Strange Brigade

Lore & Background

Strange Brigade is a third-person shooter with a strong emphasis on cooperative gameplay. Players can team up with up to three others to fight mythological enemies such as mummies, giant scorpions, and minotaurs. The four playable characters have different weapons and abilities and can be customized. A large arsenal of weapons is available, each with upgrade slots to enhance combat efficiency. Players can switch and upgrade weapons at workbenches found in levels, and activate traps like spinning blades and spikes to kill enemies. The game features branching levels that encourage exploration; solving puzzles reveals relics that unlock amulet powers, which are activated by absorbing enemy souls. Treasure chests unlock powerful prototype weapons, and gold coins can be collected to purchase new weapons.

The plot begins 4000 years ago with Seteki, an Egyptian Pharaoh who ruled tyrannically using black magic. Wadjet, the Goddess of Time and Justice, opposed Seteki and went to war, leading to Seteki's defeat. Her body was hidden in a nameless tomb and her existence erased. In 1930, archaeologist Edgar Harbin opened the tomb to further his career, releasing Seteki's spirit. Agent Veronica Brownring of the Department of Antiquities sent a distress message, and the Department dispatched the Strange Brigade—a team experienced in defending the British Empire from supernatural threats—to uncover Seteki's plans. The Brigade discovers a soul cage Seteki uses to harness trapped souls; destroying it reduces her power. They set out across Egypt to destroy the remaining soul cages and foil Seteki's plans. After destroying the last cage, they learn Seteki herself is still loose and plans to open a bridge between the mortal realm and the Underworld. The Brigade follows her into the underworld, where she controls Ammit, the Devourer of Souls. The Brigade breaks Seteki's control over the beast, enrages it, and it devours Seteki, ending her threat. The Brigade then finds the portal back to the mortal realm, sharing light banter about their past adventures.

Development was inspired by cooperative games such as Left 4 Dead and Rebellion's own Zombie Army Trilogy, while the story and tone were inspired by adventure serials from the 1930s. The game was announced on 7 June 2017. Pre-order customers received the Secret Service Weapons pack; the Digital Deluxe edition included a season pass and post-launch content. A Collector's Edition contained an airship model and an artbook.

Reader's Guide

Strange Brigade received mixed or average reviews from critics for the PC and PlayStation 4 versions, while the Xbox One version received generally favorable reviews, according to Metacritic. In December 2018, it was featured as one of The Telegraph's 50 best games of 2018. The game's cooperative focus and 1930s adventure serial tone set it apart within the third-person shooter genre. Its branching levels, puzzle-solving, and trap mechanics offered a distinct blend of exploration and combat. The narrative, involving Egyptian mythology and a team of supernatural defenders, provided a lighthearted yet perilous backdrop. While not a critical standout, its inclusion in year-end lists and its availability across multiple platforms—including a later Stadia and Nintendo Switch release—helped it reach a broad audience. The game's legacy lies in its successful execution of cooperative gameplay inspired by Left 4 Dead and Zombie Army Trilogy, combined with a unique setting and tone that appealed to fans of pulp adventure.

Did You Know?

• The Collector's Edition included an airship model and an artbook.
• Seteki is ultimately devoured by Ammit, the Devourer of Souls, after the Brigade breaks her control over the beast.

Cooperative Combat and Exploration

Strange Brigade places cooperative play at the very heart of its design, inviting up to four players to team up as 1930s-era adventurers battling mythological foes such as mummies, giant scorpions, and minotaurs. The game offers four distinct, customizable characters, each bringing their own weapons and abilities to the fight, while a broad arsenal of firearms gives players plenty of options for combat. Every weapon features multiple upgrade slots that can be enhanced at workbenches scattered throughout each level, and players can also activate environmental traps like spinning blades and spikes to thin out enemy hordes. Beyond straightforward shooting, the game rewards curiosity through branching level layouts that encourage off-path exploration. Solving environmental puzzles reveals hidden relics that unlock amulet powers—potent abilities activated by absorbing the souls of defeated enemies. Treasure chests house prototype weapons of considerable power, and scattered gold coins let players purchase additional armaments. This layered mix of gunplay, puzzle-solving, and collectible-driven progression gives the co-op experience a sense of discovery that extends well past the main combat encounters.

A Pharaoh's Resurrection and the Strange Brigade

Four thousand years before the game's setting, the Egyptian Pharaoh Seteki ruled through tyranny and black magic. Her defeat came at the hands of Wadjet, the Goddess of Time and Justice, who led her priests into war against the pharaoh. Seteki's body was sealed in a nameless tomb and every record of her existence erased, leaving only legend to preserve her name. In 1930, the archaeologist Edgar Harbin cracks open that tomb to boost his career, releasing Seteki's spirit. Veronica Brownring, a Department of Antiquities agent monitoring Harbin, sends a distress signal before the release. The Department dispatches the Strange Brigade—specialists who defend the British Empire from supernatural threats—to track down what Seteki is after. The team follows a trail of soul cages, devices Seteki uses to harness trapped souls, across Egypt. Destroying them weakens her, but the true danger emerges: Seteki intends to open a bridge between the mortal world and the Underworld. The Brigade follows her into that realm, where she commands Ammit, the Devourer of Souls. After breaking her hold on the beast and enraging it, Ammit turns on Seteki and devours her. The team finds the portal home, sharing banter over past adventures.

Creative Roots and Development

Rebellion Developments both developed and published Strange Brigade, drawing on their own studio history to shape the experience. The cooperative combat loop was directly inspired by Left 4 Dead, a title that redefined what multiplayer shooters could feel like when players fight side by side against waves of enemies. Rebellion also leaned on their own Zombie Army Trilogy, a series that had already established their formula for team-based, wave-driven gunplay with a touch of dark humor. The narrative and tonal direction took a different path. Rather than the grim, survival-horror atmosphere common in the genre, the game channels the spirit of 1930s adventure serials—those pulpy, episodic films featuring dashing explorers, exotic locales, and over-the-top villains. This influence is visible in the 1930s time period, the British Empire backdrop, and the lighthearted banter between characters even as they face ancient curses and mythological monsters. The game was announced on 7 June 2017, giving the development team roughly a year to refine the co-op systems and build out the branching, puzzle-filled levels before launch.

Launch, Editions, and Critical Response

Strange Brigade hit PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One on 28 August 2018, with later ports arriving on Stadia in August 2020 and Nintendo Switch in June 2021. The launch window came with several purchasing tiers: pre-orders included the Secret Service Weapons pack, the Digital Deluxe edition bundled the season pass and additional post-launch content at no extra cost, and a Collector's Edition offered physical extras such as an airship model and an artbook. Critical reception proved uneven. Metacritic aggregated scores showed the PC and PlayStation 4 versions landing in the mixed or average range, while the Xbox One build fared better, earning generally favorable marks. Despite the split reviews, the game still found recognition: in December 2018, The Telegraph included Strange Brigade in its list of the 50 best games of that year, a nod to the game's strong cooperative identity and its distinctive blend of mythological set-pieces with a lighthearted adventure tone. For fans of team-based shooters with a sense of exploration, the title carved out a niche that sits comfortably between pure action and narrative-driven adventure.

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