Titanfall 2
- Nov 16, 2016
- 6 min read
Titanfall 2 may have sold less than its biggest genre rivals this holiday, Battlefield 1 and Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, but after playing all three, I have concluded that Titanfall 2 is unquestionably the best out of the three. The last time I had this much fun in a first-person shooter is a memory distant and hazy. Titanfall 2 served up ridiculous, addictive fun time and time again, and I loved it.
2016, Stand By for Titanfall 2
If gaming as a whole is anything to go by, 2016 seems like a fan-fiction year for the quality of first-person shooters. Earlier this year we were treated to the wonderful DOOM and Overwatch, both titles being received very well by both gamers and critics alike, and this holiday season has delivered Battlefield 1, Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare and Titanfall 2, and all of them have surprised me by how much I enjoyed them. None, however, surprised me as much as Titanfall 2.
The pilot entry for the franchise launched in 2014 as an Xbox/PC exclusive, and had a sole focus on multiplayer. Two and a half years later it has become a multiplatform title, and has delivered what I adamantly believe to be the greatest first-person shooter of not only 2016, but for the past several years. And coming from the minds that once created Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare, should I have been surprised? Probably not.
The story of the campaign is, admittedly, rather weak on its own, but it’s the characters, the bond between the pilot and his titan that pull it out from falling into the well of mediocrity. As captain Jack Cooper you are assigned a neural bond with titan ‘BT-7274’ after his previous pilot suffers an unfortunate end at the hands of the IMC. Together, the two of them have to escape the planet Typhon, but not before completing the former pilot’s mission, to stop the IMC from obtaining a powerful source of energy, The Ark.
The conversations and humorous engagements between the two help to keep you entertained when you’re in between moments of action. The optional dialogue choices are a nice touch, too, allowing you to choose what Jack says to BT from time to time. They don’t really seem to have any impact on the game or how it plays out, but it’s a nice way to let the player choose how Jack interacts with BT. It really helps to keep the game’s barebones story from becoming boring. But what helps the most is the actual gameplay.
We'll Make a Pilot Out of You Yet
I played the original Titanfall back in 2014 on my Xbox One, and even though it was a multiplayer-only game, I really, really enjoyed it. It had tight controls and an exciting gameplay style, but Titanfall 2 takes it even further.
The amazing thing about the control scheme for Titanfall 2 is that it’s intuitive. At the very beginning of the game you’ll have to run a course (tutorial) so that you can get an understanding for how things work. Though you’re given the option of running it again, I seriously doubt anybody would really need to. This level of fast-paced combat and vertical manoeuvring is rarely seen in games, but Respawn Entertainment have made it so easy to get to grips with that in no time at all you’ll be flying around, wall-running and sliding about the place with ease, just like I was.
The campaign’s level design appears to reflect the player’s capabilities and even offer up opportunities to get creative thanks to the layout of the environment. More often than not, there’s ample amount of space for you to really show off, to go absolutely nuts. The way the pilot moves around in the trailers, yeah you can do that too. That’s not just some developer who’s gotten really good at the game.
This style of incredibly fast-paced movement really makes combat incredibly exciting. A large number of enemies huddled together in the middle of the hallway and no way to get past? No worries, just wall-run past them, throw down a Firestar and then snuff out the remainders.
The campaign has an incredible amount of brilliant moments that really make you feel…well, cool. A personal favourite of mine has to be when time travel is unlocked. I saw an enemy in one time period, blasted into the future, ran behind where they were, returned to the past and executed them from behind.
And the great thing about Titanfall is that there’s another playstyle waiting for you to explore: the titan itself. BT proves himself just as capable as Jack, and provides such a grand juxtaposition in terms of what he can do that when the game forces you to play as him, it’s still just as exciting.
BT’s best moments are the boss fights. I played the game on normal mode, and never found any of the bosses too difficult, but they can really make you work for that victory. Changing tactics is often a necessity here, and thankfully that’s incredible simple. At any time whilst you’re piloting BT, you can switch his weapons to one of up to eight different loadouts. Where a machine gun won’t work, a flamethrower may, and when your shotgun is of no use try giving the missiles a go. After dealing enough damage, BT’s core will be charged to a point where he’ll be able to deliver an incredibly powerful attack, and each one differs based on what loadout is currently equipped.
But his loadouts aren’t exclusively used for the offensive, as each one comes with a way of defending, too. A quick tap of the L1 button could throw up a wall to protect BT from attacks, or it could raise a Vortex Shield the capture and return enemy fire. It’s all up to you.
Put Your Skills to the Test
Once you’re done with what I would describe as, hands down, the best first-person shooter campaign of 2016, you’re onto the multiplayer. At launch the game ships with 8 modes, but more maps and modes will be available for free thanks to Respawn’s decision to not bother with paid DLC. As of right now your choices are between: Attrition, basically just Team Deathmatch; Armed Hardpoint, other first-person shooters call this one Domination; Capture the Flag; Pilot’s VS Pilots, which is just Team Deathmatch without titans; Last Titan Standing, titans only and no respawns; Skirmish, which is a mix of different objectives; and lastly, Bounty Hunt.
Bounty Hunt is the most popular, and it’s easy to see why. The aim of the mode is to help your team bank cash, and the team with the most when the timer ends, or the first one to hit $5,000, is the winner. You can earn cash by killing enemies, but the biggest way of earning cash is by killing the bounties. These are spread across the map, and wherever they are is where the most action is going to be. If you kill one you’ll get a large sum of money, but you’re going to have to be careful. If you’re killed your total amount of cash that you have on you will be cut in half, and if you’re holding the prize from a bounty kill, your assailant will instead reap the rewards. The way to save your money, and further progress your team to victory is by banking it. Banks will open at the end of each wave for a short period of time. It’s within this time that you’ll need to rush to your nearest one and store your earnings away for safe keeping.
As you play more games and gain more experience, you’ll level up both yourself and the weapons/items that you’ve used, including your titan. The rewards for levelling up are pretty standard for a modern first-person shooter. Weapon unlocks, perks, attachments and customisation are all accessed from gaining more experience.
My Verdict
Titanfall 2 is it. This is what many people have been waiting for. It’s original; it’s fun; it’s addictive; it’s fantastic. The campaign in particular shines. Though it’s unfortunate that it’s not at least in some part because of its story plot, you’ll probably be having too much fun to notice anyway. And when you pair that with one of the most fun multiplayer components of 2016, Titanfall 2 really stands above its peers.
9.5/10
Titanfall 2 is available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC.
Reviewed on PlayStation 4.
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