This is part three of my ongoing Titanfall review. Read parts one and two to catch up!
I've now spent ten hours playing Titanfall. I've completed the campaign (twice) and have worked my way up to a robust level 32. The unlocks keep coming and the maps still feel fresh and exciting. Titanfall continues to impress with it's near perfect balance and extensive variety and the "power of the cloud" seems to be holding steady. I've heard reports that some players are having trouble logging in, in fact, one of my xbox Live friends had to do a reboot or two to get everything in working order. But compared to BF4 and COD: Ghosts the first 24 hours of Titanfall have passed far more smoothly.
My latest Titanfall session gave me a good look at the revamped Xbox LIVE party system and the cloud server tech we've heard so much about. the party system is improved but I still wouldn't call it an improvement over the xbox 360 set-up. Having to run a separate app for managing party invites is a pain, especially because the default move for the system is to take you onto another screen entirely instead of using the "snap" function. This means that when you get a party invite mid-game the Titanfall game closes to the background and you have to navigate back to it. It's slower than party management on 360 so, in that regard, Microsoft still has a ways to go.
I know that the xbox LIVE party system isn't technically part of Titanfall, but it's no coincidence Microsoft put the fix in the week before Titanfall launched. In my mind the Xbox LIVE party system on Xbox One as well as the "power of the cloud" are as much a part of the Titanfall launch as the game itself. fortunately, things are better and there weren't any major technical hurdles in the way of me joining up with a few friends and experiencing some true multiplayer action.
Players who are looking for a communication-heavy, tactical shooting experience won't find it in Titanfall. Solo run-and-gunning is the most dominant tactic online so far, but in Hardpoint and Capture the Flag game modes a little communication can go a long way. It's easy to see after a few hours of multiplayer where Titanfall can go next. There are no private matches yet and only a few basic game modes. Attrition, Capture the Flag, Hardpoint capture and last titan Standing are all fun in their own way, but FPS fans are used to getting a little more variety in their maps and game types.
Now that I've experienced the campaign and a few hours of multiplayer, what's left? The fourth (and final) part of my review will be a more thorough exploration of the different weapon types (as I unlock them) as well as the Titan mods and new strategies.
