Halo, one of the most popular and best-selling game franchises, has long had a respectable standing in the competitive gaming world. With balanced gameplay, consistent game mechanics, fluid controls and fast paced killing frenzies, it quickly became one of the most prominently featured titles in one of the largest competitive circuits: Major League Gaming. However, with the release of 2010’s Halo: Reach, which included very controversial game mechanics like reticle bloom and armor abilities, the legitimacy of the game’s status as MLG’s primary first-person shooter came into question. With 343 Industries, the exclusively Halo game company, hope remains with the title update that goes into full effect in November.
The game developer behind Halo, Bungie, has long been a developer known to heavily support its community, even going so far as to implement a theatre mode to cater to those who created Machinima (machine cinema; movies created using a game engine). Also, after much outcry from the community, they made adjustments to Halo 3 regarding how the game treated simultaneous melee attacks.
Halo: Reach represented a break away from the standard formula of Halo. Armor abilities (which behave similarly to perks from Call of Duty, in that you have a selection of loadouts that give you some kind of special ability such as sprint, or having the ability to deploy a hologram) and reticle bloom are the most prominent examples. So what is reticle bloom? To put it simply, it is the visual representation of the loss of accuracy as you shoot your weapon faster. At zero reticle bloom, your shot will always go wherever the reticle is pointed. As you shoot, the reticle expands, making your shots less and less precise. Now, this is no new mechanic in the gaming industry. Look at just about any other shooter and you can clearly note that rounds you fire get less accurate as you shoot.
How does this kill competitive Halo?
One of Halo’s defining factors is consistency. By adding that bit of randomness to a normally consistent game mechanic, it changed the way 1v1 duels played out. Instead of being solely reliant on player skill and accuracy, it gave a chance for the inferior skilled player to win a firefight simply based on chance. This 28-page thread in the Major League Gaming forum has a vast amount of logical and substantial arguments against the legitimacy of bloom, which explains it way better than I ever could.
Because Bungie split with Microsoft and handed over the helm of the Halo franchise to 343 industries. Bungie left all the responsibilities of updating the game to 343i. However, they also left their knack for listening to the community. Within a few months, 343 industries announced plans to release a title update that allowed them to adjust the amount of bloom caused by firing a shot. All the updates being implemented can be found here.
Because of this key change, 343i can make it so bloom is set to zero, thus making every shot you fire go exactly where you aim. This effectively eliminates the chance factor of a gunfight and puts the focus back on individual accuracy and skill. It is with this update that the focus returns back to the player, rather than the randomness of the gun. This is exactly what the competitive community has been asking for.
The “callsign” became a very popular idea when it was introduced into the Call of Duty series with Modern Warfare 2. It was Infinity Ward’s way of making the player “famous” since it allowed users to show off titles and emblems they’ve earned through achieving specific and sometimes challenging tasks. Black Ops took things a step further (or perhaps a step into darker places) by adding an emblem editor as well as different backgrounds to their “player cards.”
Modern Warfare 3 will be bringing back the same callsign concept from MW2 but with one small, but important edition; prior prestige ranks. Now, callsigns will show off ranks you’ve earned in previous Call of Duty titles, starting from Call of Duty 4, according to the picture below, provided by AnthAttack. This obviously has some connection with Call of Duty Elite, which also rewards you with prestige tokens for prestiging in past CoD titles. You can read more about prestige tokens here.
On the bottom right, you can notice prestige ranks from Cod 4 up to MW3.
For more Modern Warfare 3 info, make sure to stay tuned to MP1st on either Twitter or Facebook!
Here’s the complete list of every game mode in public matchmaking.
There are two types of public playlists in Modern Warfare 3, normal and advanced. Under normal, you can find the usual Call of Duty gamemodes with the inclusion of two new ones. “Kill Confirmed” and “Team Defender” are the brand new modes to the series. The new modes are explained thoroughly in this video. Advanced Playlist includes Hardcore varations of some game types along with Mosh Pit, Team Tactical, and Barebones.
Normal Playlist
Team Deathmatch
Kill Confirmed
Mercenary
Free-For-All
Domination
Team Defender
Demolition
Sabotage
Headquarters Pro
Search and Destroy
Capture the Flag
Advanced Playlist
Team Tactical
Mosh Pit
Hardcore Team Deathmatch
Hardcore Kill Confirmed
Hardcore Search and Destroy
Hardcore Domination
Hardcore Team Tactical
Barebones
Which gamemode are you going to pick for your first match in Modern Warfare 3? Let us know in the comment section, on Twitter and on Facebook!
Remember Starsiege: Tribes? If not, you may not be an “Old” gamer like me. (Hey, don’t call me grandpa yet, I’m only 30.) Well, Tribes was a game that came out in the late 90’s that featured futuristic battles of capture the flag. You could choose a class and duke it out with laser rifles and guns that fired exploding discs among other things.
The closed beta for Tribes: Ascend is starting today and you can gain access by pre-ordering. By pre-ordering, you gain access to the closed beta as well as the game. You will also get 3,000 gold (which is used to purchase items in-game), a 30-day booster (which adds temporary stat boosts) and lifetime VIP status (priority login, access to exclusive servers, and will earn Tokens and Experience faster inside the game, allowing them to unlock items faster).
Tribes: Ascend is the latest addition to the series being developed by Hi-Rez studios that will be a free to play multiplayer only FPS due out some time in 2012. Following the trend of other free to play games, Tribes: Ascend will feature a free to play system that includes purchasing upgrades for your soldier with real money, similar to League of Legends. While there is not much info on the game yet, I believe you can also gain in-game currency that will allow you to purchase the items that you could with real money. Just like you can in League of Legends.
