Anyone who played Cyberpunk 2077 knows the dangers of Night City, complete with dangerous cyberpsychos popping up in its streets. Widespread AI and augmentations, combined with many Cyberpunk 2077 gangs’ propensity for violence and slaughter, mean everyone who walks its streets has to be tough to survive. Theoretically, they are not alone. NCPD’s MaxTac (Maximum Force Tactical Division) exists as a special tactical ops team, an extreme Swat team, to deal with cyberpsychos and threats similar in nature. Anyone who has gone on a massive crime spree in Cyberpunk 2077 knows how punishing MaxTac can be, but a brand new swat simulator on Steam essentially puts players into the shoes of MaxTac themselves.
There are plenty of Swat simulators available in the gaming space, but few come close to replicating the high-intensity, moment-to-moment decision-making and danger associated with Swat operations. Ready or Not is one of the best Swat Simulators there is, and the new Steam game, called Defect, essentially borrows its gameplay loop, puts players into a role similar to MaxTac, and sets them loose in a cyberpunk dystopia.
Available to be wishlisted on Steam, Defect is still in development, but everything shown by emptyvessel is promising. Essentially, players take on the role of a cyberpunk SWAT team as they face hostile AI and cyber-threats from The System, the ruling AI. Its authoritative rule has created a police system under The System, a group of rogue police, or a host of gangs. Players will need to suit up with state-of-the-art weaponry and tech to complete objectives like smuggling guns, assassinating targets, or arresting suspects, to name a few.
Cyberpunk Swat Missions in Defect
While key details on its story elements are barebones for the time being, Defect has detailed how co-op and PVP works (though co-op is not exclusive to the PVP matches). Essentially, each team enters the city/a match with its own mission and represents a different interest. It is possible that mission objects dynamically intersect with others, though they won’t always. It is described as “four simultaneous co-op missions happening in the same space” that sometimes outright oppose each other.
Drag weapons to fill the grid
Drag weapons to fill the grid
EasyMediumHard
4v4v4v4 Gameplay Loop
- Deploy with a squad, representing one of several factions, and gear up with weapons and gadgets.
- Pursue multi-phase goals that evolve or change mid-battle.
- Environments are destructible or interactable, e.g., destroy walls, flip furniture for cover, and utilize even debris and dust for distractions.
- There are unique cyberpunk systems rooted in the gameplay. For example, it is possible to hijack enemy bodies.
- Teammates or medical stations are required to survive. Resource management is a must.
- Each match reflects a city state influenced by objectives and player interactions.
Laws do not exist here, only The System does
One example of mission objectives for a Defect squad comes with primary and secondary objectives that are progression locked. How or if players resolve these objects can determine how the next objective unfolds. Some already-outlined objectives can be terminating a rogue AI, arresting high-priority targets, or completing a R.E.P.O (although it is unclear what that currently means).
The System’s faction can, for example, try to extract valuable enemy data, reboot local systems to hurt citizens and gangs alike, and otherwise remove any trace they were ever there. Some FPS games fall by having too few objectives that are too simple, but it’s clear that Defect at least has an interesting handful already confirmed. There are even endstates designed as “Neural Failstate Triggered.”
Defect’s Steam Gameplay Features at a Glance
- Cyberpunk squad shooter set in a dystopian city ruled by a cold, authoritarian AI
- Multiple playstyles: deep single-player, tactical co-op with friends, or frantic 4v4v4v4 PvP combat
- Dynamic multi-objective battles that shift mid-match
- Tactical squad coordination: gear up together, capture pickups, and use advanced weapons & tech to survive.
- Cross-platform multiplayer with both online and LAN support, plus full controller compatibility.
- Includes a level editor for custom scenarios and mod-friendly gameplay.
Defect Puts a Premium on Gunplay and Immersion
Where simulation games can live or die is in how well they simulate the experience. Ready or Not‘s simulation of SWAT scenarios helps take that game to the next level, while the deep lore and city design of Cyberpunk 2077 help the world feel realistic, if arguably more dystopian than the real world. Combining the two is a daunting task, without a doubt, but Defect is well aware of this fact.
The world of Defect is a smog-covered city where an AI has abused the populace to the brink of self-destruction. To reflect this, its city looks and feels like a warzone. “Every back alley, every hole in the wall, and every rooftop” is designed with collective defense in mind, according to the developer, adding to both immersion and tactical scenarios. Its maps and areas are designed in a similar way.
One example is the Wall, a narrow gunfight space surrounded by some sort of factory—likely powered by the System. Another are graffiti-littered sewers that are oppressive in smell, sightlines, and construction, with there being several living spaces for people under the System’s thumb. Even simple areas, like a Boiler Room or a place designated as Corner 2B, are tightly designed. The benefit is twofold: players feel oppressed by the system and fights will be hard-pressed, the way fights in a swat simulator game should be.
Cyberpunk 2077 and Swat Simulator Fans Should Keep an Eye on Defect
Of course, the ideation and execution of a game are two completely different processes. It’ll be interesting to see how well Defect is able to deliver on its own goals and promises, but the sheer inspiration of such a game should inspire fans to follow it closely. Between the strengths of Cyberpunk 2077 as part of the genre and the tightness befitting gunplay a la Ready or Not, Defect could be something special…if it doesn’t fall to the System, that is.
