From one of the developers behind the original Rainbow Six® and Ghost Recon® games, comes a thinking-man's first-person shooter featuring in-depth character and weapon customization. Take your time. Think ahead. Get the job done.
Recent Reviews:
Very Positive (238) - 86% of the 238 user reviews in the last 30 days are positive.
All Reviews:
Very Positive (17,797) - 90% of the 17,797 user reviews for this game are positive.
Release Date:
Aug 14, 2018
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Publisher:
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Early Access Game

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Note: This Early Access game is not complete and may or may not change further. If you are not excited to play this game in its current state, then you should wait to see if the game progresses further in development. Learn more

What the developers have to say:

Why Early Access?

GROUND BRANCH is becoming available as an Early Access title to gather valuable revenue and community feedback that will help shape further development of the game. We are designing GROUND BRANCH for ourselves as well as those gamers that crave the "old school" experiences that can't be found in gaming today. BlackFoot Studios wants to hit that mark head-on.

While GROUND BRANCH will be finished regardless of revenue generated from Early Access, making it available will allow us to accelerate development and achieve a higher level of polish.”

Approximately how long will this game be in Early Access?

“While it's difficult to estimate due to the game's ambitious scope and complex systems, as of 2024 we hope to reach full release within a couple of years.”

How is the full version planned to differ from the Early Access version?

“Among other enhancements, the full version will feature:

  • Single player (campaign-style) missions with briefings, multiple objectives and friendly squad AI
  • Better enemy AI, with more varied and natural behaviors, animations and voice lines
  • More weapons and gear, customization and map options
  • New and improved mechanics such as functional armor, a more refined health system and weapon bracing/supporting
  • More polished animations, audio and general art
  • Quality-of-life improvements: controls, settings, user interface, language localization etc.
  • Extensive mod support

For more information on upcoming features, see our roadmap.”

What is the current state of the Early Access version?

“A solid playable experience that includes multiple highly configurable PvE (solo or co-op) and PvP game modes, extensive character and weapon customization, over a dozen maps, advanced character and shooting controls, an authentic portrayal of military gear and a general feel of the game's vision.

Though the game is not free of rough edges nor feature-complete yet, we are diligently working on making it so.”

Will the game be priced differently during and after Early Access?

“Yes — the full release will cost more than Early Access. Final pricing is yet to be determined.”

How are you planning on involving the Community in your development process?

“We plan to continue discussing ideas and features with the community via forums, official Discord server and other media, as well as encouraging feedback via the in-game Report Bug menu.”
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About This Game





In GROUND BRANCH, you will play as the elite paramilitary arm of the CIA's Special Activities Center/Special Operations Group (SAC/SOG) and lead other special operations forces through challenging deniable ops all over the globe. With deliberate, calculated and unforgiving gameplay, GROUND BRANCH aims to be the true rebirth of the tactical realism genre of the late '90s and early 2000s. Powered by Epic's Unreal Engine 4, GB puts the "tactical" back in "tactical shooter"—no compromises.

TRUE FIRST PERSON



GROUND BRANCH's unique True First-Person System improves world immersion and awareness of your surroundings, providing zero disconnect between your view and your character's physical presence in the environment. See your foot sticking out of cover? Better tuck it in—enemies may be able to see it (and shoot it) too, but only if their line of sight and muzzle are verifiably unobstructed. Cameras are placed at the character's eyes and bullets originate from the weapon's muzzle. In GROUND BRANCH, what you see is what you get.

A minimal HUD with multiple optional elements ensures that vital information is available, but never a constant obstacle to either immersion or your field of view.

▶ UNPRECEDENTED CUSTOMIZATION



Say goodbye to pre-defined kits and fully customize your character and gear from basic appearance and outfit to in-depth vest and weapon platform customization, down to individual pouch and attachment placement. What you bring to your mission is determined only by your loadout choice, with realistic consequences: With the upcoming encumbrance and stamina system, too much equipment will impact your character's speed and performance; place a scope too forward on the rail and your sight picture will be too small; bring a long rifle into CQB and weapon collision may prove a hindrance.

Forget unlocks, microtransactions and loot boxes. Ground Branch operators get all the right tools for the job straight away—courtesy of the Agency.