Players will start the game with one “loadout” which is your class within the game. The starting class is the medium armored “Soldier” which comes with several weapons; The Spinfusor, Engergy Pistol, Grenade and Energy Pack. You can purchase additional classes or earn them through playing the game, which will take a while longer I assume. Players receive credits after doing certain gameplay tasks such as killing an enemy or capturing a flag, which are then used to buy vehicles, turrets and other base assets. You can also purchase “Boosters” to allow you to gain credits faster.
With vehicles, futuristic weapons, aerial combat in the form of jetpacks and “Ski jumping”, RPG elements like upgrading your classes with different perks and skills, this may be another game to keep an eye on. Especially if you are an “old school” gamer like myself and remember the good times with the original Tribes games.
You can keep an eye on Tribes: Ascend by visiting their official site here.
Also, make sure to follow MP1st on Twitter and Facebook for more multiplayer coverage of your favorite games!
I've been playing video games since I was probably 4 or 5 years old. I've played everything from Atari to PC and just about everything in between. I play just about every type of game except sports games, but my favorite type of game is definitely FPS. I love being able to hop right in to a match and get some kills. I mainly play on the 360 and a little less on PC and PS3 but will play exclusives when they come out for each system. And I will probably smoke you at Battlefield games. :P
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DICE has released the debut trailer of Back to Karkand expansion pack. Click here to check the 10 new weapons.
Details from DICE:
This December, go back to the four most loved maps from Battlefield 2, boldly reimagined with enhanced destruction in the Frostbite 2 engine. In this trailer, witness the very first ingame shots from Strike at Karkand, Sharqi Peninsula, Gulf of Oman, and Wake Island, from the upcoming expansion pack Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand. This expansion pack also features new weapons, vehicles, persistence, and the return of the classic Conquest Assault. Battlefield 3: Back to Karkand is out December 2011 at no extra charge with your pre-order, or available the same date at $14.99/1200 Microsoft Points.
Reminder: PS3 players will get a 1 week head start over PC and 360.
We have some exciting new updates for you guys, as well as future fixes for Battlefield 3 that you can look forward to.
The first bit of great news is that the Physical Warfare Pack, available as an exclusive pre-order bonus to GameStop, will soon be available to all players. DICE stated that “All of our players will be happy to know that Physical Warfare Pack will be available to everyone in the future!” Exactly when has yet to be revealed. This pack includes weapons like the Type 88 LMG and the DAO-12 Shotgun, as well attachments like the SKS Sniper Rifle flash suppressor, and DAO-12 flechette ammunition.
With the EA servers constantly shutting down for short periods of time lately, EA has provided us with a server status webpage where we can visit in order to find out the current status of servers on all three platforms. This page is currently in Beta, so expect a few minor changes here and there in the future.
In case you’ve missed it, DICE has also released a server-side patch recently that should hopefully have fixed many connectivity and lag issues that players have been experiencing. It also should provide fixes for the rather unorganized spawn system found in TDM and SQTDM. You can find the patch notes here! Speaking of improvements, Karl-Magnus Troedsson reveals seven ways Battlefield 3 is improving on the Battlefield Dev Blog. These include:
Quick Match Functionality
Joining Squads and Staying There
Hardcore Server Availability
Lag and Rubber Banding
Default Region Setting In Server Browser
Game Stability
Origin Installation and Authentication Issues
As for dealing with cheaters in the Battlefield 3 online multiplayer, DICE has stated that they would like you to visit the Origin Help Center if you feel the need to report someone. Of course, any issues you run into should also be reported on the Battlelog or through any other feedback channels like Twitter or Reddit.
With many issues slowly being fixed, one major concern still plagues the Battlefield: squad connectivity. Many players are still experiencing difficulties joining a game with a squad and staying in one. DICE assures us that “we know that team play is at the heart of Battlefield 3. As such we are working to resolve concerns about the squads.” We can most likely expect updates in the near future via a patch, which should also include:
To stay informed about updates to Battlefield 3, make sure to follow us on Twitter and Facebook! Missed our Battlefield 3 multiplayer review? You can check it out here!
Infinite Game Publishing and Piranha Games have announced that MechWarrior Online will be coming to PC’s in late 2012. MechWarrior online will be a free to play online MMO that features highly customizable giant mechs with many of the classic Mechs and weaponry. Players will join one of five Mech houses and battle for wealth, notoriety and territorial control. Players will also be able to customize the weaponry, upgrades and appearance of their mechs allowing you to create a customized Battlemech to suit your playstyle. You will even be able to customize the interiors of the Mechs and view the inside from the cockpit while in game!
It seems improvements have been made to the series as well as new additions to make this franchise even greater. Hopefully the team working on this one can bring the game back to some of its roots and make the awesome game MechWarrior fans have been waiting for. Too bad late 2012 is a year away!
I've been playing video games since I was probably 4 or 5 years old. I've played everything from Atari to PC and just about everything in between. I play just about every type of game except sports games, but my favorite type of game is definitely FPS. I love being able to hop right in to a match and get some kills. I mainly play on the 360 and a little less on PC and PS3 but will play exclusives when they come out for each system. And I will probably smoke you at Battlefield games. :P
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Sledgehammer Games talks about the development cycle of Call of Duty going forward, the lack of Battlefield 3 Influence on Modern Warfare 3, among other things.
