weaponry and their own Nano. You can convert pretty much any big enemy into a friendly Nano, and then they'll take on one of four forms: the Crusher, Seer, Guardian, and Suppressor, which each have their own unique abilities but all serve as useful battlefield companions. It's an assurance that even in solo play you'll have a bit of backup.

When you're not letting your Nano roam free, they'll attach to your arm, giving you a double-jump sort of mechanic that lets you get in and out of fights quickly, as well as some extra abilities should you choose to take them. The Crusher, for example, allows you to upgrade your melee attacks and even send a flying fist projectile at enemies for big damage. If you're going for these upgrades to your Nano, though, you may miss out on getting special weapons upgrades or other abilities. As you run through each mission, you'll get a lot of chances to spend resources on upgrades, but not all of them can be taken with you through each area.

There is a great focus placed on player choice in Synced. From the Runner you choose to the skill tree of each weapon, there's a depth to this game that comes across as a bit of a surprise when you remember it's free-to-play. However, something that compliments the complexity of the weapons and builds is that your Nano is rather simplified. They have an obvious role in combat and so while you're tinkering away with your own build you don't have to worry about what they're up to.

All of the above sounds fine on paper but the big question remains as to whether Synced is fun or not. Well, from the couple of hours we got to play with it the game remained entertaining. It's very easy on the eye, which helps, and gunning down the hordes of weaklings gets broken up by challenging a bigger enemy often enough that neither of those core gameplay aspects feel too monotonous. We didn't get to try the game's PvP mode, but the focus here is on co-op, which is a blast. Solo play is fine enough, and can prove a worthy challenge especially when you face off against some of the game's bosses, but when you team with one or two other players, the gameplay loop becomes a lot more satisfying.

There are some concerns with the content perhaps running a bit dry, as there are only a certain amount of unique levels to complete, but NExT Studios and Level Infinite hold firm they've already got content for the next couple of seasons for Synced ready. There are some ambitious plans for the future of this shooter, but it's also worth noting that there will likely need to be some bug fixes before Synced can launch properly, as we encountered some visual glitches in our short time with the game.

Synced appears to be a fun and solid shooter with some great ideas at its core. But, it'll take more time before a decision can be made on whether these initially exciting concepts turn sour after the first couple of hours. It's unlikely Synced will dethrone Call of Duty or anything like that, but there's nothing stopping it from still being a game you should keep an eye on if you're looking for a fast-paced, fairly intricate third-person co-op game where you get your own robot best friend.