A campaign that feels like a showroom model
By playing through the campaign, you discover that Titanfall also embraces multiplayer and an always-online connection. You therefore play alongside five other real people against six opponents, while receiving support from non-player characters. These characters are managed by the servers and the game's artificial intelligence, adapt to your actions and even take each other out. The downside of multiplayer's overwhelming presence in the campaign is that it is impossible to resume it where you left off. You often have to join a group of players who are on the previous mission, replay it, and then continue your normal progression with them. Admittedly, you still earn experience and "burn cards" (temporary bonuses to use during a match). But this replay feels like a punishment given the campaign's limited appeal, although you must finish it to unlock certain game elements... Unlike the multiplayer, the campaign's nine missions are somewhat scripted, but Respawn Entertainment's writers have seemingly replaced a thin plot thread with a thick steel cable. The only twists amount to the various lines exchanged between characters when you win or lose matches. Irrefutable proof that the parents of Call of Duty are at the controls of this title. In short, this campaign serves to prepare you for multiplayer and its 15 combat zones, while also familiarizing you with the experience system. Through it, you unlock weapons, accessories and even the ability to create customized pilot or Titan loadouts... just like in Call of... After landing, your Titan is ready to welcome you. And it feels even better when it turns an enemy player into a pancake.Five multiplayer modes...
During our exploration of the beta, we had access to only three multiplayer modes and three maps. The final version offers five multiplayer modes in total, including three "classic" ones: control-point defense, capture the flag and a classic annihilation mode renamed Attrition. Added to these are "Last Titan Standing" and "Pilot Hunter". The first, as its name suggests, drops you into the controls of your robot. With help from your teammates, you must survive while reducing opposing Titans to spare parts. The second is an alternative version of Attrition in which you must eliminate enemy pilots as quickly as possible.
...but matchmaking and game searching are not ready
Whether in Campaign or Classic (multiplayer), the matchmaking system, which is supposed to find opponents at your level, is particularly poor — or even nonexistent. You constantly end up playing against seasoned players or people far stronger than you, just as you are beginning to learn the game's basics. Conversely, you may find yourself facing teams that are much weaker than yours and tear them apart without the slightest enjoyment. Fortunately, the game is full of non-player characters on whom you can vent your frustration while waiting for the match to end and earning a little experience.
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Titanfall[/caption]
This imbalance is sometimes highlighted by players leaving the match just as it is about to begin, while their replacements seem slow to appear. We ended up playing three against six in "Last Titan Standing"... A guaranteed thrashing.
Titanfall[/caption]
This imbalance is sometimes highlighted by players leaving the match just as it is about to begin, while their replacements seem slow to appear. We ended up playing three against six in "Last Titan Standing"... A guaranteed thrashing.
Fast-paced and best enjoyed with friends
In terms of gameplay and weapon balance, Respawn has done a good job, and we encountered no unpleasant surprises between the final version and the beta. Battlefield and CoD players will quickly recognize familiar mechanics and feel at home. The battles are fast-paced, punctuated by Titan drops, stealthy movement and "rodeo" sequences, during which you, as a pilot on foot, latch onto an enemy Titan and destroy certain modules to bring it down.
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The pilot's arsenal is extensive, but the various customization options lack originality: a new scope, a larger magazine, a suppressor... We have seen it all before, and for far too long. Titan weaponry is also rather ordinary. Regardless of the chassis, you have access to the same weapons. Only one special characteristic, called a "core," is unique to each robot and can be used only under certain conditions.
Titanfall[/caption]
The pilot's arsenal is extensive, but the various customization options lack originality: a new scope, a larger magazine, a suppressor... We have seen it all before, and for far too long. Titan weaponry is also rather ordinary. Regardless of the chassis, you have access to the same weapons. Only one special characteristic, called a "core," is unique to each robot and can be used only under certain conditions.
Finally, one of the game's weak points is its integrated chat system — both voice and text — which is not suited to intensive multiplayer. With a simple communication system based on preset phrases, along with the player's username and geographical position, coordinating with players you do not know would be easier. Using TeamSpeak with your regular teammates changes a lot. In any case, like Call of Duty, Titanfall's strategic potential could well earn it a place among games played in esports. Especially since you quickly rediscover reflexes developed during the glory days of Quake III Arena or when Unreal Tournament ruled the multiplayer FPS world. Is Titanfall the revolutionary triple-A game everyone was waiting for? No. But it is a good, fast-paced, well-designed game that suffers from the graphical limitations imposed by consoles — and probably from the desire to see it establish itself in competitive esports. This is most noticeable in the background textures, lighting effects and sometimes overly simplistic animations.
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Whether this reflects the tradition of additional content or proves that it is somewhat thin in its current state, Titanfall will receive three DLC packs in the coming months, and a Season Pass sold for 25 euros is already available on Origin. Proof that, while we wait for it to branch out into multiple annual sequels like its ancestor, which remains with Activision, the Respawn Entertainment team has not lost its touch when it comes to selling us what we might have hoped would be added through free patches...
Titanfall[/caption]
Whether this reflects the tradition of additional content or proves that it is somewhat thin in its current state, Titanfall will receive three DLC packs in the coming months, and a Season Pass sold for 25 euros is already available on Origin. Proof that, while we wait for it to branch out into multiple annual sequels like its ancestor, which remains with Activision, the Respawn Entertainment team has not lost its touch when it comes to selling us what we might have hoped would be added through free patches...
