WORDS Eoin Livingston
Three years ago, the developers behind the massively successful Modern Warfare franchise were let go in a surprising and controversial move by publisher Activision. Now, having created their own studio, Respawn Entertainment, they are back with the highly anticipated Titanfall.
Foregoing any single player mode, Titanfall’s story comes entirely through a campaign, which consists of nine different missions each to be played twice: once from the perspective of the Interstellar Manufacturing Corporation, and once from the perspective of the Militia as the IMC battle to retake the Frontier from you. While the attempt to implement a narrative in a multiplayer only game is bold, it’s not very successful. Regardless of the actual quality of the plot itself, the implementation is so bad that any quality it may have possessed is rendered mute. The story is largely told through overly long dialogue sequences before each mission, with bits and pieces scattered throughout the gameplay. However, the exposition takes place mainly during time spent adjusting classes or setting up burn cards (bonuses that last for only one life), and so is often drowned out by the people talking in the lobby. Add the irrelevance of the outcome of the missions on the story, and it ends up feeling like a last minute addition rather than a fully fleshed out narrative.
Separate the gameplay from the plot, however, and it is fantastic. The game is split into two modes: Pilot Mode, where the action is frantic as you free run and jetpack around the terrain at lightning pace; and Titan Mode, where the game focuses much less on reactions and more on strategy and timing to excel, with the player being able to switch modes by “calling down” their Titan after a certain amount of time. The time limit can be lessened by gaining points as a Pilot or by using the aforementioned Burn Cards. While the balance between Titans and Pilots would seem, without playing the game, impossible to get right, Respawn have done an excellent job on this front. While a few hits from most Titan weapons will kill a Pilot, hitting the Pilots is often tricky due to the speed that the Pilots move at, and the fact that Pilots are often hidden in back alleys or buildings. Along with that, Titans are usually more concerned with other Titans than to bother spending time chasing elusive Pilots.
One interesting addition to Titanfall’s weapon system is the Smart Pistol. Instead of aiming it, the pistol locks on to three separate targets or one target three times, as is necessary to kill a Pilot. While this may sound overpowered, its implementation ensures it isn’t and it’s clear that Respawn spent a considerable amount of time ensuring that the weapon was balanced. For example, it takes a second or two to lock on to a player and in that time any decent opponent that can see you will have killed you.
Titanfall’s gameplay is split into six playlists: Attrition, a team deathmatch with points for killing game-controlled characters as well; Last Titan Standing, which involves a Titan match with just one Titan each; Hardpoint, where the goal is to capture and hold three points across the map; Capture the Flag; Pilot Hunter, a classic team deathmatch; and Variety Pack, which is a random assortment of all the others. Each of these playlists is as intense as the next, which is bolstered by the fantastic map design being able to change, which provides a refreshing change of pace.
Titanfall is an amazing game, and there are very few ways around that. The balance between Titan and Pilot has been tuned incredibly well, and the game’s ability to completely change pace by getting into a Titan is commendable. As a Pilot the game is uniquely fast paced and intense, while as a Titan the game is equally intense and tactical: a feat that has not been matched in many similar titles.
