Bornstellar
Member
As of a couple days ago, Titanfall turned one year old. I thought I'd like to reflect on why the game as it stands now, and what I'd like to see from it in the future.
With Respawn and EA recently making the DLC free, the "base" game has 24 maps. What's impressive isn't the number of maps, however, but how consistently excellent they are. I'd wager that there isn't another first person shooter released in the last 10 years with such consistency in the multiplayer maps. Playing host to both on-foot and Titan combat cannot be an easy feat, and even more impressive is the sheer amount of thought that has gone into making each map cater to different play styles and skill levels. As someone who has logged 1000 hours in the game, I am STILL discovering new routes that have seemingly been hand-crafted for players to utilize and gain the edge on a less knowledgeable opposition.
And it's in the combination of player ability and map design that the game really shines. The movement system in Titanfall adds a level of player agency rarely seen in modern first person shooters. In fact, in many ways skilled pilot vs. pilot combat is much more reminiscent of something like Descent since attacks and counterattacks can come from almost any direction and angle. When played at its highest levels, it is a game of chess where skillful movement and shooting are equally important. Mastery of the movement system is also what counter-balances the presence of Titans with much more powerful weaponry. Unlike many shooters, TTK can be high not because players take more damage, but because evasion so much more feasible. Tension (and the payoff) in fights between skilled players is high because every movement and every shot counts so much. Perhaps an element of this which is highly misunderstood is that, like Mirror's Edge before it, Titanfall uses a "momentum" system where preserving "flow" in movement also dramatically increases the top speed of a player (see evidence below).
A note here on improvements for the eventual sequel:
As much as I've just praised the movement and the map design, something that consistently bothers me is the frequency with which my "flow" is broken by art greebling in the maps. My momentum should not ever come to a halt because of a panel sticking out a few more centimeters than the rest of the wall.
Furthermore, the smart pistol, while an interesting idea to provide "training wheels" for players experimenting with complex movement is absolutely OP in the hands of a veteran pilot. Furthermore, it is incredibly frustrating to lose to a smart pistol player and less satisfying to win simply because 1/2 the skill of a fight (aiming) is removed from the equation. It is banned from Tournament play with good reason. It could potentially be better balanced by dramatically narrowing the "autoaim" FOV as well as providing some kind of lock-on notification for pilots.
Another thing I hope Respawn addresses in the sequel is support for the competitive scene. Providing a spectator mode, ladders, and some kind of theater is an absolute must in a game where the action is so many times perfectly sublime.
And contrary to many of my fellow Titanfall aficionados, I do believe that Respawn should invest time in creating a compelling single player campaign which FULLY utilizes the brilliant mechanics. Something that would be just as much a platformer as a shooter. Not simply as a concession to those that simply don't wish to play a multiplayer game, but in order to demand that players master the mechanics of the game and raise the overall utilization of said mechanics by the general population in multiplayer. Too many players never leave the ground because they haven't been taught how to fly.
Here's to one my favorite new IPs of the generation and perhaps the best multiplayer game I've had the pleasure of playing for many years:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMW1uSuivAo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6BELshKYE8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3B4bcpGBo8
With Respawn and EA recently making the DLC free, the "base" game has 24 maps. What's impressive isn't the number of maps, however, but how consistently excellent they are. I'd wager that there isn't another first person shooter released in the last 10 years with such consistency in the multiplayer maps. Playing host to both on-foot and Titan combat cannot be an easy feat, and even more impressive is the sheer amount of thought that has gone into making each map cater to different play styles and skill levels. As someone who has logged 1000 hours in the game, I am STILL discovering new routes that have seemingly been hand-crafted for players to utilize and gain the edge on a less knowledgeable opposition.
And it's in the combination of player ability and map design that the game really shines. The movement system in Titanfall adds a level of player agency rarely seen in modern first person shooters. In fact, in many ways skilled pilot vs. pilot combat is much more reminiscent of something like Descent since attacks and counterattacks can come from almost any direction and angle. When played at its highest levels, it is a game of chess where skillful movement and shooting are equally important. Mastery of the movement system is also what counter-balances the presence of Titans with much more powerful weaponry. Unlike many shooters, TTK can be high not because players take more damage, but because evasion so much more feasible. Tension (and the payoff) in fights between skilled players is high because every movement and every shot counts so much. Perhaps an element of this which is highly misunderstood is that, like Mirror's Edge before it, Titanfall uses a "momentum" system where preserving "flow" in movement also dramatically increases the top speed of a player (see evidence below).
A note here on improvements for the eventual sequel:
As much as I've just praised the movement and the map design, something that consistently bothers me is the frequency with which my "flow" is broken by art greebling in the maps. My momentum should not ever come to a halt because of a panel sticking out a few more centimeters than the rest of the wall.
Furthermore, the smart pistol, while an interesting idea to provide "training wheels" for players experimenting with complex movement is absolutely OP in the hands of a veteran pilot. Furthermore, it is incredibly frustrating to lose to a smart pistol player and less satisfying to win simply because 1/2 the skill of a fight (aiming) is removed from the equation. It is banned from Tournament play with good reason. It could potentially be better balanced by dramatically narrowing the "autoaim" FOV as well as providing some kind of lock-on notification for pilots.
Another thing I hope Respawn addresses in the sequel is support for the competitive scene. Providing a spectator mode, ladders, and some kind of theater is an absolute must in a game where the action is so many times perfectly sublime.
And contrary to many of my fellow Titanfall aficionados, I do believe that Respawn should invest time in creating a compelling single player campaign which FULLY utilizes the brilliant mechanics. Something that would be just as much a platformer as a shooter. Not simply as a concession to those that simply don't wish to play a multiplayer game, but in order to demand that players master the mechanics of the game and raise the overall utilization of said mechanics by the general population in multiplayer. Too many players never leave the ground because they haven't been taught how to fly.
Here's to one my favorite new IPs of the generation and perhaps the best multiplayer game I've had the pleasure of playing for many years:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DMW1uSuivAo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C6BELshKYE8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3B4bcpGBo8
