The Division Review

After three long years the Division has finally launched and whether I'm grinding for the next legendary drop or trendy scarf to compliment my wardrobe, I'm thoroughly enjoying myself. Roughly putting in just under 70 hours and still going strong, my experience with the Divisions has been mostly positive. Set in New York during the busiest shopping days of the year some money has been passed around containing a deadly virus that has affected the entire city. Due to this New York City has been thrown into chaos and where normally the police or military would suffice to resolve the issue they have been unsuccessful, this is where you come in. The Division is an agency that is brought in when all other forms of law enforcement have failed. Its your job to go into New York City and not only discover the source of the virus but clean the streets of the various factions that now inhabit it.

The Division is a 3rd person, open world, shoot n' loot RPG and as such, your first task is to create your character to set yourself apart from the rest. This is the first time you take control in the game and unfortunately it is one of the weaker aspects. Typically in these types of games there  are hundreds of different options but what we have here is fairly limited and somewhat odd given the tone and setting. There are only six different face options for both male and female that range from recovering alcoholic to post facial reconstructive surgery. From there you have a few hairstyles to choose from and in case your agent was working at hot topic awaiting their activation, there are quite a few tattoos and piercings. Its not that its impossible to create a good looking Agent but overall the options are lackluster and should have been more diverse. Luckily, one of the more popular aspects are the hundreds of different clothing options you can choose from. Massive was smart to have these almost entirely separate from gears so you can wear whatever you want without diminishing your stats.

One area the game has no issue in impressing visually is the open world itself. Massive has done an incredible job in creating a dreadful post epidemic New York that is both beautiful and depressing. Streets are littered with empty cars, mountains of trash line the sidewalks, and citizens can be seen fighting among themselves for scraps or crawling slowly on all fours only to take their last breath and die right in front of you. Different portions of the city that might be overrun with a particular criminal factions will show wear and signs of their establishment. Massive pulled no punches in this regards; JTF (Joint Task Force) officers can been seen hanging lifeless from overpasses by their feet or propped up next to a sign mocking their death. It might appear offensive to some but in this type of scenario it only adds to the overall experience and never appears to be overdone for pure shock value. One area I was concerned with was the fact that this takes place solely within the confines of one city. While New York City is huge and usually a popular setting for many avenues of entertainment, I was worried the environments would begin to feel repetitive. Luckily, this hasn't been the case while I'm exploring the streets, inside of apartment buildings, rooftops, or even going below into the large subway system. Overall, I am really impressed with what Massive has accomplished in their vision of New York City and look forward to what they have to offer in future expansions.

Now all of these things so far sound great, but what is really important is how good the core part of the 50+ hour game can be. Shooting stuff. What feels like a mix between Gears of War in its cover mechanics and Ghost Recon:Advanced Warfighter in its gunplay, the game achieves that satisfaction through and through. If Gears of War invented the cover system, the Division simply improved it. Little touches like being able to move to a different piece of cover by simply holding a button is very welcome. Weapons all have a nice weight to them and you will have to learn how each weapon type handles to maximize your effectiveness. Simply holding down the trigger will have you aiming at the sky and likely dead asking for a revive. But a shooter wouldn't be complete without attachments and they play an even more important role as it is an RPG. From grips, scopes, barrel attachments, and magazine types all of these will aid you in improving your ability to fight through any situation. Since the game focuses on realism, the weapons will be your standard fare. Assault rifles, SMGs, LMGs, marksman rifles and shotguns round out your arsenal as well as several side arms. Since the game's main draw revolves around acquiring new loot, each weapon type has multiple options within their own category. There are plenty of options to find out which is your favorite depending on the situation. Unfortunately, guns themselves rarely change appearance regardless of level. I don't find this to be a big issue though since again this isn't an unrealistic sci-fi shooter. It is grounded in a realistic setting, however, more distinction to show off a legendary or high end weapon would have been welcome. In traditional shoot n' loot fashion each weapon or gear drop is associated with a color. Green is common, blue is rare, purple is legendary, and gold is high end. Early on, you will want to grab every single item since most low level drops will be an improvement on your gear. As a money hungry player, I sold everything in order to purchase items from vendors. After beating the game, I realize that was a bad choice because most of the best weapons and gear are crafted from weapon components rather than store bought. In order to craft you should take advantage of the deconstruct function which breaks down any weapons and gear into their respective materials.