Next Gen CoD
In an interview with Metro, the Co-founder of Sledgehammer Games, Glen Schofield, has revealed that Activisoin might implement a 3 year development cycle where Sledgehammer Games, Treyarch, and Infinty Ward would take turns developing the franchise. If this were to happen, with the time left in this generation of consoles, it brings up the question whether Sledgehammer will have their first solo stab at the Call of Duty franchise when the next generation consoles, PS4 and Xbox 720, are released. Glen explained “probably, yeah [it could be on the next gen consoles]. I’d bet on us to make a good Call Of Duty.”
The Lack of BF3’s Influence
A few months ago, we reported on the fact that Modern Warfare 3 Didn’t Copy Battlefield 3, which was one of our most commented articles. Glen explained to CVG “my [Modern Warfare 3’s] competition is Modern Warfare 2. It always has been and if you think back two years ago when we were starting on the project I didn’t know anything about Battlefield. I started hearing stuff about it maybe five or six months ago, news coming out. I never got a chance to play it until we got the beta a little while ago.” He went on to say “as far as a competitor goes, by the time we saw anything of it, the window to make changes was closed.” Glen further explained on Twitter, “yes I think they [MW3 and BF3] are different games, which is good for gamers.” Which is a view we mirror at MP1st.
In Other News
According to Glen, “all the weapon sounds and their 3D models” in MW3 have been changed since the early reveal trailers. He also reassured that the PS3 and Xbox 360 versions should be on par in terms of frame rate and other performance measures. On the PC front, Michael Condrey confirmed that the server files are indeed “stand-alone”, Steam is required to be running for the dedicated servers to work, and one dedicated box can run multiple servers.
Make sure to follow MP1st on Twitter and Facebook to keep up to date on everything MW3 related. For now, you can check out some of our latest MW3 articles!
Server fixes on the console versions of Battlefield 3 have just been announced by DICE.
At 09:00 CET, 08:00 GMT and midnight pacific time, DICE will be rolling out a server patch for the Ps3 and 360 which will look into these issues:
Fix for rubber banding
TDM/SQDM spawn point fix
Crash fixes in end of round
Fix for connection problem when joining password protected servers
These fixes are already live on the PC version of Battlefield 3. Again, this is a server side update so no download will be required. While fixing the major issue of lag is a huge plus, I’m really happy to see that they are looking into the spawn points in TDM/SQTDM. This was one of the only issues that stopped Battlefield 3 from receiving our reward for best in class TDM.
We have not yet heard any word of a release date for an actual patch but we do know DICE has one in the works. You can view our earlier reports and potential patch notes here:
Alan Kertz has also revealed some new information regarding the upcoming patch and things that DICE is looking into. Buffing the UMP-45 was talking about quite a while ago now, and some fans have been asking if changes have already taken place. “I believe it will come in a future update,” Kertz Mentioned. Other Battlefield fans have expressed concern about plans to nerf the SCAR-H. One fan asked, “if you’re nerfing the SCAR-H based on usage stats then I think those might be a bit misleading given how early an unlock it is.” Kertz responded, saying that it’s “not based on stats, just based on the role it plays. It’s statistically superior at close and long range, should only be long range.”
How do you feel about the UMP-45 and the SCAR-H? What changes would you like to see? Let us know in the comment section below and don’t forget to follow us on Twitter and Facebook to stay up-to-date!
Multiplayer gamers have a plethora of game modes and types to choose from when it comes to online shooters; Call of Duty’s Search and Destroy, Battlefield’s Conquest, and Halo’s Headhunter are just a small sampling of the myriad choices. While the new, unique, and esoteric gametypes help keep a game fresh and a community dedicated, shooter fans will probably never let go of the original and (arguably) most popular gametype: Team Deathmatch. While objective gametypes often charge players with completing some sort of flag- or bomb-related task, Team Deathmatch keeps it simple: kill the other team. More than they kill yours.
Countless titles have incorporated Team Deathmatch into their online component, and it has become requisite in most popular shooters. With a slew of shooter series now vying for the biggest piece of the online game pie, we gamers have the chance to compare and evaluate each title and its Team Deathmatch component. Which modern franchise pulls off the best Team Deathmatch experience?
Halo
The Halo series has been hosting Team Deathmatch (dubbed “Team Slayer”) matches for ten years now; while the goal of the game is the same as it was in the previous decade, Halo’s superb map design and weapon placement placed an emphasis on teamwork and map control. Power weapons and vehicles could make or break a match, and it was imperative that a team was working together. Now, that’s not to say that a lone wolf couldn’t turn the tide of battle, but even a lone wolf will have trouble facing a team wielding a rocket launcher and a Warthog. Two teams of 4 compete in an attempt to reach the 50-kill limit first; Halo 2 introduced Big Team Battles, which require the teams of 8 to reach 100 kills. Halo offers an incredibly balanced Team Deathmatch scene, and it’s hard to find fault in its mechanics. That being said, power weapons can affect the balance at times, especially on the asymmetrical maps.
Call of Duty
Call of Duty offers a glut of gametypes, and Team Deathmatch is one of the most popular. While its mechanics are similar to Halo’s, the core Call of Duty game elements turn it into a different beast altogether. Killstreaks, perks, and loadouts create a dynamic battlefield, and one map may never be played the same twice. While there are natural chokepoints, there are no power weapons or pickups, so teams won’t be instinctively battling over a specific location or weapon. Killstreaks reward two types of players: the really good ones, and the ones patient enough to wait for the prime killing time instead of running around aimlessly. Killstreaks are what differentiate CoD’s Team Deathmatch from pretty much every other iteration out there. Yes, they can be seemingly cheap and unbalanced at times, but it creates a unique playing field that is incomparable to its competition.
