Who Knew Backrooms Break Is the Virtual Rage Room I Needed

Despite being told I have anger problems by a co-worker, I consider myself to be a calm and collected individual (lie). However, just like the rest of us, I also need to let off some steam occasionally. As someone who hates heading out to actual rage rooms, I was extremely excited when I learned about Backrooms Break, a game built around the infamous concept of endless rooms and entities hunting you.

However, this Unreal Engine 5 game essentially flips the concept and makes you the hunter. That was enough to pique my curiosity. So I got my wallet out, bought the game, and began hunting.

Destructible Environments and Deadly Enemies

Besides the telltale concept the game already packs, one of the best things about the game is its destructible environments. Within seconds of playtime, I had a hammer capable of mayhem. Besides turning debris into styrofoam, I could throw and recall it like the Mjölnir. Since the game is built on UE5, the scatter effects went hand in hand with particles flying everywhere.

The same weapon doubles up as your first armament against the entities. This let me smash their head to bits or throw it from afar. And believe me, you will need the distance when you see the entities.

Backrooms Break features foes dressed in Hazmat Suits. Besides the creepy aesthetics, it’s also a nice retrospection of things that might have gone wrong before we came here. From what I could piece together, Black Corruption has taken over everyone. This gives your enemies otherworldly powers. So yes, there are black tentacles and even ranged attacks.

Weapons That Hurt and Almond Water?

While I initially thought a hammer was my only respite, that isn’t the case. I had various weapons at my disposal, including pistols, shotguns, and even assault rifles. Furthermore, you can customize them using a dedicated tactical menu that is all set with sights, muzzles, and more.

Give enough attention to your arsenal, and you will have one hell of a combination. Oh, and did I mention there’s a proper recoil mechanic in place? However, there were times when even bullets weren’t enough. I had to run and find my way towards vending machines to stay alive. What do they offer, you ask? Almond Water.

This apparently tasty and nutritious drink boosts 25HP in one go, and I had enough fun overdosing on it. You buy it using Ectoessence, which you get by killing enemies. While I can’t ever imagine drinking something like this, I’m glad it was there.

Intricate and Eerie

Although the original concept is repetitive, Backrooms Break expands on it well. The game features multiple levels, each with puzzles and foes.

So, while one level will have you wading through water to dodge an invisible enemy, another will have you if an object is actually a black mass in disguise. Despite packing a stretched theme, Backrooms Break retains a particular charm.

This is further helped by the lack of any soundtrack, which made me feel even more alone. Thankfully, there’s more than enough variety of enemies and weapons to keep things fresh. If only I had some Doom music to go along with it. Oh well.

After all that is said and done, Backrooms Break harkens back to those good old destroy your desktop games we had. While boiling the game down like this does take away the intense level of planning that went on here, sometimes all you want to do is swing your hammer at otherworldly enemies. For that and more, I am grateful for this game and just might come back to it.

Have you played Backrooms Break yet? Let us know in the comments below!