MAG

[Billy Idol]

Just downloaded the beta from the US store (took forever!!)...should kick off in a few hours if I am right...I hope the beta works in europe, otherwise I turn into a freakin hater, because it was very stupid that the download of the main game (2.3GB) was in a special screen, without the option to play or do something else with my playstation

EDIT: reading the above posts, it seems that I am not the only one complaining!

 

[JPT]

Just downloaded the beta from the US store (took forever!!)...should kick off in a few hours if I am right...I hope the beta works in europe, otherwise I turn into a freakin hater, because it was very stupid that the download of the main game (2.3GB) was in a special screen, without the option to play or do something else with my playstation

EDIT: reading the above posts, it seems that I am not the only one complaining!

I believe the EU beta is available for download from today also

 

[Billy Idol]

I believe the EU beta is available for download from today also

ha ha, great...I should inform myself better it seems...nevertheless, I am really curious to test this game..although it is not on my buy list (pure online gaming is not my thing).

 

[JPT]

Is the map balance changed from the closed beta?

 

[N_B]

I'm hearing that the servers have crashed

I'm downloading everything now at about 0.40mb per second (out of 1800mb), 75 minutes, also very irritating not having access to XMB during that time.

 

[flynn]

I'm hearing that the servers have crashed

I played yesterday for a couple of hours and was pretty smooth, although I was disconnected from the servers a couple of times.

I still haven't decided if I will get this one or not, looks promising but currently the maps can feel a bit empty when playing 32 vs 32.

 

[Billy Idol]

Played yesterday a couple of hours. Although I had a lot of connection issues at the beginning, once I got connected to the universe everything went remarkable smooth and match making was fast.

Regarding the game:

I had the feeling that lag was an issue...but as I am probably the worst player in the world I cannot be sure if it was just my fault.

Controlls felt smooth and good, nothing to complain...at first everything seems a little bit complicated but you get really used to the stuff (for instance, first aid kid: press L2 until you get it, then press R1=shooting)

As I only got promoted to level 2 or 3 I cannot say how deep the skilling is, but it looks funny, although higher ranked players seem to have a big advantage!?

Graphics was ok-ish at most: first thing I noticed, was very ultra low-res texture work for the ground, which may be due to the large scale? I hope they include texture streaming...by the way, a lot of pop ups!
Smoke effects and explosions are hopefully a placeholder effect, because they just don't look good. Weapons and animation are not special either.
They only remarkable thing I noticed is what I call the 'HALO' effect: when you look in the sky everything is first really bright, then your 'eye' adopts and the brightness reduces (sans the sun itself), bringing back the detail...the only game I recognized this effect (sans driving simulations, where you have this effect when leaving the tunnel) is HALO 3 (best remarkable during the first level, when you look from the ground to the sky, towards the sun)

I think the sound is very good, giving a good atmosphere...by the way I really like the menus and the music and all this stuff.

I can imagen that MW players like this game very much, but as it is a pure MP game I won't buy it...

The only thing remaining: RAVEN ftw (note: I am an Austrian ;-) )

 

[eastmen]

So last week 1up did a podcast that has pointed out a qtr 1 ps3 game that willcome with a subsciption after the launch of the game and that many are now speculating that it will be mag.

What do you guys think of this possiblity

 

[patsu]

I played 2 rounds. The shooting is good, finally an accurate and smooth aim. The bullets hit the targets as expected. The smoothness reminds me of RFOM, but everything else was totally different of course.

There was one time I saw a guy teleported to 3 seconds ago right after spawning. I guess the server was overloaded ? Besides that little glitch, everything went well.

I have not played the broken SVER map. Not sure if they have revamped it.

It's a good thing they start with the simplest game mode. The training section is enabled this time, but it should contain more info (e.g., when will the other maps unlock ?). I was told Domination will be unlocked after I reached level 10 in the public beta, but I didn't see it mention in the training screen. The training screens described our equipments but they should also tell people *how* to use them (e.g., medical gun). I overheard teammates asking each other how to heal themselves twice. They didn't know they have a medical gun, so some on-screen hints (that can be turned off later) may be nice. I also saw some health pack/station in the field. It looks like I can heal myself by pressing O near them too.

While the initial game mode is simple, the maps may be a little too big for 64 players. Had to walk a bit to the objectives. I haven't figured out any good tactics yet. Lost both rounds, but I was more focused on learning the maps, and finding out where the objective points/switches are. Sometimes I'd be one floor above the objective, and looking for ways to descend to the next level (and then died). Other times, I'd be looking for alternate routes to the objective building. I see a few people buddy up too. The best I could do is to kill one and wound one.

Need to play more to form a firmer opinion of the game. I suspect it may be a little too technical and complex for quick fun (so hard core FPS gamers may like it). It didn't hook me within the first 5 minutes like RFOM. I think it may be because I only have basic equipments to start (and then more rules to upgrade). Good thing is it didn't confuse or frustrate me either. Will definitely hop back in after my business trip.

So last week 1up did a podcast that has pointed out a qtr 1 ps3 game that willcome with a subsciption after the launch of the game and that many are now speculating that it will be mag.

What do you guys think of this possiblity

I will consider paying for a dedicated server game. But I also need to see what in-game goodies I'm paying for (e.g. Will the SVER map be fixed ?). There's not enough info to decide yet.

