Spectre Divide, the most promising tactical FPS since Valorant, is out next week

Spectre Divide | Launch Date Reveal Trailer - YouTube Spectre Divide | Launch Date Reveal Trailer - YouTube
Watch On

After Morgan tried out the beta for Spectre Divide, a free-to-play shooter with an unusual two-characters-per-player setup, he said it was so fun that he couldn't stop thinking about it

That's admittedly no guarantee of success—I liked Concord when I previewed it, and its launch has been brutal—but Morgan's enthusiasm is certainly a good sign for the competitive FPS, which we've just learned is releasing next week.

Spectre Divide's teams of three are smaller than the usual five you see in shooters like Counter-Strike and Valorant, which it definitely takes after, but it's not precisely a 3v3 game, because everyone's got two bodies. As Morgan explained it: "You spawn in your first body and can switch to your second body at any time, wherever they are on the map."

It's weird, but Morgan says it works, and he also liked Spectre Divide's shooting, which is more Rainbow Six Siege than Counter-Strike in that you can move and shoot without tanking your accuracy. I can appreciate the appeal of CS2's stop-and-go gunplay—it's its own skill—but I've always preferred run-and-gun games. There's too much Quake 2 in my past to change my habits now.

"We're super excited about true-to-crosshair ADS unlocking tac shooters for a whole group of people for whom [Counter-Strike's] shooting model is not the right thing for them," game director Lee Horn told us. "Hopefully we've given them that."

Spectre Divide is out Tuesday, September 3 at 9 am Pacific. You can find more details on the official site, the Steam page, and in Morgan's recent preview.

Tyler Wilde
Editor-in-Chief, US

Tyler grew up in Silicon Valley during the '80s and '90s, playing games like Zork and Arkanoid on early PCs. He was later captivated by Myst, SimCity, Civilization, Command & Conquer, all the shooters they call "boomer shooters" now, and PS1 classic Bushido Blade (that's right: he had Bleem!). Tyler joined PC Gamer in 2011, and today he's focused on the site's news coverage. His hobbies include amateur boxing and adding to his 1,200-plus hours in Rocket League.

Read more
Fragpunk characters with weapon drawn
The latest big game on Steam is Fragpunk, or as I like to call it, 'kitchen-sink Counter-Strike'
Fragpunk
Somebody finally figured out casual Counter-Strike
marvel rivals
Competitive shooters are at a crucial crossroads in 2025: 'sweaty' teamplay vs. casual fun
spectre divide
Spectre Divide and its studio are shutting down after just six months: 'The industry is in a tough spot right now'
midnight murder club
'The point is to be generous': This $20 FPS releasing next month is trying something new—giving away a full version of the game
splitgate 2
The Splitgate 2 open alpha is live now and very fun
Latest in FPS
Warhammer 40,000: Darktide Ogryn
Warhammer 40,000: Darktide adds a psychic horde murderzone mode and makes Ogryns even smashier
Starfield's companion robot giving a thumbs-up
Former Bethesda dev who quit Starfield to go solo says it's 'much less stressful as an indie' without daily meetings or 'office politics': it's 'very refreshing to just care about the game'
A crew of prospectors in Wildgate, featuring a robot, a rabbit man, and a small aquatic creature in a combination mech/aquarium.
Blizzard co-founder Mike Morhaime's new company is putting Sea of Thieves-style shenanigans in space with a new crew-based shooter
Team Fortress Spy being shocked
An FPS studio pulled its game from Steam after it got caught linking to malware disguised as a demo, but the dev insists it was actually the victim of a labyrinthine conspiracy
Neighbors Suburban Warfare screenshot a child aims a slingshot at a man from across a cul-de-sac.
A beta of backyard FPS Neighbors: Suburban Warfare is out now, and the balance discussion is hysterical: nerf trash can lids and children
Fragpunk
Somebody finally figured out casual Counter-Strike
Latest in News
Image of Ronaldo from Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves trailer
It doesn't really make sense that soccer star Ronaldo is now a Fatal Fury character, but if you follow the money you can see how it happened
Junah beginning a battle in Metaphor: ReFantazio.
Today's RPG fans are 'very sensitive to feeling like they wasted time' when they die, says Metaphor: ReFantazio battle planner—but Atlus still made combat hard anyway
Image of Cersei Lanniser from Game of Thrones: Kingsroad Steam early access trailer
A new Game of Thrones RPG is coming to Steam today with a cast of 'familiar faces,' which is good because it's really the only way to tell it's a GoT game at all
The new Prime Asset featured in the upcoming update for the Outlast Trials.
The Outlast Trials puts its already paranoid players under surveillance for a time-limited story event
A Viera looking confused in Final Fantasy 14.
Old armor continues to fall victim to Final Fantasy 14's bizarre two-channel dye system, unless you're super into changing the colour of teeny-tiny eyelets: 'Why even bother at this point?'
Starfield: Shattered Space
By the time Bethesda was on Starfield, you'd 'basically get in trouble' for breaking schedule, says former dev: 'A lot of the great stuff within Skyrim came from having the freedom to do what you want'