I love Beta testing, it allows me to take part in the section of gaming that is normally out of bounds and that is “break me”. I wont be to harsh on this game as it is currently still only in Beta. However, saying that, the first thing that hits me is how much this is like Rainbow Six Vegas (and those games before it that Ubisoft “borrowed” the gameplay style from) Shame on you Crytek.
Straight off the bat you get to choose what your character looks like (minimalistic features). Your loadout screen allows you to select the gear (weapons) you want to take into a match over 4 disciplines that are Rifleman, Engineer, Medic and Sniper (sound familiar?). Next comes Outfit which comprises of Helmet, Vest, Gloves and Boots. Within each of these you can choose a variety of apparel that give you bonuses during matches (think COD perks). An added item I have yet to come across in another game yet is the ability to purchase Coins and Boosters. During this Beta there only seems to be two available and they are a coin that allows you to resurrect yourself without waiting for a medic and a Mega Booster that gives you high percentage boosts over xp, vendor and money earned in game.
The available modes of play are Versus, Co-op and Training.
In versus you have a choice of playing Free for All, Team Deathmatch or Plant the Bomb. FFA and TDM are self explanatory, Plant the Bomb consists of two teams – Attackers and Defenders. For those that have played Search and Destroy on COD its very similar, plant the bomb and have it detonate or kill or opposition to win the round. For the defenders your objective is to kill all opposition or disarm the bomb once planted.
A feature that is available before you jump into a match is the Vendor and Contracts. Vendor lets you select a weapon or attachment you don’t have and work during the matches to unlock them by gaining vp (vendor Points) like xp only for this purpose only. Contracts are taken straight from Call of Duty i.e. X amount of headshots.
Co-op teams you up with upto 5 other players in extraction based missions ranging from Initiation (very easy) to Hardcore (unable to reach that far yet). It’s very fast paced and requires a great amount of teamwork to succeed. The two missions I joined in were the two Initiation missions and I can honestly say I had a lot of fun. Despite a large lack of communication between every player, we helped each other out from resuscitating a downed team mate to wall jumping (very Army of Two)
Training is where you learn that basics: How to shoot and aim, how to throw a grenade and how to utilise the “team work” abilities (hold x by the large Green pointy arrows, which I may say wouldn’t be so bad were they not still present during online matches)
Now to bring this to a close. The graphics are not the most eye pleasing, very early xbox 360 graphics (again, think Rainbow six Vegas), but graphics are not the most important aspect of a video game. The gameplay is quite enjoyable, but fans of the Tom Clancy franchise should steer clear.
I can say without a doubt that this will not be you next big gaming blockbuster……HALO, you are safe my friend.
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