Battlefield 3 is the first installment in the long-running franchise that offers Team Deathmatch, and while the series is new to the gametype, it is a more than serviceable offering. For a game known for its huge battlefields and in-depth vehicle support, its Team Deathmatch mode is surprisingly bare-bones. That’s a good thing. With no vehicle support, and no map-specific weapon pickups, the game is all about a team and its guns; no killstreaks, armor boosts, or invisibility boxes are to be found. The maps are the same as the Conquest and Rush maps, but feature barriers so that the playing field is small and personal; you won’t have to walk too far to find a kill (or death). The real flaw of Battefield’s Team Deathmatch experience is the spawning; with such small maps, and such quick respawn timers, it’s common to spawn right behind an enemy, and get insta-killed, or to have an enemy spawn directly in front of you, giving you a cheap kill and them a cheap death. Hopefully in future DLC and installments this flaw will be remedied.
Gears of War is also relatively new to the Team Deathmatch scene; while past installments have featured “kill or be killed” scenarios, the third game is the first to include a standard Team Deathmatch mode. It’s standard in most respects, but still takes a creative approach to scoring. Instead of a team winning by reaching a certain amount of kills, a team wins by draining the respawns of the opposition. This creates a normal Team Deathmatch scenario for the first half of the game, but once a team has less than 5 respawns left, the tactics change. Then a team has to hunker down and play even more cautiously; there will be no backup or reinforcements if the team incurs another death. Akin to Halo, Gears of War features map-specific power weapons that are fought over. A team brandishing the One Shot or the Mulcher can make quick work of its foes. While this would seem to imbalance the gameplay, the emphasis on cover and the tight-knit maps help players avoid many of the enemies’ powerful super weapons.
Which is the best? Well, it’s hard to say (apologies for the cop-out). Much of it comes down to personal preference. It’s hard to directly compare, say, CoD’s Team Deathmatch, with its killstreaks and loadouts, to Battlefield’s stripped-down version.
That being said, the Halo series offers the most balanced, fair, and competitive Team Deathmatch experience (so, I guess it’s not hard to say). That’s my verdict, and I’m stickin’ to it.
Let me know in the comments why my pick is right/wrong/terrible, and let me know which of your favorite games offers the best TDM.
Don’t forget to follow MP1st on Twitter and Facebook for the latest in the MP world.
Activision has just released a new Modern Warfare 3 behind the scenes video showcasing “Kill Confirmed and Team Defender, two of the all-new multiplayer modes in Modern Warfare 3. Learn how MW3 takes multiplayer customization to a whole new level: Private matches have been significantly enhanced to allow players to create new, fully customizable game modes and share those newly created game modes with friends and the community.”
We’re only one week away from the intense, action-packed and ever addicting multiplayer of Modern Warfare 3. Robert Bowling has revealed some new information on post launch support, prestige options, and strike packages.
Treyarch, the minds behind Black Ops, were looked highly upon due to their unmistakeable post launch support. This is not in terms of paid DLC, but patches and fixes. Black Ops went on to become one of the more balanced and polished entries in to the series, though it may have had a bumpy launch. It now seems that Infinity Ward/Sledgehammer Games’ Modern Warfare 3 will be taking a cue from last year’s iteration. One fan asked Bowling how Treyarch was able to update their game so often, while fans had to wait for patches in Modern Warfare 2. Bowling answered, “because Black Ops was the first game to introduce more hot-fixes. Something we’ve optimized even more in MW3 to do the same.” This should come as good news to many. No longer will we have to wait for patches for changes to take place. This should make for a much smoother launch for MW3.
Bowling also had more to say about Prestige. Some fans have been asking if they will still be able to unlock tokens for Prestige-ing in past CoD games even after the release of and after playing MW3. According to Bowling, “there is no cut off, you can go back and earn it at any time and unlock it in MW3.” He also added that gear in the “Prestige Shop” is “permanently unlocked for all future prestiges.” Speaking of the Prestige Shop, Bowling mentioned that “it’s accessible anytime as long as you have Prestige Tokens to use in it. So if you have 4 tokens on day 1, you can use them.”
Some more details on perks: You may have noticed the nifty new controllable UAV in MW3 that players can fly to manually spot enemies. Some fans have been asking if the UAV or the Advanced UAV would be able to spot players running the Assassin perk, which hides players from the radar. Bowling replied, “no. The only way to have Assassin users show up on Radar is to tag them with Recon or Recon Pro.” Speaking of Recon, a new feature was announced earlier that players using using the Marksman proficiency will be able to “tag” enemies on the radar just by looking at them through a rifle scope. Fans have been asking if this is automatic or if enemies need to be tagged manually. Robert answered, “No, Marksman works automatically, so now an enemy’s name will appear above them at a longer distance than normal.”
It has already been revealed that the killstreak rewards in MW3, now called point streak rewards, are split up into 3 different strike packages; Assault, Support and Specialist. One reward found in the Assault strike package that has caught the attention of many CoD fans is the ability to suit up as a juggernaut. As funs as it looks, it also has gamers worried that it could be extremely over-powered. However, Bowling explained in a recent G4 video that though the juggernaut reward is super powerful, it does not regenerate health, cannot run or jump, and cannot go prone. Though, it does have the Scavenger perk built in with it’s LMG; meaning, it can pick up any ammunition as the player walks over it.
Are you looking forward to suit up as either a support or assault juggernaut? What other perks or strike packages are you looking forward to? Let us know in the comment section below and follow us on Twitter and Facebook!
In our continuing coverage of independent multiplayer games, we had the honor of interviewing Autumn Games. Developer interviews are always insightful and filled with bits of knowledge to be gleaned about the game-developing world, but it’s not every day you get the chance to listen to a publisher’s tale. Autumn Games publishes downloadable and independent games, and gracing MP1st with his time was Alex Collmer, CEO of Autumn Games.
