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Gameplay
There are two playable races in Defiance, Humans and Irathients, and you can choose to be male of female and then have a choice of origin. These include Outlaw, Machinist, Survivalist and Veteran but the only real differences that these options make is what weapon you start out with.
There are also 4 skill groups you unlock during the tutorial and you can decide on which EGO skill you will play with through the game: Cloak is invisibility for 10 seconds, Overcharge which gives you weapons a boost for 8 seconds, Decoy which sends out a decoy to distract enemies, and Blur which speeds your character up and give you melee attack more power for 8 seconds. All these powers offer upgrades over the game as you earn EGO to unlock skills. EGO (Environmental Guardian Online) is the all-encompassing term for the AI entity cybernetic implants placed in the bodies of these Ark Hunters.
I am running two Characters: my main one is a level 120 a Female Irathient with Veteran origin using cloak skill, and my second character is a level 20 Human Male with Outlaw origin using Overcharge. There is no real difference in the skills or how these characters handle, it is just a cosmetic option. The only difference I had with my Irathient was that I started with an Assault rifle while my Human started with a Scatter Gun.
Gun handling in this game can vary depending on what gun you are using at the time. I constantly run with a LMG and only fire in short bursts to keep on target. The Snipers are powerful and not to painful to use but not good for close combat situation while Shotguns and scatterguns are lethal up close but from a distance make a nice back scratcher. Assault rifles and Carbine vary depending on what you are using. Pistols I have found to be very good in both close combat and long distance. This game has so many guns there is something for everyone.
Vehicles are a must have in an open world game but never fear, you get one very early on. The vehicle controls can be a bit glitchy when the servers have a moment of lag but otherwise they handle well. You spawn your own vehicles and cannot steal other people's, which is a great idea to me.
Overall, the gameplay is easily mastered and everyone from Newbie to Gamer will be able to have a good time. There is no difficulty setting so sometimes it’s best to team up with friends or a group of people in the same areas.
Graphics
The graphics are not top of the line but they are not bad either. The world is massive and sometimes it can take time to reveal itself in front of you but it is nothing game-breaking. When you look at the game and the TV series together you can see where everything is coming from. I do notice some frame rate issues when in an area with a lot of other players but compared to some games it holds its looks well.
Sound
The sound is up and down for me. The weapons and explosions sound great, however vehicles sound like a ride on lawn mower at times. They just need a bit more grunt in them. Vocals can be heard clearly but they overtake a lot of the other sounds in the game and at times you will hear the same thing 3 times in a row
Controls/Interface
Defiance has your standard shooter controls so you won’t need much to figure out what does what. Vehicle control feels a bit slow at times but it’s nothing game-breaking. Movement controls are smooth and responsive; shooting is easily mastered once you get to know how the gun you are using handles.
Story/Presentation
Defiance has ground breaking story presentation being paired with a TV series. They are always updating and patching and if you watch the TV series as it airs with the game you can see parts from one or the other.
They have made story progression not so time consuming. Your missions are not spaced too far apart so you are not wandering all over the world or having to go from one end of the map to another just to pick a flower. If you die you extract and respawn close enough to the mission to be able to get right back into it from where you left off.
Multiplayer
Being a MMOG, this game is always online. You will occasionally see other players and with any luck, have them doing the same missions as you. The times when you do see a lot of players is when everyone is doing the Ark Hunter community challenges. I have had my mini map just a purple mad of dots and watching this crazy amount of people taking on Hellbugs to try and get awesome new gear is amazing. The Lag really does not have a noticeable effect on gameplay; you will see the odd player jump around but there is no collision detection with players so you have no bumps.
The competitive Multiplayer offers Deathmatch and Team based Matches in Shadow wars, which can host up to 96 players in 48 v 48 matches. I have had issues finding games as I play in the daytime on weekdays and most people seem to stick to the Open world. From what I have played I got owned but did enjoy it with minimal lag interruptions. The games I played were only around 10 v 10 so I have no idea what 48 v 48 would be like.
There are also Co Op missions, which you can unlock the further you get into the game. I only have 2 unlocked at the moment and have not had any luck finding a game in quick match.
There are no private matches in Defiance, however you can set up a clan in the open world. It costs a bit of in game currency for the person setting it up but is an easy way for clan members to meet up in game and go smash through some missions with each other.
Overall
Defiance is a nice package with a great story and community all rolled into one. It’s a shame the competitive side seems to be less active but as more people get into the TV series more people are jumping online.
If, like me, you are looking for something to fill in that empty online gap then this game is a must have. Get into the TV series to get the full package and fall in love with this world.
Author: Kamikaze-Dee
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