▶ OPERATE, COOPERATE



Whether in 8-player co-op or 8v8 adversarial game modes, GROUND BRANCH's unforgiving gameplay makes careful and calculated teamwork essential. Gather your teammates and practice in full-featured training areas, including shooting ranges with dynamic targets and customizable killhouses. Integrated VOIP with both 3D positional voice and radio ensures full communication capabilities with no need for third-party software. Text chat and pre-recorded voice messages (commo rose-style) also available for the mic-less and the shy.

Prefer single-player? Missions with friendly A.I. and a full command system are fully planned.

▶ BE IN FULL CONTROL



In the tactical shooter realm, movement and weapon handling are king. Take full control of your character with standing, crouching and (soon!) prone stances—each with multiple movement speeds—as well as unique weapon postures (including low- and high-ready), leaning and stepping out, free-look (head movement independent from aim), customizable and optional free-aim (dead zone), dedicated mouse sensitivity sliders for point-shooting/unmagnified/magnified aiming, and all-around highly configurable key bindings.

You can also choose between speed reloads (drop magazine) and tactical reloads (retain current magazine) on the fly.

▶ ADDITIONAL FEATURES

☑️ = FULLY or PARTIALLY IMPLEMENTED
⏳ = PLANNED/UPCOMING

Missions


  • ⏳ GROUND BRANCH's unique "campaign" format will deliver smaller, more localized sets of missions based around global hotspots, with a centralized intelligence interface to monitor them and receive new mission orders over time. The choices you make along the way may affect future engagements.
  • ☑️ Based on unique environments all over the world, the non-linear mission and map designs offer multiple entry points and open-ended outcomes.
  • ☑️ Enemies are spawned at mission start, with a degree of randomization to quantity and location. No "monster closets" or magic enemy spawns based on player location or mission progress.

Multiplayer


  • ☑️ Ready Room: A physical multiplayer lobby where you can plan your approach, see your teammates' loadouts, test weapon configurations on a firing range and jointly select insertion points.
  • ☑️ Full and 100% free dedicated server support. Host a server wherever you want!
  • ☑️ Unit patches that can be attached to your character's sleeves and gear.
  • ⏳ Full support for MP ladders.
  • ☑️ After-action review (AAR) following each mission/round.
  • ☑️ Server-side options.

Miscellaneous


  • ⏳ Full mod support.
  • ☑️ No item unlocking, hit markers, kill confirmations or score pop-ups.
  • ⏳ Weapon bracing/supporting.
  • ☑️ Varied arsenal: Multiple handguns, submachine guns, carbines, assault and battle rifles, machine guns, DMRs, sniper rifles and explosives to choose from, with selectable ammunition type (e.g. full metal jacket, hollow point or subsonic rounds, smoke grenade color etc.).
  • ☑️ Map variation: In addition to day and night versions as well as weather variation, maps have small details that can change between rounds, such as doors and windows that may be open, closed or blocked.
  • ☑️ Unlimited loadout save slots.
  • ☑️ Item sharing/dropping/pickups.
  • ☑️ Accurate ballistics with penetration, bullet drop and stopping power simulation.
  • ⏳ No regenerating health or health packs: Administer first aid to non-lethal injuries for reduced combat effectiveness.
  • ⏳ Location damage model: Expect visible injuries and consequences, such as limping, reduced arm function, and/or hits to stamina and accuracy. Players immobilized from a non-lethal injury can stay in the fight.
  • ⏳ Carry teammates to safety to administer first aid—or to safely recover their ammo, gear, cargo or body if they are no longer alive.
  • ☑️ Appropriate and realistic playable female characters.
  • ☑️ Partial controller support (configurable).

Mature Content Description

The developers describe the content like this:

This Game may contain content not appropriate for all ages, or may not be appropriate for viewing at work: Frequent Violence or Gore, General Mature Content

System Requirements

    Minimum:
    • Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
    • OS *: Windows 7 SP1 64-bit
    • Processor: Intel Core i5-2500K / AMD FX-8350
    • Memory: 8 GB RAM
    • Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 760 2GB / AMD Radeon HD 7850
    • DirectX: Version 11
    • Network: Broadband Internet connection
    • Storage: 30 GB available space
    Recommended:
    • Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
    • OS: Windows 10 64-bit
    • Processor: Intel Core i7-9700K / AMD Ryzen 5 3600
    • Memory: 16 GB RAM
    • Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1070 / AMD RX Vega-56
    • DirectX: Version 11
    • Network: Broadband Internet connection
    • Storage: 30 GB available space
* Starting January 1st, 2024, the Steam Client will only support Windows 10 and later versions.

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