Guns won't be the only thing aiding you in cleaning up New York City. At your base of operations there are three distinct wings you can upgrade by completing story or side missions. These wings are Tech, Security, and Medical. Tech will earn you offensive upgrades such as sticky bomb or a BB-8 like drone that will seek out enemies then explode on impact. Security will earn you more defensive upgrades such as a shield or a cover option you can deploy on the fly. Medical is not as exciting as other options but is highly appreciated by group members, the abilities are literally life savers. You begin by being able to heal a large portion of your own health but through upgrades, you will be able to heal your entire party or even bring them back from bleeding out. One thing I have noticed is that I often change my load out in order to accommodate the current task. It was both surprising and welcome that I didn't settle into a specific role. The teamwork and gameplay is best when everyone understands how and when to use certain skills in order to turn an impossible task into a simple one.

There are many different types of missions and side activities. Story missions are essentially the dungeons of this RPG, and the meat of the content in the endgame. Story missions will have you taking out the leaders that run the different factions throughout the city and piecing together evidence about the origination of the virus. The factions include the Rikers, which were former prisoners and vow to never return to their cells. The Cleaners, which believe by setting everything on fire, including you, they can purge the city of the outbreak. Then there is the Last Man Battalion which, without spoiling anything, are a lot more advanced and pose the greatest threat. Side missions are less impressive. Its unfortunate that with so much time and attention put into the story missions, especially the video that plays post completion, the side missions feel less thought out. They range from securing supply drops, activating decontamination boxes while you race against the clock, and powering on electrical boxes in a point to point formula. Luckily the gameplay is so much fun that doing the same repetitious side mission for the fifth or sixth time does not feel boring. It doesn't help that you will hear the same repeated dialogue word for word, even in the same voice. The day I don't have to hear "I'm taking small arms fire," cannot come soon enough. The rewards for doing these are substantial, however, as you will gain materials necessary to upgrade the wings at your BoO as well as XP to level your character.

So you've defeated every crime leader, rescued every JTF officer from small arms fire, and found the perfect puffy jacket that compliments your beanie, now what? At level 30 you will unlock the option to play Daily Challenge missions. Each of these missions will net you a new currency called Phoenix Credits. These can be spent at the new Special Gear vendor in the Tech Wing or the northeast Dark Zone vendor. This will get you the best weapons and gear in the game and will be crucial to your success while running the Challenge missions. If you are tired of playing the story missions and prefer to enter into a PvP space, then the Dark Zone will be your next stop. The Dark Zone is a quarantined area in the middle of the map where the rules are thrown out the window and you find out who your true friends are. The basis of the DZ allows you and three friends to explore the sectioned off piece of the city in search of bosses and random encounters to acquire rare but contaminated loot. When you acquire said loot you must rush to an extraction zone and wait for an intense minute and a half for the chopper. Only when your loot bag is secure on the rope are you sure that the loot is officially yours. At any point you acquire your new loot up to loading it onto the rope at the extraction point, any player in the Dark Zone can decide to go rogue and kill you. You drop your precious loot and they steal whatever you had. It is a fun game mode, especially during the Beta, where it seemed closer to the developers vision for PvP combat. During the Beta, people weren't attached to their loot and therefore went crazy. Now that the game is out and people are invested in equipping their character with the best gear, guns, and attachments, going rogue isn't seen as much of a benefit. Quite simply, it its just not worth it. The bonus for surviving your rogue status is nowhere near what you would get actually helping other players. Plus, in order to purchase anything at Dark Zone vendors you need to be certain levels and if you die while rogue you lose DZ experience points, wiping away hours of work. Massive has become aware of this and already acknowledge they will be working to make the Dark Zone more PvP centric although they have not revealed any specific details.

