Dirty Bomb

Dirty Bomb is a fast-paced, team-based first-person shooter set in a post-apocalyptic London crippled by a series of ‘dirty bomb’ attacks. Players take on the roles of mercenaries hired by either the Central Disaster Authority or the criminal syndicate Jackal, battling for control amidst the chaos and radiation. The game emphasizes skill and teamwork, offering a challenging experience with no aim assist or controller support.

Dirty Bomb: Review

Dirty Bomb, initially released as Extraction in closed beta in 2013 before its official open beta launch in June 2015 on Windows via Steam, presents a compelling case study in community-driven development and the evolving landscape of free-to-play first-person shooters. While ultimately overshadowed by larger competitors and discontinued in 2018, its unique blend of objective-based gameplay, diverse mercenary roster, and surprisingly balanced monetization system deserves a closer look, revealing a title that, despite its flaws, made significant contributions to the genre. This review will explore its development, narrative, mechanics, presentation, reception, and enduring legacy.

Development History & Context

Developed by Splash Damage, a studio renowned for its work on Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory and Brink, Dirty Bomb represented a departure – their first self-published intellectual property. The decision to reveal the game so early (2012) proved a double-edged sword. While initially considered premature by co-founder Richard Jolly, this early reveal facilitated an extensive period of community feedback and iteration, shaping the game’s core mechanics and features in a way rarely seen with traditionally developed, retail-focused titles. The long beta period operated, in Jolly’s words, as an early form of Early Access, relying heavily on player input from private forums, ultimately resulting in a drastic shift from the initial alpha build. This marked a shift from the typical secretive development process common at the time, allowing Splash Damage to cultivate a loyal fanbase and integrate their input directly. The partnership with Nexon America, a free-to-play specialist, further influenced the game’s direction, particularly in shaping a monetization strategy that aimed to avoid “pay-to-win” mechanics. This was a noteworthy attempt to navigate the inherent challenges of the free-to-play model, attempting to reward skill and dedication over simple financial investment. The game’s development trajectory was not without its stumbles, most noticeably a name change to Extraction mid-development, later reverted due to player feedback and its ultimately more memorable original title.

Narrative & Thematic Deep Dive

Dirty Bomb‘s narrative, while not front and center, is woven subtly through environmental storytelling, character backstories, and in-game dialogue. The setting is a post-apocalyptic London, ravaged by a series of “dirty bomb” attacks. The story hinges on the conflict between the Central Disaster Authority (CDA), tasked with cleaning up the city and covering up their potential role in causing the disaster, and the criminal syndicate Jackal, seeking to exploit and steal the CDA’s technology. The mercs themselves embody this conflict, with their individual histories and motivations often entangled in the overarching plot. Player interactions within the game reveal further layers to the narrative, with some mercs having known each other prior, others driven by personal vendettas or financial gain. The overall theme is one of moral ambiguity, where neither side is unequivocally good or evil. The CDA’s seeming cover-up of illicit experiments and Jackal’s ruthless actions create a grim landscape where mercenary work is the only viable option for survival in a city shrouded in secrecy and devastation. Much of the narrative depth was dispersed through environmental details and lore found in official comics, the game’s website and wikis and the broader game community, requiring players to actively engage in uncovering the complete picture, rather than relying on a linear plot progression. This reliance on environmental storytelling created a fragmented yet rich background narrative that could be highly engaging to the player base who chose to seek it out.

Gameplay Mechanics & Systems

Dirty Bomb is a fast-paced, objective-based first-person shooter emphasizing teamwork. Players select from a roster of mercenaries (“mercs”), each possessing unique abilities and weapon loadouts. The core gameplay loop revolves around completing map-specific objectives, such as planting explosives, escorting vehicles, or securing data. Combat is skill-based, eschewing aim assist and favoring precise aiming and positioning. The absence of controller support further reinforced this focus. A unique system involves choosing three mercs before the match begins, switching between them seamlessly during gameplay, encouraging strategic adaptability. The UI was streamlined and relatively intuitive. A notable aspect of the gameplay was the emphasis on teamwork and role playing; mercs were categorized into roles such as medic, support, assault and sniper and effectively working together was frequently the key to victory. This design encouraged cooperative play and punished lone-wolf strategies. The game included two main modes: Objective and Stopwatch, later incorporating an Execution mode (removed post-development). While the monetization system involved purchasing mercs and cosmetic items, it generally avoided pay-to-win elements, a considerable achievement within the free-to-play model. However, the grind for currency could be lengthy, potentially leading to player frustration, though alternative means of currency gain existed for the dedicated player.

World-Building, Art & Sound

Dirty Bomb‘s art style was stylized and cartoonish, contrasting the grim narrative setting. The post-apocalyptic London was presented through a distinctive visual filter, creating an atmosphere of decay and desperation while retaining a relatively colorful aesthetic. Map design varied but generally focused on urban environments, offering both open areas and close-quarters combat spaces. Sound design, although not overly complex, provided satisfying feedback during gameplay. Weapon sounds, character voices, and environmental audio created an immersive soundscape, complementing the visual aesthetics and overall gameplay experience. The overall atmosphere combined grim themes with a distinct visual style to create a unique, almost ironic tone.

Reception & Legacy

Critical reception to Dirty Bomb was mixed, with aggregate scores hovering around the mid-60s on Metacritic and OpenCritic. While some praised its fast-paced gameplay, skill-based mechanics, and unique mercenary system, others criticized its relatively small maps, the length of the grind to earn currency and sometimes unbalanced loadouts. The game’s monetization model was a point of contention, with some arguing that while not strictly “pay-to-win,” it offered significant advantages to paying players. Despite a devoted player base, Dirty Bomb never achieved mainstream success, potentially due to the dominance of established competitors. The game’s influence is hard to pinpoint as a direct effect; its discontinuation in 2018 limited its long-term impact. Its focus on skill-based gameplay and objective-driven matches, while not unique, contributed to the ongoing trend of prioritizing skillful play and team cohesion in many subsequent online shooters. Its attempt at a balanced free-to-play model, though imperfect, remains a relevant point of discussion in the ongoing debate about the ethical considerations within the free-to-play ecosystem.

Conclusion

Dirty Bomb, despite its ultimate commercial and developmental failure, presents a fascinating case study in game design and community involvement. Its focus on skill-based gameplay, diverse mercenaries, and an attempt at ethical free-to-play mechanics make it more than just another online shooter. While its impact on the broader video game landscape is arguably limited, its unique features and design philosophies offer valuable lessons for future developers, particularly within the still evolving realm of free-to-play titles. Its legacy lies not in widespread industry influence but in its representation of a brave experiment in combining community feedback with a relatively ethical free-to-play model, a combination that remains difficult for many developers to balance effectively. Its place in video game history may be modest, but its contributions to the conversation surrounding game design and monetization should not be overlooked.