So I got to play the Uncharted 4 beta today, and from what I have seen from it's admittedly sparse offerings, its pretty fun.
The beta is not the usual (or I guess considering recent betas, it is the usual) beta, it only offers three maps and one mode, TDM. There are a couple of weapons, though I did not play enough to unlock all of them.
First off, the positives. The character movement in this game is just stellar. Very responsive and smooth. The maps are all very different, great looking, and well designed. This is why the cover mechanics (which are also really responsive and smooth) don't make the multiplayer boring, there is always another way around your opponent. The new grappling mechanic is fun and well implemented, though having just played two Uncharted games and Arkham Knight, I fell to my death many times after pressing the wrong button. The roll is abused, obviously, but you just feel so cool doing it.
The game is very stable, not a single crash and no lag even during the busiest hours of the day. Compared to the recent MP games I have played, this was a breath of fresh air.
But the best part, for me, is the shooting. Hot damn is it an improvement over the previous Uncharted games. The thing where your reticle is constantly moving around mimicking your spread pattern is cool, and not too distracting after an hour or so. And even better, there is no aim assist! Or at least, noticeable aim assist. I am a console FPS snob (not really), so I despise games with ridiculous aim assist.
Now onto the negatives. This game needs a hell lot of balancing. The sidekicks, which are essentially summonable AI partners, can be more effective than any human opponents. They take a ridiculous amount of damage, and some give a lot of damage in return. But the most annoying thing about them is that they just distract you from real players, as they soak up your bullets and fill your screen with distracting icons and gunfire.
The guns that you can unlock later in the game seem just way better than the ones you get for free. More often than not a player who has one of these weapons is at the top of the scoreboard. They just might be better than the rest of us, but the difference in the time to kill is noticeable. And the first sniper you get is useless, as well as the precision rifle. It takes around 4 or 5 shots to down an enemy with the rifle, and three or fours shots in a game like Uncharted are three or four shots you aren't going to get. In general, long range weapons are useless.
Team balance needs work too, I don't know how they are doing it but they need some sort of skillbased matchmaking. Most rounds you either completely dominate or completely get raped in the butthole. Speaking of matchmaking, getting into a game takes FOREVER. This is why it takes so long to level up, you spend quite a lot of time in matchmaking. And to add insult to injury, you have I think 20 seconds to choose your class and character, which you cannot change through the course of the game. So when you get stuck as generic bald guy with a peashooter of a DMR because you got tired of waiting and went to the kitchen for a drink, well, tough luck buddy.
While it might look like there are more negatives than positives, I do think the faults can be corrected easily. There is nothing really fundamentally wrong with it, it really is quite fun. I was planning on getting UC4 anyway, but this has cemented my decision.
Thoughts? Anyone else play the beta? Agree or disagree? I think disagree, this is my first Uncharted multiplayer experience, so if this like steak with gravy made of bacon to you UC vets, then I guess... sorry for being a scrub?
The beta is not the usual (or I guess considering recent betas, it is the usual) beta, it only offers three maps and one mode, TDM. There are a couple of weapons, though I did not play enough to unlock all of them.
First off, the positives. The character movement in this game is just stellar. Very responsive and smooth. The maps are all very different, great looking, and well designed. This is why the cover mechanics (which are also really responsive and smooth) don't make the multiplayer boring, there is always another way around your opponent. The new grappling mechanic is fun and well implemented, though having just played two Uncharted games and Arkham Knight, I fell to my death many times after pressing the wrong button. The roll is abused, obviously, but you just feel so cool doing it.
The game is very stable, not a single crash and no lag even during the busiest hours of the day. Compared to the recent MP games I have played, this was a breath of fresh air.
But the best part, for me, is the shooting. Hot damn is it an improvement over the previous Uncharted games. The thing where your reticle is constantly moving around mimicking your spread pattern is cool, and not too distracting after an hour or so. And even better, there is no aim assist! Or at least, noticeable aim assist. I am a console FPS snob (not really), so I despise games with ridiculous aim assist.
Now onto the negatives. This game needs a hell lot of balancing. The sidekicks, which are essentially summonable AI partners, can be more effective than any human opponents. They take a ridiculous amount of damage, and some give a lot of damage in return. But the most annoying thing about them is that they just distract you from real players, as they soak up your bullets and fill your screen with distracting icons and gunfire.
The guns that you can unlock later in the game seem just way better than the ones you get for free. More often than not a player who has one of these weapons is at the top of the scoreboard. They just might be better than the rest of us, but the difference in the time to kill is noticeable. And the first sniper you get is useless, as well as the precision rifle. It takes around 4 or 5 shots to down an enemy with the rifle, and three or fours shots in a game like Uncharted are three or four shots you aren't going to get. In general, long range weapons are useless.
Team balance needs work too, I don't know how they are doing it but they need some sort of skillbased matchmaking. Most rounds you either completely dominate or completely get raped in the butthole. Speaking of matchmaking, getting into a game takes FOREVER. This is why it takes so long to level up, you spend quite a lot of time in matchmaking. And to add insult to injury, you have I think 20 seconds to choose your class and character, which you cannot change through the course of the game. So when you get stuck as generic bald guy with a peashooter of a DMR because you got tired of waiting and went to the kitchen for a drink, well, tough luck buddy.
While it might look like there are more negatives than positives, I do think the faults can be corrected easily. There is nothing really fundamentally wrong with it, it really is quite fun. I was planning on getting UC4 anyway, but this has cemented my decision.
Thoughts? Anyone else play the beta? Agree or disagree? I think disagree, this is my first Uncharted multiplayer experience, so if this like steak with gravy made of bacon to you UC vets, then I guess... sorry for being a scrub?
