Defiance
So probably about a month ago I decided to make a trip to Family Video and redeem a free rental voucher I'd received in the mail. I didn't have a pre-determined choice or anything, so we browsed around a little, and I decided to try Defiance. I had heard murmurings of how it was a "trans-media" idea and would tie in to a TV show of the same name. It is a 3rd person shooter MMO, and I thought, what the hey. Haven't played an MMO on a console since FFXI on PS2.
Gave it a shot. Loved it. At this point I had just bought Bioshock Infinite (deep regrets there, but another time...) and I couldn't pull myself away from the free rental to partake in the AAA title I had just invested $45 in (per coupons). I loved it so much, when the rental period was over, I took it home again. I decided I would watch the TV show, even though I'm not a big fan of most sci-fi TV shows, just to see how the two tied in to one another.
The show itself isn't bad. It is a little generic, and it's odd how most of the aliens resemble humans. Irathians have a bit of a different shape around their eyes and foreheads, though not to the extent of, say, a klingon. Castithans look entirely human but their hair and skin is a pale white, as well as their iris's being, I believe, a bright blue. These are the most common aliens, labeled votans here, you'll see. There is a short-statured race, I don't know their name, but one is a bartender in the TV show. There is another more prominently featured in the game. There is a tall, hairy race, similar to a wookie but their faces have a Planet of the Apes look to them. Again, featured more prominently in the game.
The game plays like a typical 3rd person shooter, but there is no snap-to-cover mechanic like in Gears of War or Fuse, or something of that nature. Instead, you simply need to put something in between yourself and enemy fire. Weapons range from the standard shotguns, assault rifles, and rocket launchers to more unique guns such as infectors--which infect enemies with larvae pods that erupt, kill and go on to attack additional enemies--and spanners, which can shoot a steady stream of laser, like a photon from Ghostbusters and also heal enemies.
There's a lot of driving, and it's done well enough. I was pleased to see the Dodge Challenger from the game appear in the TV show, that was a pleasant surprise. There's also ATVs and trucks. All of them have a Mad Max aesthetic to them, with various gear, grilles, and supplies tethered and welded down.
Gameplay is free, no subscription required. There is a cash shop but it sells only cosmetic items like outfits, headgear, and uniquely colored vehicles and boosts for XP, money, etc. You can buy the base game and then never drop a dime on it afterwards and still get a full game. 5 DLC packages are promised with the season pass, the first of which focuses on the Castithan race, introducing them as a playable race with unique weapons, outfits and vehicles. I'm pretty excited about it.
The game is focused on co-op and is PvE heavy. PvP does exist, but I've yet to partake in any, and while there is Open-World PvP, you have to enlist in such a match so you never have to worry about being ganked when wandering the countryside. Aside from normal grouping there are co-op instances that can be tackled with a party of four players. And also, essentially, raid content, called Arkfalls. This is when alien wreckage orbiting the earth, possibly containing technology crash lands. Everyone races to get there and make a claim. It will be defended by mutated creatures, raiders and the like. Tons of players show up at these things and it's up to about 60 people fighting to take down the boss monster defending the Arkfall. Pretty cool, if standard stuff.
All in all, I'm enjoying the media in each aspect of it. Defiance is quickly becoming one of my personally most anticipated shows each week as well as loving the game.
Steam is hosting a free weekend on the PC version, so try it out of you can run it. Oh, and my wife got me the extreme collector's edition a few days ago:
Gave it a shot. Loved it. At this point I had just bought Bioshock Infinite (deep regrets there, but another time...) and I couldn't pull myself away from the free rental to partake in the AAA title I had just invested $45 in (per coupons). I loved it so much, when the rental period was over, I took it home again. I decided I would watch the TV show, even though I'm not a big fan of most sci-fi TV shows, just to see how the two tied in to one another.
The show itself isn't bad. It is a little generic, and it's odd how most of the aliens resemble humans. Irathians have a bit of a different shape around their eyes and foreheads, though not to the extent of, say, a klingon. Castithans look entirely human but their hair and skin is a pale white, as well as their iris's being, I believe, a bright blue. These are the most common aliens, labeled votans here, you'll see. There is a short-statured race, I don't know their name, but one is a bartender in the TV show. There is another more prominently featured in the game. There is a tall, hairy race, similar to a wookie but their faces have a Planet of the Apes look to them. Again, featured more prominently in the game.
The game plays like a typical 3rd person shooter, but there is no snap-to-cover mechanic like in Gears of War or Fuse, or something of that nature. Instead, you simply need to put something in between yourself and enemy fire. Weapons range from the standard shotguns, assault rifles, and rocket launchers to more unique guns such as infectors--which infect enemies with larvae pods that erupt, kill and go on to attack additional enemies--and spanners, which can shoot a steady stream of laser, like a photon from Ghostbusters and also heal enemies.
There's a lot of driving, and it's done well enough. I was pleased to see the Dodge Challenger from the game appear in the TV show, that was a pleasant surprise. There's also ATVs and trucks. All of them have a Mad Max aesthetic to them, with various gear, grilles, and supplies tethered and welded down.
Gameplay is free, no subscription required. There is a cash shop but it sells only cosmetic items like outfits, headgear, and uniquely colored vehicles and boosts for XP, money, etc. You can buy the base game and then never drop a dime on it afterwards and still get a full game. 5 DLC packages are promised with the season pass, the first of which focuses on the Castithan race, introducing them as a playable race with unique weapons, outfits and vehicles. I'm pretty excited about it.
The game is focused on co-op and is PvE heavy. PvP does exist, but I've yet to partake in any, and while there is Open-World PvP, you have to enlist in such a match so you never have to worry about being ganked when wandering the countryside. Aside from normal grouping there are co-op instances that can be tackled with a party of four players. And also, essentially, raid content, called Arkfalls. This is when alien wreckage orbiting the earth, possibly containing technology crash lands. Everyone races to get there and make a claim. It will be defended by mutated creatures, raiders and the like. Tons of players show up at these things and it's up to about 60 people fighting to take down the boss monster defending the Arkfall. Pretty cool, if standard stuff.
All in all, I'm enjoying the media in each aspect of it. Defiance is quickly becoming one of my personally most anticipated shows each week as well as loving the game.
Steam is hosting a free weekend on the PC version, so try it out of you can run it. Oh, and my wife got me the extreme collector's edition a few days ago: