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Defiance
Available on PC, XBox 360 & PS3 (Reviewed)
Defiance is a highly ambitious title
but it certainly doesn’t live on the Playstation 3. Serving as a tie-in
to the recently premiered TV series of the same name, this blend of a
third-person shooter and an MMO is far better suited as a standalone PC
title, although it has some major flaws regardless.
Earth as we know it has been terraformed, nearly wiping out the entire
human race and giving birth to new and dangerous species. After a war
between the remaining humans and invading aliens, they have learnt to
fight side-by-side in order to reclaim Earth and discover alien
technologies.
That’s where you, the player, get involved. You are enlisted as an
‘Ark-Hunter’ whose job it is to scavenge the planet. You’re not alone on
your mission though; Defiance is a console MMO which means that
other players from around the world will be popping in and out of the
game while you are playing, running around the world and hopefully
assisting you in completing missions.
While MMOs have become a giant of the PC platform they definitely do not
belong on a console, and Defiance is unfortunately the guinea-pig
that has to prove that. While the gameplay functions a lot like
Borderlands (which is a good thing) there’s an overall lack of polish
and performance on the PS3 release. The frame rate is the worst I’ve
seen in a game this year and the muddy and pixelated textures often make
enemies difficult to see.
The
layout of the HUD is all wrong with the majority of your TV being filled
with health and ability stats, with little room left for the action.
Character animations are stiff and the voice acting is just as bad. From
what I’ve seen from gameplay footage the PC version looks and runs miles
better, so if you’re desperate to play this opt for a mouse and keyboard
experience.
Online connection is required so if you lack that you’ll lack any chance
of playing. But is that really a bad thing? While it has some minor
redeeming qualities Defiance is just too bland and unoriginal to
recommend. If you’re done with Borderlands and want more this might
interest you, but it’s a step down. A really, really big step down. |
