Jason Hidalgo|jhidalgo@rgj.com
The Technobubble Wrap is a bite-sized roundup of reporter Jason Hidalgo’s game and gadget reviews of the week. Follow his shenanigans on Twitter @jasonhidalgo
Fans of the shooting genre must be partying like it’s 2011.
I say that as someone who has been lamenting the downward spiral of the shooting genre in the last few years. See, after playing my share of shooters for ages, the entries from the last three or so years just didn’t excite me the way games in the genre used to.
Don’t get me wrong, many of the Triple-A shooters certainly featured a good amount of polish. Except for games like the original Titanfall, however, I pretty much got a been-there, done-that vibe from the whole lot of them. It’s like witnessing the beginning of the decline of the JRPG genre from its golden days all over again.
Then the new Doom game came out. Surprisingly, it was a hell of a lot of fun, pun so totally intended. But hey, one good game does not a comeback make. I require more proof to placate my skepticism.
Just a few days later, out comes Overwatch. A new take on arena shooting, the game’s fast gameplay and likable characters proved to be a smash hit on PC and consoles. OK, but two is an accident, as people say. It’s three that’s a trend, or is it a charm? Sorry, I tend to mix my stereotypical phrases like my metaphors sometimes.
A few months pass after that and I found myself revving up the old Lancer chainsaw in Gears of War 4 in the fall. Not only was the new Gears a win for the general shooter genre, it was great news for starved fans of the oft-ignored third-person shooting sub-genre. Still, even triple axels are yesterday’s news now. These days, it’s all about the quadruple axel, baby.
Like clockwork, out comes Battlefield 1, of course. Granted, its mechanics did not see significant progress in the grand scheme of things. Its multi-layered campaign and World War I aesthetic, however, proved to be quite refreshing and added to the year’s growing list of good shooters. As if that wasn’t enough, it was soon followed by Titanfall 2, which continues to bring its own unique take on the modern shooter with nimble soldiers and hulking robots.
Even if Call of Duty Infinite Warfare simply performs average or even less than that when it comes out later this year, I think it’s safe to say that 2016 was good for shooters. It’s not just about the quantity, which wasn’t lacking even in some of the years when I felt underwhelmed. It’s also about quality. Personally, I thought each of the games mentioned above brought something new to the table after a few years when the genre seemed stuck in holding pattern.
Will it cause fans to buy more shooters? What does it mean for 2017? And is this year’s bumper crop of shooters the indicator of a new trend or simply the calm before the upcoming famine? Like Vladimir and Estragon, I guess we’ll just have to wait — hopefully not in vain. Now onward to this week’s geeky reviews.
Teeblox October 2016 Gamer Shirt
Like my electric bill, every month comes with a new Teeblox gamer shirt mailed to my house. Unlike my power bill, however, the Teeblox pack is something I actually look forward to.
After last month’s cool Diablo Demon Hunter shirt, we get another tribute to Blizzard lore with this month’s wearable offering. One thing I’ve noticed is that there are typically two kinds of Teeblox gamer shirts. You have the super obvious ones like August’s Kingdom Hearts design that prominently displays Sora on the front. Then you have more cryptic ones like the Demon Hunter and Heartless logo from July, that almost look like heavy metal-inspired designs. October’s green fantasy-inspired shirt definitely falls under the latter. You can basically wear it and get a nodding wink from geeks in the know while not totally announcing your geekdom to the unwashed masses.
As with every Teeblox pack, you get a comic book. This month’s is Sigil, which is admittedly an IP that I know nothing about. As someone who was really into comics all the way through college, my total devolution to comic book marmdom is admittedly embarrassing. The third item is a cool cut out of 8-bit Toad from the original Super Mario Bros. NES game.
“Did you know there was a big debate on the Internet about whether 8-bit Toad was flipping you off?” my cousin said with a chuckle.
I’m sorry but Internet logic must be in another castle.
Cost: $12.99; use code “RGJ24” to get 24 percent off
Official site:http://teeblox.com/
Battlefield 1
— This is a summarized version of our full Battlefield 1 review
Ever since first-person shooters switched to modern warfare — pun most definitely intended — the Battlefield series has found itself playing catch up to the Call of Duty franchise.