MP1st: Your goal is empowering the rise of the indie developer. That’s an impressive task; what are the unique challenges of publishing independently developed video games?
We built Autumn with the assumption that publishing in the digital era is a different task, and thus requires a different type of company. More importantly, it requires a different kind of relationship with development studios. We don’t believe in buying people. We think that the franchises of tomorrow will be created by passionate teams who are working for themselves – with their names on the door, their brand on the games, and their vision leading the game. That model requires trust and a strong working relationship with the development teams, and it won’t work in every case.
MP1st: What advantages does your publishing team have over larger conglomerate publishers, or corporate-backed game companies? What are some of the challenges of your position?
We’re an extremely lean company, and that benefits us in multiple ways. We can move much more quickly than big companies, as we don’t have complicated green-light processes that have grown cumbersome over decades. Second, because we’re a true digital publisher, we have far less overhead that needs to be recouped from royalties that should, instead, be going to developers. This allows us to work much more transparently with developers, and transparency is always a good thing in any long-term relationship. The flip side is that we don’t have a conglomerate to plug into for marketing integration, but we’ve always found that synergy is better on paper than it is in practice, and marketing flexibility allows us to do the best things for each property, as opposed to following a formula.
MP1st: How do you decide on what games to promote and publish? Do you search for quality material, or are there legions of indie developers knocking on your door?
To be honest, it really starts with the people. Our model is based on empowering top teams to do cool stuff. If there isn’t mutual trust as the foundation, it’s not going to work. Once the relationship is in place, then we look at the initial property. We’re really only focused on games that we think have the potential to be true franchises that can be extended across multiple connected digital devices. We built a hyper-lean publishing model so that we can afford to take risks that other companies cannot. With this, we’re looking for properties that are unique in some fundamental way, and through this, have a chance to be truly impactful on a broad scale, even if they might not look exactly like a previously successful game, which seems to be a pre-requisite for some other green light processes. “Rinse and repeat” games work for a lot of publishers–traditional, and these days, especially social—but they don’t work for us.
MP1st: Does your team focus on smaller downloadable titles, or do you expand into the retail market as well?
We have a very flexible publishing model. We’ve very purposefully stayed away from tying ourselves to any one platform – or to just digital games. Physical retail is still a big channel, and for certain games, it makes a lot of sense. Our recent racing franchise, Jimmie Johnson’s Anything with an Engine is a perfect example. We felt that this game really belonged in physical retail today, even though it’s destined for a primarily digital life – so it’s launching on November 1st on all consoles in all major retail locations. This is one of the benefits of being a platform agnostic publisher; we can do what’s best for the long-term health of each individual franchise on a case-by-case basis.
Autumn Games and driving legend Jimmie Johnson have teamed up to produce "Anything With an Engine," an unconventional racing game releasing this month for all home consoles.
MP1st: What is your relationship with Reverge Labs? How did your partnership over Skullgirls come to fruition?
We love the Reverge team. They came to us with Skullgirls as a playable demo and it was clear to us instantly that this game, and this team, was special. They have so much passion for the property, and it’s that passion that has led to such a beautiful game. We can’t wait for gamers to be able to get their hands on Skullgirls so that other people can experience what we’ve been seeing since the day we met them. We think the Skullgirls franchise has a long life as a game, and beyond.
MP1st: Are there any genres or styles of games that Autumn tends to shy away from?
I don’t see us making a Farmville knock-off anytime soon…
MP1st: What do you anticipate in the coming decades in terms of game design, development, and publishing? What trends will become irrelevant or unnecessary, and what new benchmarks will be set?
I think we’ll see the further rise of the independent developer. In some ways, we believe that the games business today still looks like the film world did in the early ‘40’s, with talent “owned” and working 9-5 for a few vertically integrated studios. The film world today is quite different than it was back then – Spielberg has Dreamworks, Ron Howard has Imagine, there’s Bruckheimer Films, Pixar, etc. We expect more great development studios to become household names in the years ahead, and we’ve designed Autumn to help make that a reality. That said, as much as we see the rise of the independent developer, we also believe that publishers will still have a role, as teams that want to make high-quality games will still need development and marketing capital, they will still need marketing help through traditional, promotional and social channels, and they often need help extending IP both geographically, and into other media. I think the pricing lessons of social games are here to stay, and will extend outside of “social games”. Conversely, I don’t think the quality lessons of social are here to stay, as quality will matter, and in the end, games that leave an emotional mark will be the ones that create franchise value.
MP1st: While you focus on supporting indie developers, you still have a number of licensed games in production. Is obtaining a license for game development (such as your Def Jam- and NASCAR-related projects)?
We don’t necessarily view those as licensed games in the traditional sense. Rather, we would argue that those two properties were original IP’s, created in partnership with a brand. It’s different than making a stick-to-the-script movie game. For example, in real life, Jimmie Johnson doesn’t drive around Charlotte on a barstool!
MP1st: Are there any tips you could give aspiring game developers and small independent studios?
From our perspective, I would just say to think about where the world’s going to be when your game is ready, rather than where it is today. Things move so fast now that emulating something that’s popular today is often not a great recipe for the creation of standout franchises. Ultimately, we believe that the games business is still just scratching the surface of what it can be. With each new connected device, more and more innovative ways of telling stories are made possible. Great artists and game designers shouldn’t shy away from that unknown, and definitely shouldn’t be afraid of trying something new just because it hasn’t been done before.
