Titanfall 2 is a movement shooter made by Respawn Entertainment all the way back in October 28, 2016. This game was critically acclaimed for its movement-based combat. It went as far as winning best online multiplayer game at E3’s game Critics’ awards in 2016.
This game takes place century in the future where war has changed completely. There are elite soldiers called Pilots which allow them to go upwards of 50 mph. These soldiers are equipped with a variety of tools to allow them to fight effectively against the enemy. This is a cool concept but does this game really hold up to today’s standards?
Combat
The movement-based combat in Titanfall is some of the smoothest you’ll find in the genre. You can wall ride and hop from wall to wall, building up speed in the meanwhile. The various techniques which you can learn to increase your speed allows for you to out skill your opponent through other ways then just shooting better.
The high skill ceiling in the game allows for the enjoyment of actually getting better at the game instead of being stagnant and praying for good teammates. The feeling you get from running around with a Kraber (Sniper Rifle) while flinging yourself with your grapple hook is unworldly amazing. The different Pilot abilities in the game like phase shift, grapple, and stims keep the game feeling fresh allowing it to be playable for long period of time.
The big thing that differentiates itself from other movement shooters is the Titan mechanic. After gathering enough points from killing enemies you are allowed to call in your Titan which is basically a giant robot heavily armed robot that you pilot.
The gameplay, when inside and outside your Titan, is a huge difference. You go from running around at high speeds to being inside a large honking machine ready to kill all in your path. The fun part is fighting other Titans in combat especially when it comes to getting an execution on them. Titans like their Pilot counterparts come with different abilities, and guns keeping Titan combat is fresh and not overly repetitive.
Pilot v Titan combat may tend to get a little annoying at times as it can degrade into a game of cat and mouse. This may just be a skill issue on my part though. Overall, the combat in this game is some of the best that gaming has ever seen. At many times its combat is better than other more modern online multiplayer games.
Graphics Animation and Sound design
The graphics of the game are decent for modern video games. They aren’t too highly detailed which doesn’t really matter all that much when you’re zooming around too fast to enjoy the details. The models of the Titans are pretty sophisticated and are enjoyable to look at. The animations though are pretty fluid.
The various executions for Pilot v Pilot really show how much passion went into this game. The executions feel like the warzone executions before warzone which I think is a good thing. The Titan executions are a whole different show. These Titan executions make you feel like your playing DOOM with how overpowering they feel. With the Legion (a type of Titan) you can actually just lift up the other Titan with your minigun and just start blasting into their hull obliterating anyone inside.
The animations are pretty cool and still hold up to todays standards. The sound design though is pretty good. All the guns have their own gun sounds and so do the Titan weapons, but that’s expected. Sometimes though the audio for certain actions is unusually loud compared to everything else and can startle you. Though, one thing that stands out is the AI voice that talks to you when you’re in your Titan. Every titan has different voices and different personalities which make them feel unique.
The AI help keep you informed on the current situation informing you how outnumbered you are. For example, the Ronin titan which has a cold demeanor will say “Pilot we are outnumbered 4 to 1, Focus, Plan and Attack.” It helps immerse you into the game making you feel like you’re piloting the Titan. Overall, the graphics are decent, animations are good and so is the sound design.
Should You get into Titanfall 2
If you’re into movement-based shooters or even robot combat you should give Titanfall 2 a try. Especially considering the fact that usually the game is on sale for like 3-10$, so even if you don’t like it, you won’t be set back that much. It even has a good story which I won’t be getting into.
One thing you should take into consideration is the likelihood of you getting slammed your first few games, since the game has been out for almost a decade now the active player base has had plenty of time to get good at the game. There are plenty of regen 100 (prestige 100) veterans still playing which will almost certainly demolish you.
If you can get over that you’ll have one hella good time playing.
About the Contributors
Matthew Barrera
Matthew Ramirez, Staff Writer
Jose Chi