It’s interesting then how Battlefield’s decision to step back all the way to World War I proves to be just the move it needed to make to push the franchise forward. It’s like killing the proverbial two birds with one stone.
Not only does Battlefield 1 freshen up the stale feel of the modern first-person shooter, it also distinguishes Battlefield from its fierce rival, which doubled down on the modern approach by going farther forward to the future.
In contrast, Battlefield 1’s features older tanks and massive zeppelins, which, strangely enough, makes the game feel new. The older setting especially pays dividends in the campaign, which is often a weak spot for games in the Battlefield series. Don’t expect to find one fated man against the entire world in this one. Instead, the game takes a different approach by spreading its tale among several protagonists stretched across various fronts.
The actual shooting, meanwhile, feels pretty much the same as past Battlefield games despite the use of “older” weaponry. This includes firearms that perform like more modern weapons but it’s an understandable addition from a gameplay standpoint. Vehicles also continue to be a strength for the series. I especially loved tank vs. tank battles, which rewards both aim and strategy, including targeting weak points and outflanking foes.
Multiplayer, meanwhile, worked pretty well. I played Battlefield 1 on the Xbox One and matches were smooth overall. With the exception of two disconnects, I didn’t run across any serious server-related issues during a weekend of play after release. Operations mode also was my favorite among the new online additions. This mode tries to recreate some classic World War I battles by splitting opposing forces between offense and defense, then letting battles play out in multiple stages over various sectors as objectives are met or lost.
Overall, Battlefied 1 manages to inject new life to the series thanks to great World War I visuals and the best campaign in the franchise. Admittedly, the base shooting experience isn’t significantly changed and the campaign, while much improved, doesn’t give you time to create a bond with its protagonists. In a genre that has been mostly stuck in a holding pattern, however, this retro take on modern warfare is a much welcome one indeed.
Rating: 4.25 out of 5
Cost: $59.99; PC, PS4, XB1 (reviewed)
Titanfall 2
— This is a summarized version of our full Titanfall 2 review
Back in 2014, the first Titanfall game generated plenty of buzz thanks to its faster, vertical gameplay as well as the addition of giant Titan robots. Although the game looked like the next big thing for first-person shooters, however, the decision to stay exclusive to one console ecosystem combined with the lack of a campaign, took out some of the luster from the game.
It’s a problem that Titanfall 2 definitely learns from as it launches on both Microsoft and Sony systems right off the bat. In addition to being more console agnostic this time around, the sequel also ties a bow around a full-fledged campaign to satisfy folks such as myself who still place great value on story modes for shooters.
Although Titanfall 2’s campaign appears to be the same one-man jaunt through hostile territory that’s seen in many a shooting campaign, this is actually a buddy adventure at its core — pun so totally intended. I found Titanfall 2’s campaign to be quite solid, overall, thanks to an interesting story and well-designed locales that show off its unique gameplay. While shooting campaigns tend to be flat for the most part and typically use stairs, platforms and elevators for level variety, Titanfall 2 builds in verticality into its level design and mechanics. In addition to double jumps, you also encounter plenty of gaps and spaces that require you to do wall runs and wall jumps, sometimes consecutively in order to get to from point A to point B. This makes movement a more essential part of the gameplay that’s actually both challenging and exciting thanks to the use of platforming mechanics.
Titan gameplay, meanwhile, gets a few tweaks in multiplayer mode. One is the more controversial decision to eliminate regenerating shields, which changes Titan combat. Tied to the loss of shields is the addition of battery-stealing mechanics when rodeo-riding enemy Titans. Titan types also grow from three to six this time around.
Downsides include enemy AI, which can be brain dead at times for both campaign and multiplayer. I also wish multiplayer offered more in the way of stages that really took advantage of the built-in vertical gameplay. All that being said, I actually enjoyed Titanfall 2’s multiplayer the most out of all the good shooters that I played this year. If you’re thirsty for a modern shooter experience that’s different from the norm, this is one game you’ll want to climb into.
Rating: 4.25 out of 5
Cost: $59.99; PC, PS4 and XB1 (reviewed)