And the slow and rigid in-game patch system has to go.

 

[eastmen]

well they talked about the publisher pushing people to the monthly payment instead of having to pay for all the dlc they would release.

its 1up 4guys dec 25th eps if you want to check it out. IT may not be mag btw , they don't name it. mag is jsut one thing fans have thrown out.

 

[zed]

They only remarkable thing I noticed is what I call the 'HALO' effect: when you look in the sky everything is first really bright, then your 'eye' adopts and the brightness reduces (sans the sun itself),

this 'effect' is as old as the hills, I remember doing it circa 2002 though was done before then. It doesnt even require HDR

 

[obonicus]

well they talked about the publisher pushing people to the monthly payment instead of having to pay for all the dlc they would release.

its 1up 4guys dec 25th eps if you want to check it out. IT may not be mag btw , they don't name it. mag is jsut one thing fans have thrown out.

The implication is that it could be MAG, but it might be something else coming up Q1. As for a subscription service... I see more of a free-to-play, pay for premium thing. Mostly because even Sony's oft-promised PS3 MMOs are going that route. Also, I wonder how successful MAG will actually be, you need some critical mass -- planetside tried something similar and wasn't a huge success (but Zipper does have a better pedigree than SOE for MP stuff).

 

[N_B]

My impressions...

After the massive download (mine was only 1.8GB, is 2.8GB for US only?) i found that the menus were very cluttered and confusing. I wanted to play a training mission before I went into match, but I have no idea how to start it. Text seems oddly small even in 720p.

The visuals are good but nothing stellar. Textures seem good quality but shadows seem very low res and flicker a lot....but I think the animations, environments and characters are all very good.

Gameplay, there was absolutely no lag in the only game I played, but the match only ended when I lost connection to the game. I also lost a connection on the main menu when I was creating my character.

I'm not really that hot on massive multiplayer matches, I prefer things to be up close and personal. There was some sniper that killed everyone near an objective, but because the maps are so huge and theres no killcam I had no idea where to start looking. The camera points at the enemy who kills you but it's easy to forget.

I don't think this is a game I'll buy...but I'll play more of the beta and see if things change.

EDIT: Apparently the training mission isn't in the beta, but the menu pages are still there for people to have a look..

 

[patsu]

The entry-level mission is Sabotage. You need to hold 2 check points and demolish the final game objective.

The training menu only leads you to a small text guide of the game (at the moment).

 

[Billy Idol]

So last week 1up did a podcast that has pointed out a qtr 1 ps3 game that willcome with a subsciption after the launch of the game and that many are now speculating that it will be mag.

What do you guys think of this possiblity

I think the market position for MAG is difficult enough(being a PS3 exclusive;-) )...I cannot imagen that subsription would help the success of the game and I think that it is an ultimative failure!

this 'effect' is as old as the hills, I remember doing it circa 2002 though was done before then. It doesnt even require HDR

aha, okay...did not know this: can you name an other this gen console FPS/action game that uses this? or a last gen console FPS?



Played some more yesterday and showed it my young, MW loving, cousin: he got immediately interested and plans to buy it (after 30 min of play testing!!)
Interesting for me: he felt confident that the graphics are better than the graphics of MW (which I cannot support)

 

[LordNerevar]

Zipper has officially denied that MAG is going to have a subscription.

 

[patsu]

Ah, that's great. I think Zipper Interactive should introduce (easier) maps/modes to ease the learning experiences. Otherwise...

This is quite true of my first few games. I am getting better though. Once I know the map, I was able to find hiding enemies and whack them from behind. Too bad I don't have any sniper rifile to fight back yet. The other request is to add more kick to the weapons. But fixing the SVER maps is the top priority.

 

[Cornsnake]

There's a lesson to be learned here. Running will get you highlighted on the map, and everyone wants a free kill.

Zipper has said that the bigger changes aren't in the beta, but will be in the full game. The only change I've noticed so far is that unlocking the next tier in the skill tree only requires you get a single item from the previous tier. And I've been told that some of the resupply crates have been re-positioned to reduce grenade spam.

I'm glad to see some of the training mission being unlocked, and Domination only being available after level 10. That should make the learning curve a lot less steep. The full game is going to do a similar thing with unlocking game modes as you level up. Basically its Suppression > Sabotage > Acquisition > Domination.

Sabotage, IMO doesn't really show what MAG is all about, and how it differs from most shooters. Acquisition and Domination are a lot more interesting because of the added importance of the leadership positions, and all the primary and secondary objectives. There are a lot more roles you can play, and need to be played to achieve victory.

 

[patsu]

I didn't realize running gets you tagged on the screen. Is it mentioned in the training guide ? You are not talking about the radar right ?

 

[Cornsnake]

If you run or shoot, you can be seen as a little red dot on the map.

Another thing most people aren't aware of is, don't bleed out. First you should look around for a medic who can revive you, it'll save you the trip of running all the way back to where you were. Although there are relatively few people playing as a medic right now. Playing a medic is something I highly recommend though. It's one of the fasted ways to get XP early on. Every revive earns you 10XP, where as killing someone only gets you 5XP. And its one of the easiest ways to be helpful to the team.