Stay tuned to MP1st for more coverage of multiplayer games, both dependent and independent. Missed some earlier interviews? Check these out:
We’ve recently seen details of an incoming server update that DICE currently has in the works, but there are still many other issues at hand with Battlefield 3 that need to be ironed out.
We’ve compiled a few things that DICE is currently looking into and that you can expect updates for in the near future here, but you can check also out some earlier details we’ve gathered of things that will be making it into a future patch. These include updates from jets and pistols to aiming and other PDWs.
Many fans have been wondering where all the hardcore servers are! Though DICE has stated that “new BF3 hardcore servers [were] added,” they also mentioned that they are “listening and will keep you updated as [they] bring more online.” They’ve “heard that you want even more!”
Sadly, there is always a presence of cheaters when it comes to online gaming. Rest assured, DICE is looking into the situation. They had this to say. “Online play is the core of Battlefield 3 and cheating will not be tolerated. We are working to remove cheaters and their cheats.” They continued, “please rest assured that we have a dedicated team actively seeking out those users.” Daniel Matros added, “Don’t worry. Might not get them now or in a few days but cheaters and statspadders will have their accounts deleted or stats reset.”
Alan Kertz has also added that “there are some general air balance tweaks planned.” When asked if weapons like the SCAR will get nerfed as well, he replied, “7.62mm rifles will lose a bit of power up close, yes.” Fredrik Thylander mentioned that they are aware of and looking into things like lag issues on Tehran Highway and the issue of not receiving any points when repairing a vehicles from the inside. In a recent FAQ, it was also stated that,
“the DICE team is working around the clock to improve the lag and rubber-banding some users are encountering. To help mitigate it in the interim, please connect to servers near you by setting your filter to sort by “ping” and selecting the lowest-pinging server. Also, for pc users, please make sure that you don’t have any programs running in the background that requires internet connection or is streaming data.”
For now, there are some other problems that may have potential fixes that DICE would like you to know about. They have stated that “if you’re having an issue with the Physical Warfare Pack please visit EA’s Help Center and select Talk to a Game Advisor.” If you’re having trouble logging into the Battlelog, DICE suggests that “sometimes if you go play multiplayer for awhile and then come back it will log in.” For those having troubles on Origin, “if you are receiving an error stating you need to reinstall, please try right-clicking the title, and selecting repair.”
Hope some of this helps and that it gives you hope that these issues will be looked into! How badly has lag been affecting you, what do you think about the SCAR being nerfed, and are you happy to see more HC servers? Let us know down below!
To stay updated, make sure to follow us on Twitter and Facebook!
A server update for Battlefield 3 is being rolled out shortly that should provide some fixes to the number of issues being reported by the community. According to our earlier report on server issues, it sounded like these problems should have already been fixed. Hopefully it will be smooth sailing from here on out. Since this is a server side update, user’s don’t need to download any patches or update their client. The fixes that DICE listed on the Battlelog can be found below:
Fix for crashes usually occurring during level switches. Server providers may see a little bit of memory leakage instead in this situation
Game servers should no longer quit in some situations where the online backend servers are down. Server will reconnect to the backend once it’s up again
Fix for ghost servers which didn’t accept connections
Kick reasons should better match situations where they are issued. This will help battlelog provide more accurate information to the player
Connection fixes to avoid players sometimes being rejected while joining the game server on one of the last slots
Security updates
Improved server logging
We are still awaiting details of an upcoming patch that DICE have stated they are looking into. To keep updated, follow us on Twitter and Facebook!
Want to learn how to be a better pilot in Battlefield 3? Check out our latest multiplayer guide!
Last week, Fahed kicked off our epic 11-part countdown to the best multiplayer game of 2011 with Counter-Strike 1.1, winning 2001’s greatest MP game. This week, it’s my honor to follow it up with my favorite game of all time:
Every Battlefield fan knows this intro. From the initial chords (OK, intervals, cleverly referenced in BF3’s Thunder Run trailer) to the epic crescendos, players knew exactly what they were in for. To say this game was epic would be an understatement. 64-player battles, massive maps, and an endless assortment of land, sea, and air vehicles are things gamers drool over today, but a decade ago, were downright mind-blowing.
The concept was simple; Recreate miniaturized versions of historical battlefields, and give the player all the tools available to soldiers in that era. Tanks, planes, aircraft carriers, nothing was off-limits! Teams of up to 32 players could face-off in Team Deathmatch and AI Co-op, but by far the most popular game mode was Conquest. This game mode is highly objective based where teams would fight over control points all over the map. Teamwork and coordination were key.
Victory was determined by “tickets” representing reinforcements. Every team would start off with a set number of tickets, usually about a hundred. A player dies? Their team loses a ticket. A team fails to capture enough control points? They bleed tickets. When a team loses all their tickets, they lose the match.
Teamwork was enforced in a very clever, unintrusive way: Rock, Paper, Scissors. Player classes and vehicles all have specializations and vulnerabilities. Some excel at fighting infantry, others at fighting vehicles. Some classes push forward, and others provide support. Some vehicles are vulnerable to aircraft, while others are only useful against aircraft. No one class or vehicle can win a battle alone. The more the players fulfill their role, the better equipped their teams would be.
The result was a game that balanced teamwork, tactics, resource management, and individual skill, applying it on a scale nobody had ever seen before; it accomplished all of that without sacrificing an ounce of fun.
What set Battlefield apart was its variety and depth. I remember the first time I was introduced to it. I complained that video games always have plane models, but never let you fly… and then I got in. Oh, I was hooked! I must have wasted more hours in Battlefield than any other game, and all without the cheap allure of XP, unlocks, or accolades. Of all the games I’ve ever been addicted to, Battlefield 1942 was the only one I’d ever truly fallen in love with.
