Action · July 2, 2012

Blacklight: Retribution (2012)

trophy25 achievementsgroup100k–1M ownersrecommend146 recommendations
Take firefights to a futuristic new level in Blacklight: Retribution, a free-to-play FPS. See through walls with the HRV, deploy mechanized Hardsuits, and customize your weapons to dominate the opposition. In Blacklight, mastering the futuristic tech is half of victory. You'll need to carefully balance your loadout, from the extreme customization possible in designing your firearms, to the equipment you carry and the in-match bonuses you can unlock. The Hyper Reality Visor (HRV) allows you to look through walls and spot enemies, and attack from where they aren't expecting - but be careful, because you're vulnerable while using it. The other half of victory? Raw skill, same as it's always been. Good hunting, Agent... Key Features Hardsuits - Use a variety of upgrades in each match, including calling in the hulking Hardsuit mech. Powerful but slow, this armored suit packs a one-shot, one-kill railgun and a high velocity minigun to clear rooms... fast. Hyper Reality Vision - HRV Technology allows Agents to scout their enemies through the walls, pinpoint vital mission objectives, or locate weak points in an enemy Hardsuit. Weapon Depots - Scattered across the battlefield are Weapon Depots that supply your team with additional ammo, heavier weapons such as a Rocket Launcher, or provide the ability to call down airstrikes and Hardsuits. Free to Play! - Blacklight: Retribution is a fully Free-to-Play shooter. Earn Game Points (GP) after every match and use them to unlock various armor and weaponry for your Agent in game. Customize Your Loadout - An Agent’s gun is their livelihood. Choose from 1000 different gun combinations by modifying your receivers with customizable Stock, Muzzle, Barrel, Magazine, and Scope, Camo, and Weapon Tags. Protect Yourself - Whether your play style is run and gun, or survivability, or long range sniping the choice is yours to make in fully customizing your armor loadout. Level Progression - Gain experience and levels through combat to unlock access to additional weapons, armor, and equipment. Tons of Game Modes and Maps - Combat is engaged on a number of different 7 different game modes across 9 beautifully detailed maps. Game modes includes classics such Team Death Match, Domination, Capture the Flag, and Kill Confirmed while introducing new favorites likes Netwar. Private Servers - Want to scrim with your clan mates? Challenge someone 1vs1? The private server option allows Agents to set up their own password protected server away from the pesky trolls. Spectator Mode - Learn tips and tricks from the top players in Spectator mode, or simply enjoy the chaos from the best seat in the house.

Action releases from 2012

71 Action titles launched in 2012 — top 6 by review volume.

Position in Action

MetricThis titleGenre position
Review volume16.4k Steam reviewsTop 29% in Action
Positive rating76% positiveGenre average: 83% — this title sits in top 77%
Metacritic75/100Genre average 77 — top 65% of Action titles
Engagement hours17 h averageTop 29% for session depth among Action

Peer Action titles

Comparable titles in the same genre and review-volume band — ranked by Steam positive percentage.

Community Tag Signals

Tag weights reflect how many Steam users voted each descriptor — larger pills = stronger consensus.

  • Free to Play · 938
  • FPS · 660
  • Multiplayer · 530
  • Action · 479
  • Shooter · 466
  • Gun Customization · 330
  • First-Person · 308
  • Futuristic · 292
  • Mechs · 215
  • Co-op · 207
  • Sci-fi · 206
  • Military · 186
  • Cyberpunk · 185
  • Zombies · 160
  • Singleplayer · 158

Reception Metrics

Steam community

76%Mostly Positive · 16.4k reviews

12.5k positive · 3.9k negative

Metacritic

75/100 critic aggregate

Open Metacritic page

Metacritic user score

7.6/10

Curator recommendations

146

Localization Coverage

Interface / Subtitles (7)

  • English volume_up
  • German
  • French
  • Italian
  • Spanish - Spain
  • Japanese
  • Russian volume_up

Full audio (2)

  • English
  • Russian

Press Quotes

'This is not only a great example of a professional and credible free-to-play game, but it's also one of the best first-person shooters I've played. I am quite serious when I say that, too. This game is a serious FPS contender, and its freemium status should not diminish your expectations. I wholeheartedly recommend you jump in and give it a try. It'll cost only your time to give it a whirl, and I am certain that it'll be time well…

Engagement Profile

All-time avg

17h

moderate (15–40 hours)

Median

3h

Typical completion time

Achievements

25

Steam unlocks available

Release & Availability

Release dateJul 2, 2012
DeveloperHardsuit Labs, Inc.
Base priceFree-to-play
PlatformsWindows
Estimated owners100k–1M
External linksOfficial site · Metacritic page · Support

Features & Capabilities

Multiplayer

  • Multi-player

Community

  • Steam Achievements
  • Steam Trading Cards

Other

  • Includes level editor
  • Family Sharing