Battle Shapers

Battle Shapers is a fast-paced, first-person shooter set in a sci-fi/futuristic universe. Developed by Metric Empire Inc., the game combines chaotic combat with satisfying challenges, drawing influences from DOOM Eternal, Mega Man, and Overwatch. Players engage in hectic FPS gameplay while stealing abilities from defeated bosses, all wrapped in a vibrant, roguelite experience. The game offers deep customization and a variety of unlocks, ensuring a fresh and engaging gameplay loop.

Battle Shapers: A Cybernetic Roguelite Revolution

Introduction

In a genre saturated with procedurally generated challenges and permadeath cycles, Battle Shapers emerges as a bold experiment—a fusion of Doom Eternal’s frenetic FPS combat, Hades’ roguelite progression, and Mega Man X’s boss-theft mechanics. Developed by Montreal-based Metric Empire, a studio founded by Ubisoft veterans Nicholas Routhier and Pier-Luc Papineau, Battle Shapers is a testament to AAA polish meeting indie ambition. This review argues that while the game stumbles in narrative originality and late-game balancing, its core gameplay loop and mechanical depth make it a standout in the crowded roguelite arena.

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Development History & Context

Metric Empire’s debut title is no overnight indie project. Routhier and Papineau, whose résumés include Assassin’s Creed, Far Cry, and Prince of Persia, leveraged their AAA experience to create a tightly focused roguelite shooter. Launched into Steam Early Access in October 2023, Battle Shapers spent over a year refining its systems before its December 2024 full release—a rarity in an era where studios often treat Early Access as a final launchpad.

The game entered a market dominated by roguelites like Dead Cells and Returnal, but Metric Empire’s vision was distinct: a “premium” experience free of live-service bloat (GodisaGeek interview). Built on Unity with Wwise for sound design, the team prioritized fluid combat and replayability over monetization, a ethos reflected in its $24.99 price point.

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Narrative & Thematic Deep Dive

Battle Shapers casts players as Ada, a reactivated android tasked with liberating the robot city of New Elysium from tyrannical Overlords. The premise—a fallen utopia reclaimed through recursive battles—is familiar, drawing comparisons to NieR: Automata’s existential android struggles but lacking its nuance. Ada’s mission is straightforward: climb procedurally generated towers, defeat bosses, and steal their powers to fuel her campaign.

The narrative’s weakness lies in its predictable beats. As Niche Gamer noted, the story is a “reskin of the same unlikely hero trope,” with perfunctory worldbuilding that never transcends its mechanical purpose. However, the Overlords themselves inject personality: each boasts unique taunts and evolving strategies, creating a playful rivalry that mirrors Hades’ character-driven stakes. Their cores—which Ada absorbs to gain new abilities—serve as the game’s thematic anchor, embodying the tension between reclaiming power and becoming corrupted by it.

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Gameplay Mechanics & Systems

Combat: Precision Meets Chaos

Battle Shapers excels in its hybrid combat system, blending Doom Eternal’s aggressive “push-forward” design with roguelite customization. Players wield two weapons (e.g., plasma rifles, explosive axes) and a single ability (e.g., shockwaves, fire walls), chaining kills to build an Overdrive meter that unlocks devastating ultimates. The standout feature is the Glory Kill-inspired melee finisher, which replenishes shields and encourages risky close-quarters play.

Roguelite Structure

Runs begin in the Sanctuary Hub, where Ada spends Turinium (meta-currency) on permanent upgrades like dash cooldowns or weapon unlocks. Each tower climb offers randomized weapons, abilities, and Core Enhancements (passive buffs), but the game’s Shaped Hacks system adds strategic depth: players can manipulate room layouts, enemy spawns, and reward tables mid-run.

However, progression hits a wall in late-game boss scaling. Overlords like Voltazon and Infernia gain enraged modifiers (e.g., projectile spam, minion swarms) that demand near-perfect play. Gamepressure praised the adaptive difficulty, but Niche Gamer criticized it as “artificial padding,” noting that post-third-tower bosses could one-shot players without exhaustive grinding.

Cores & Customization

Victory against an Overlord grants their Core, which dictates Ada’s playstyle. For example:
– Volt Core: Grants lightning dashes and chain-attack modifiers.
– Inferno Core: Unleashes area-of-effect firestorms.
Cores level up with repeated defeats, unlocking branching skill trees. While Game8 lauded the “dangerously addictive” synergies, some players felt certain cores (e.g., defensive options) were underwhelming compared to DPS-focused builds.

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World-Building, Art & Sound

New Elysium is a neon-drenched cyberpunk playground, blending Overwatch’s vibrant stylization with Mega Man X’s mechanical aesthetic. Towers feature distinct biomes—lava-forged industrial zones, holographic datascapes—that evolve visually as Overlods retaliate. The art team’s AAA pedigree shines in enemy designs, from floating drone clusters to hulking minigun-wielding brutes.

The soundtrack, a mix of synthwave and adrenaline-pumping rock, complements the action but rarely stands out. Weapon sounds drew mixed reactions: Game8 called them “generic sci-fi pew-pew,” while Rogueliker praised the “tactile” feedback of melee strikes.

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Reception & Legacy

At launch, Battle Shapers earned a 72% Metascore and 82% Steam rating (“Very Positive”). Critics applauded its combat and progression (GameGrin: “chaotic fun”), but panned its repetitive endgame and thin story (Niche Gamer: “fails as a roguelike”).

Metric Empire’s post-launch support bolstered its reputation. The Phantom Code update (2025) added difficulty modifiers, corrupted weapons, and Steam Deck optimizations, addressing Early Access critiques. While not a genre-redefining title, Battle Shapers has influenced mid-budget roguelites by proving that AA studios can deliver AAA-feeling combat.

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Conclusion

Battle Shapers is a paradox: a game whose mechanical brilliance is occasionally hamstrung by roguelite tropes and narrative lethargy. Yet its triumphs—the euphoric combat loop, the strategic Core system, the jaw-dropping visual design—far outweigh its flaws. For FPS fans seeking a challenge and roguelite enthusiasts craving depth, Ada’s journey through New Elysium is a revolution worth joining.

Final Verdict: 8/10 — A razor-sharp debut that reshapes expectations for indie shooters, even if its story cuts too close to familiar circuits.