The Finals – Review

The online shooter genre is one that has seen boom or bust more than any other. For every successful game, there are a dozen others that fizzle out. These days, there are numerous good competitive shooters you can find, but The Finals has managed to stand out due to its style and a brilliant destructible playground.

The plot

The Finals is a face off in a virtual gameshow against three-person squads and the goal is to score as much cash as possible before time runs out. The color palette is a vibrant one and it gives the American Gladiators feel due to the live sports play-by-play announcers. It manages to strike the right balance without coming off as obnoxious, or a joke. Two main modes currently exist.

The first is called Quick Cash in which the team has to collect a vault of coins to be deposited at a specific spot on the map and this is where all three squads converge to get the action going. As for the second mode, it is called Bank It and it is more about direct PvP battles. Every player is carrying coins in their pockets, which is gathered from vaults, or by killing enemies.

Things turn very exciting when you have to strategize on-the-fly one second and then worry about depositing your loot in the next. Eliminating someone right in front of the bank is highly exciting because it allows you to deposit all the coins yourself.

The competition

The two modes have been well designed due to which they are a great deal of fun, but you will eventually get tired of playing the same thing repeatedly because there are no other modes. But, after you have played a couple of matches, you will be able to unlock tournaments and this is where The Finals really gives you some competition.

In the primary tournament mode, you are placed in a bracket with seven other teams playing a modified version of Cashout. Two games run simultaneously, each of which include four teams, and the top two squads from every game moves onto the next round. Then the two teams face off in a 3v3 match for determining the overall winner. The game has done a good job of combining the high stakes nature associated with an actual competition with satisfying and fast rounds.

In fact, it even boasts a ranked version that allows players to move up the leagues, depending on their performance.

The characters and equipment

Three different weight classes are given for characters, which include Light build, Medium and Heavy. You will also find an excellent variety of equipment available before every match and this can have a huge impact on the battlefield, as long as you use them properly. You can go with tried and true options like deployable cover and frag grenades. Some of these are universal, while others are restricted to specific classes.