We didn’t play to watch our stats go up; we played because it was fun, and the variety just added to the replay value. You could support your team in any number of ways. there were those who spawned into the front lines, while others who would spend minutes driving towards the objective, planning their vector of attack. It gave Battlefield something few other multiplayer FPSs had: really good pacing. The tiered spawning mechanics is one of the many things that made Battlefield special.
Playing with friends was fantastic, but my guilty pleasure was staging 31v32 AI battles across my favorite map, Guadalcanal, while I flew above in my Corsair like a god!
Some of the most fun I’ve ever had was simply exploring maps like these. Sprinting through the trees, climbing up the rocky cliffs, and parachuting into otherwise inaccessible areas provided a nice change of pace.
Love it or hate it, an honorable mention should go to Wake Island: whose narrow arms made us PTFO for 200 years.
Although not as refined as Battlefield 2 and lacking the engine improvements of Bad Company, Battlefield 1942 easily cemented itself as one of the most beloved multiplayer games of all time. With its innovative gameplay, epic scope, and incredible depth, DICE set its sights high and went above and beyond.
TimeSplitters
TimeSplitters’ arcade mode offers several different game types where four players and up to ten bots can battle it out for a variety of objectives. It also included a map maker tool which allowed players to choose up to 21 pre-made tiles to build their own maps. TimeSplitters went on to reach the 6th highest scoring first-person shooter game released on the PlayStation 2. Keep and eye out for TimeSplitters 4 which is being developed by Crytek UK.
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4
Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 4 is playable online with up to three players on a dial-up connection or eight players on a broadband connection. Five modes are available, including trick attack, graffiti, combo mambo, king of the hill and slap. Most of the fun in this game was had in the split screen co-op with a buddy or two, just like in its previous iterations.
Agreed with our picks? Let us know in the comment section below! Don’t forget to follow us on Twitter and Facebook and stay tuned for next week’s greatest MP game of 2003!
As many of you know, there is a wide variety of equipment and vehicles to choose from in Battlefield 3 to help you dominate the land, sea and air. We have jets, tanks, boats, helicopters, and equipment like the javelin and SOFLAM. The only problem is some of these vehicles and equipment aren’t very “noob” friendly and leave you crashing your jet or heli immediately after take-off or wondering what the heck the SOFLAM actually does.
Below, we’ve compiled some tips and video tutorials that we think will really help you guys out with some of these hard-to-master vehicles. First off, MP1st’s advice for consoles:
Personally, I like to switch all my vehicle stick settings to ‘alternative’. This allows for a few things, the main thing being that my right trigger/R1 is always designated to ‘fire’. On land vehicles, this means the left trigger/L1 will be designated to your ‘throttle’, while the left bumper/L2 will be designated to ‘brake/reverse’. To me, it seems simpler to have the left hand control my speed, while the right hand takes care of the killing! Of course, if you’ve played any racing games, it’s probably engrained into your head that the right trigger/R1 means ‘gas’, so it may take some getting used to.
What I like about this set up on air vehicles, is that the left thumb stick will always control the throttle, meaning I don’t always need to hold down one of the triggers/shoulder buttons the entire time. Again, I like having the right trigger/R1 set to ‘fire’, it keeps things simple and means less thinking when in a tricky situation since it’s already what we’re all used to.
In Battlefield 3, you’re going to have a hard time being effective with jets and helis the first couple times since you won’t have access to flares or heat seeking missiles. Just remember to keep trying and be patient. The reward is well worth it and will make your battlefield experience all the more exciting.
In a recent EA earnings conference call, Frank Gibeau, EA Games Label President, spoke of the state of EA’s servers that are currently supporting the online portion of Battlefield 3.
One investor in particular asked, “we’re hearing there’s some issues with recent server outages that prevented gamers from accessing the multiplayer game. Did these servers go down due to a larger-than-expected demand or was it some other issue?” Gibeau answered, “In terms of the network services, we have had unprecedented and historic peaks in terms of the activity that we’re getting from the Battlefield community and players, and it’s caused parts of our networks to experience some outages.”
This is something many players have obviously has issues with in the first few days after launch. However, it seems EA is getting the hang of things according to Gibeau. “We were very rapid in our response there. We were able to get those back up. We feel like we’ve really gotten a handle on it now, and the service as it scales to the release in Europe this weekend, should be solid.”
Also, look for an upcoming patch in the next couple of weeks!
Do you think EA will get a tight grip on the server issues? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below and follow us on Facebook and Twitter!
The scale of Battlefield 3’s multiplayer is gigantic; yet, where the game really shines is in the details. It’s this balance of macro and micro that make this one of the more fully-packed, yet polished, first person shooters of this generation.
The Scale
Battlefield 3’s online multiplayer is huge. It does everything: expansive and wide open terrains, large scale battles with many soldiers on the field at once (up to 24 on consoles and 64 on PC), vehicles like tanks, helicopters and jets, intense destruction, and a worldwide social networking system called the Battlelog to back it all up.
Where it all begins, though, is in the multiplayer menu. In this menu there are three initial options: quick match, for those who just want to choose a game mode and a map without being too picky; server browser, for those who want a more customized experience; and leaderboards. Quick match allows you to choose from five different game modes and nine different maps, with more on the way in the form of DLC.
