Titanfall Descends On London

Shoreditch, London. Hidden on these suburban streets, Titans fell from the sky, and we were lucky enough to experience it. Respawn Entertainment and EA had invited Big Red Barrel along to a special press preview of Titanfall, due for release next month, where the build that will soon be launched as the Titanfall Beta was shown off in the UK for the first time.

Having recently held a brief and extremely limited Alpha for the game to stress test the servers, the internet has been hot with talk and rumours of a Titanfall Beta. At time of writing, I can only confirm that the Beta is coming, and that this preview was based on the same build that will be distributed in the Beta.

Upon our arrival, Community Manager Abbie Heppe and Artist Joel Emslie introduced the game with a brief overview of what would be available in the build on show, and what we should definitely try out. And first up was the tutorial that has already been seen in the Alpha, a good start for players that haven’t played Titanfall already, as it gives you a chance to get a feel for and learn the basics of not only the pilot’s locomotion but also the Titan’s core game mechanics. The pilot and Titan sections of the tutorial ended with you having to put everything you’ve learned into practise to defend yourself against increasingly difficult waves of AI enemies. Does this indicate that a survival mode could be added to the final build of Titanfall? That’s something for the rumour mill at this time. The tutorial is also likely to be the first introduction to Titanfall’s over arching “Campaign Multiplayer” theme for many players, as once you had finished learning the basics, your training pod opens up in your room aboard an IMC ship. The simulated scenery on your window rolls up, and the fleet of ships waiting in space is revealed. Training is definitely over, it’s time to get into the fight.

This is where we left the comfort of gameplay seen in the various Expo demos and leaked Alpha footage, and ventured into new territory on the frontier. The Titanfall Beta will feature a never before seen game mode in the form of Last Titan Standing, a slight twist on the classic extermination style matches. Each pilot spawns in their Titan, with minimal AI grunts for support, and the only goal of taking down the enemy Titans. There’s only one life and Titan per player per round, but that doesn’t stop you from ejecting at will like you can normally. The round can be won when one team either kills all enemy pilots, or destroys all enemy Titans. This adds a difficult decision that’s always present throughout the game while in a Titan – do you stick with it and hope your piloting skills can make a difference, or do you hop out and give yourself two guns on the battlefield while leaving your Titan slightly less capable in a fire fight. During my gameplay, I witnessed a sneaky trick which is bound to be rampant in the early days, where pilots would eject from their Titans and leave them way out on the edge of the map in the hopes that they’d stay alive. But even if there’s one Titan at full health on your team, you’re still going to lose if all of the pilots are taken down. Rounds in Last Titan Standing are meant to be quick action, with most players opting to rush the centre of the map for all out chaos. However, the clash of Titans can be drawn out if players decide to play defensively. But if no team is obliterated within four minutes, the round is awarded to the team with the most Titans and pilots still in play, and the match is won once one team reaches 4 wins.

While new game modes should never be scoffed at, they can only be as good as the maps they’re played on. The Titanfall Beta will include the Fracture map, which has been seen in some promotional videos, but this will be the first time it’s available to the public. Unlike the Angel City map with it’s city streets and corridors to channel Titans, Fracture is a lot more open, with a few larger but half demolished buildings focused in the centre of the map. There’s some foliage and hidden paths for pilots to use as cover or to take a shortcut towards objectives. As there’s much more open space though, running between buildings makes pilots an easy target, so without a Titan on your side there’s always a frantic rush when you need to get to more cover. Titans have less cover too, but they also get a real chance to move around. All possible twelve Titans could easily have an open battle in some of the larger flat areas without tripping over each other, but there’s still the possibilty of cornering yourself or falling off the map if you aren’t paying attention. Fracture is certainly a different beast to Angel City, a map the Titan reigns supreme in most cases. However, game modes like Hardpoint Domination will make the most of a pilot’s skill and abilities, while also testing their ability to move quickly.

Don’t think that’s all you’ll be able to play on the Beta, as the Angel City map will also be included along with Attrition and Hardpoint Domination game modes. Angel City features an urban environment complete with city streets. These naturally funnel Titans along predictable paths making them great spots for an ambush, as pilots will be able to quickly climb to the top of the many buildings and rain down their anti-Titan weaponry. This map really caters to the pilot’s ability to wall run and double jump, and once you know the lines to take, you can get from one side of the map to the other in next to no time, and potentially without touching the ground. While the pilots are at their best when zipping around the map, the layout and shooting mechanics are familiar enough that anyone with past experience in a shooting franchise should be able to fall in without being completely overwhelmed.

Titanfall’s progression system is fairly similar to other first person shooters from the limited time we had to see it in use. You’ll begin with three set pilot loadouts, offering you the use of three different primary weapons and two different anti-Titan weapons as the most notable changes. At around level 5 though, you unlock the ability to create custom loadouts for your pilots, and from there on you’ll unlock new weapons like the R-97 Compact SMG and Longbow-DMR Sniper Rifle, as well as new ordnance and tactical abilities. There’s only two Titan loadouts to begin with however, with either the XO-16 Chaingun or 40MM Cannon available as primary weapons. You’ll unlock a third Titan set loadout early on though, which comes equipped with the massive damage dealing Quad Rocket Launcher, but getting to customise your Titans will take a little while to unlock. All of the weapons, pilot and Titan, have definitely had some tweaks since the build at Eurogamer Expo, but they all balance nicely enough that people will find their favourites and be able to stick to them should they choose. But for the full effect, variety is definitely the spice of mechanised death.

Sadly, only the Atlas class Titan is available to play once again, with the Stryder and Ogre classes probably being saved until the final game. But the Atlas is the all rounder after all, a mix of both speed and strength. Playing as the Atlas, this definitely comes across, as they’re able to take quite a beating from multiple attackers while also having the boosts necessary to get out of danger. Playing as a Titan just feels powerful, without lumbering around like most mechs do, it’s a perfect balance that keeps the game pace right in the fast lane.

Challenges are present for an extra XP boost, with different tiers and tied to different actions. Most of the weapon challenges are the same across the board, and as a lot of Titanfall is about the movement, there’s even challenges for wall running and even rodeoing Titans. Titanfall progression also includes burn cards, these are one time use items that can be applied before a match after reaching a certain level. These cards can vary from being able to call your Titan in earlier, having increased stats on a particular weapon or your ability’s effect lasting longer. New cards can be unlocked each time you level up, can be activated in-game from the loadout screen and there’s even an XP bonus for killing someone that’s currently using their burn card. Add these features to the AI cannon fodder available in each game, and even people who aren’t practised in first person shooters should have no issues levelling up.

I got to play Titanfall first at Eurogamer Expo, and I’ve been yearning for the day I get to go hands on with it again. The experience from this event has definitely lived up to my expectations. The old demo build still felt like it was ready to be a finalised game, but the improvements since then have made it a much tighter and rewarding gameplay experience. The quick locomotion as a pilot, and the towering force of being in a Titan are qualities that will never be lost on you within the game. A lot of the team at Respawn have already changed the face of first person shooters once, and with Titanfall, they’re definitely looking to do it again.

Tags: EA, Respawn Entertainment, Titanfall, Xbox One