ApplesMalus

I know it´s probably bad form to refer to other reviews, but I feel like it has to be addressed. This game IS in beta. It´s not something to cover up bugs. There are a small selection of maps and things like the party system are completely dysfunctional. It can be critiqued that of all the things that are finished, the catalog of things to spend actual money on is decent in size. They have to fund their game somehow. The game is a team based third-person shooter/punch or claw-er. It´s an interesting mix of the team based shooter with a MOBA based element in form of the abilities that each class has. (I say this based on the impact and feel of these abilities. Their ability to turn the tides of a team-fight reminds me very much of SMITE rather than any MMO or RPG). I´ll say I was honestly surprised at how well this game played. As I think anyone who would even consider critiquing a game should, I looked up the developer, Psyonix. Not being a name I recognized I was a bit skeptical. The developer hasn´t made anything you or I should recognize, but they have actually worked on a couple of AAA titles like Gears of War and Mass Effect 3, in which I assume they worked on the multiplayer aspects of those games. This shows in the actual game. The balancing at first seemed pretty well done in all aspects and do truly depend on your teammates. At first it seemed like hunters (humans who hunt the vampires) could just stick together in a corner and shoot down any vampire who approached, but large classes like the tyrant and the use of smoke bombs are very useful for breaking up parties and it seems that every possibly exploited aspect has some sort of counter. Besides balancing the gameplay just feels really good which is something that really surprised me. The movement of both vampires and hunters feel really smooth and I´m a big fan of the vampires´ ability to climb building and move effortlessly through the level. The hunters´ weapons feel really good to use, you get the feeling that you´re doing damage and without feeling to rapid or sluggish. The design of the characters, weapons and levels are also very interesting and aesthetically pleasing. (however some levels are less interesting than others) The main issues with the game so far are smaller. The party system as of writing this is broken beyond belief and it almost seems like it doesn´t want you to play with your friends. It´s nice to see that the developers have already addressed this and it probably won´t be long before this is fixed. Other minor issues like some of the abilities, in my case the grappling hook for the scout, seems poorly implemented and it varies a lot how useful it is based on the level and I wouldn´t be surprised if I´d find it somewhere else. But to be honest I am VERY optimistic with this game so far. Psyonix has really surprised me with this one and I hope I won´t be disappointed down the line.