The concept may sound strange, but after seeing the core gameplay and getting to experience it, there’s no doubt that Wave Break was heavily inspired by the extreme sports arcade titles of the past such as Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater.
Players compete with each other in one of several giant open levels, performing all of the tricks you would expect from a skateboarding game. such Jumping off ramps, flipping around, grinding rails, and all that jazz while using a boat instead of a skateboard.
Players can also shoot at one another as a way to interrupt their opponents’ tricks, gaining more points in the process, as well as kill each other for a point advantage.
One interesting feature is that players aren’t permanently connected to their boats and can get out and swim or run around on land, providing another way to take down opponents performing tricks in case being in the boat a shooting is a bit too tricky for some players.
The boat can also be called back with the quick press of a button and will automatically appear right at the players location, without any need for having to press something else to jump back into the vehicle.
Something else kind of crazy is that boats don’t slow down on land areas like you’d expect, making it easier to perform a larger variety of tricks no matter where the player ends up.
The one small problem is that the controls feel just a tad too slippery, particularly in the boats. Players may slip off of certain areas without meaning to when trying to perform tricks, though just getting used to the gameplay over time may be all that’s called for here.
Other than what has already been described, Wave Race is planned to feature boat customization with plenty of decals and decorations, as well as numerous cosmetic accessories to equip to player characters. It might not affect the actual gameplay, but it’s a feature that’s still useful for the local and online multiplayer modes.
Wave Break is an indie title that really stands out due to its extreme sports influences and bizarre premise, and it’s clear that the developers at Funkotronic Labs are putting plenty of care into the game to help give players a more nostalgic feel through gameplay while at the same time still providing something new.
Other than the normal local and online multiplayer mode, a party mode and special streamer modes are also planned to be added in the future. It may not be some time until the full game is released, but until then fans of the Pro Skater series and similar titles should keep an eye on Wave Break as development continues and more features are added. Interested players can also get a glimpse of gameplay in the trailer below.
Wave Break is currently in development for PC.