Conquest allows two teams to battle it out over a number of flags, the number depending on the map. Whichever team has the most flags captured will have an easier time lowering the enemy team’s ticket count (lives). Many would consider this mode to be the staple way to play Battlefield, and in this iteration, it’s no different. The beauty of this game mode is that it requires strategy and communication. You need to stick with your squad, decide which flag you want to take, and how you are going to take it. Do you flank the enemy from the side, or attack head-on with helis and tanks? It goes much deeper than this, however, and it is one of the richest and most rewarding ways you can play battlefield.
Rush is a much more intense and focused game mode in that you are given only two objectives to attack or defend. Once they are taken, the map opens up to a new section, allowing the battle to progress almost like a story. Some of my only complaints lie in this game mode, however. I found some map layouts to be extremely unforgiving to the attacking team. Two examples I can think of is the first base in Tehran Highway and second base in Grand Bazaar.
Team deathmatch was an interesting and fun game mode that made its debut in Battlefield 3. Surprisingly, it actually works quite well. Since DICE has given us many customization options for our weapons, it really allows us to play the way we want to play and to shine more as an individual, rather than a team. I also love how quickly it is possible to re-spawn after death, making it a very fast paced game mode. It’s a great to just have some fun shooting other people without having to worry about an objective. It’s also a great place for newcomers to start in order to get a feel for the gunplay and basic mechanics of the game. For a new addition to the Battlefield series, it almost does a better job than some other shooters who have been doing it for years.
These three game modes are where I have spent most of my time up till now; however, squad deathmatch and squad rush are just more compact versions of their bigger brothers. One thing I would have liked to see in the quick match screen is the hardcore and infantry counterparts of each game mode. Right now, this is only selectable through the server browser.
A server browser in a console game is something uncommon, but it should be in every shooter with dedicated servers. DICE really went above and beyond with the console market by allowing us to choose our servers that we want to play on. Many options are available here, on PC as well, of course, including presets, ranked/unranked, and region. Battlefield 3 has three different presets for each game mode. Normal is fairly self explanatory; it’s the core battlefield experience with vehicles and regular HUD, health and damage. Hardcore takes your HUD away while increasing damage and lowering health. This makes for a very realistic and intense type of gameplay; however, expect the pace of the match to be much slower. Infantry is your regular Battlefield experience, but without the vehicles. This might be another good starting point to learn the game modes without having to worry about choppers and jets bringing the pain. Unranked servers are currently unavailable at the moment but should be later on and should allow for many customization options.
It would also be great if DICE could add tutorial servers, where we could practice our piloting skills, for example. Of course, it’s always great to be able to choose your region so you know you’ll be getting a good connection. Ping is also viewable for each server before selecting.
Teamwork is a huge component to the gameplay in Battlefield, and it’s important to be able to manage your squad easily. Luckily, a squad management system is just a click away on consoles and is easily available on the Battlelog for PC players, though I have not been able to test it out on a computer. Pushing start on consoles will bring up a list of all your friends online that you can invite to a squad. Once you are all squadded up, it’s just a matter of the leader finding a game.
Unfortunately, this is easier said than done and this is where some of my biggest gripes lie. I had loads of troubles trying to find a game with my squad, even when it was only made up of myself and one other. We would constantly receive notices of connection problems to game session or simply be kicked out of a game the moment we joined. Though, once we were both in a game together, and even if were weren’t on the same squad or team, it was a easy to either switch sides or choose our own squad to join. Of course, something like this could be, and hopefully will be, brushed off as a “day-one” or “launch” problem, including the sometimes fragile connection to the servers. I fully expect DICE to resolve these issues.
If you haven’t yet, make sure to sign up for the Battelog. This amazing little social network allows players to find and follow friends, view stats and unlocks in great detail, contribute to forums and even chat with others. Of course, for PC gamers, it will be their main hub for joining up with squads and finding matches, since all matchmaking is done through the Battlelog. In-game, console users get a small feed of updates on the right of the main menues. If you’d like, you can become a fan of the MP1st platoon!
More details on the new patch for Battlefield 3 have surfaced including balancing, aiming mechanics, and other fixes.
Balancing
By far the easiest way to take down helis at moment is to use the Stinger against them; however, this will not be as easy in the near future. Alan Kertz, Battlefield 3’s Gameplay Designer, has pointed out that the Stingers’ nerf “is in discussion at the office now.” Fredrik Thylander, Senior Designer, reassured that the nerf is indeed “incoming”. To follow up on yesterday’s post, Kertz explained that Jets will not get disabled by 1 shot as it is the case at the moment; however, no further explanation was provided.
With the UMP will soon be doing more damage, another PDW, PP-2000, is going to be buffed as well. When a fan asked Kertz to alter the PP-2000 to be in “a middle ground between the beta and final release”, Kertz simply responded “that’s the plan”. On the snipers’ front, a fan pointed out to Daniel Matros the discrepancy in the magazine size of the M39 EMR between the battlelog and the actual game; the battlelog shows a 20+1 magazine size as opposed to the current 10+1 in game. Daniel assured that this will be fixed.
Some players have been vocal in their displeasure with the final release aiming mechanics, they felt that it was spot on in the beta and the issue can be easily sorted by setting the aiming back to as it was in the beta. Kertz shed some light on the issue by stating “if it was that simple, it wouldn’t be a problem. It’s not the controls, something else is going on. [DICE’s] engineers are looking into it.” Just a side note, Kertz was referring to real life engineers, not in game!
Issues
DICE is also working on the following:
Game activation problems.
Addressing lag on the 360 as well, which has been hampering our MP1st squad. If you’re looking for your fellow MP heads on BF3, the easiest way is to become a fan MP1st’s platoon.
Following up on one of our earlier reports, Tomas Danko explains “negative mouse acceleration fix should be included [in the patch]”