The Division earned more money than any other new franchise in the first five days of its launch week with a staggering $330 million. The question is not whether gamers are interested but what is Massive going to do to keep us engaged. A game in this genre lives and dies by the community. The end game content in its current state is not enough to hook a lot of players long term but a free raid type update in April looks to remedy that. They also have been pretty forthcoming with their plans for future content and assuming it all pans out as described it should be worth the wait and asking price. I can easily recommend this game to those who understand what they're getting. Its for sure one of the most fun coop games I have played in a long time and understanding this is a long term investment versus a weekend rental, I think you'll see the value in the overall product.

8/10

FarCry Primal Review

FarCry Primal takes everything you may have learned throughout the series and tosses it out the window, well almost everything. Set in 10,000 BCE you take on the role of Takkar, a member of the Wenja tribe who during a routine hunt gets ambushed and separated. The game at this point has you beginning your journey in the land of Oros unarmed and with little direction. Its at this point you get a good idea of how the world feels and your role in it. Oros is dangerous, animals view you as simply a way to pass time until the next meal, and other tribesman will not think twice to try and end your journey early. Its this sense of danger that previous FarCry titles never really seemed to have as you upgraded your character to Rambo status. But this really made me appreciate certain aspects of the game more and where certain mechanics aren't necessarily new to the series they fit really well within this setting and made sense.

The story in FarCry Primal wont leave you speechless and in awe of sheer writing skill or Hollywood style moments. Not every game needs to have me questioning every decision I made like the Last of Us or playing multiple times for various endings like the Witcher 3. The story isn't by any means bad but in respect to the time and what Ubisoft had to work with they created a very grounded and easy to follow story that makes sense. I always had enough motivation to continue on and fight the next fight until the games final climax. The language spoken for all tribes involved was actually created by Ubisoft themselves and the work done here is nothing to frown upon. Its all voiced exceptionally well and never once did it feel awkward or out of place. I can say that by the time the credits rolled I just didn't really care too much about any of the characters involved though and that could tie into the fact that there never is really any large impending doom setup throughout. Sure other tribes want to kill your tribe but that's really about it. The characters involved give you just enough push to keep you on track and actually serve more of a purpose in regards to game mechanics I feel rather than playing a role in the bigger picture.

One of those mechanics is the community system. As you encounter and add certain key characters to your village this will allow you access to certain upgrades. Sayla who you encounter early on is a gatherer and as such her upgrade tree focuses on making materials easier to spot in Oros and as you explore revealing more of the land on the world map. Tensay is a Shaman and communicates with spirits so through his upgrade tree you'll be able to learn the animal taming ability and become more adept at crafting medicine. This type of skill progression in relation to specific characters is a nice touch and changes how you go about spending those precious skill points. Instead of simply dumping them in one overall tree you now can pick and choose entirely different skills as you see fit that work best with how your playing.

Another mechanic that gets fleshed out is the crafting system. Previous FarCry games had you hunt animals and collect skins to upgrade various gear options for your character. That system remains here but it goes a step beyond. Any weaponry you possibly need is all crafted using materials found in the game world. If you need more arrows for your bow you will need to gather wood, rock for your clubs, and animal hide for your spears. There are no vendors that you can purchase materials from so the gathering aspect is consistently in play from beginning to end. Again this isn't a new feature that's never been seen before but it fits the setting so well that I never minded having to go and gather these materials to ensure I was stocked and ready for the challenge ahead. The invaluable aspect of materials extends to the random events you will encounter while exploring. Most of these will end with you rescuing a Wenja tribe member from their captor or an animal attack or some other form of danger. By doing so this will add to your overall village population. As this grows you will begin earning a material resupply package every so often. Since materials are so crucial to your survival it makes these random events and ensuring you complete them successfully that much more meaningful.

Speaking of the weapons, you get three main types of weaponry. This includes Bows, Clubs, and Spears. You'll also acquire certain throwables such as Bee Bombs, Berserk Shards, and traps you can lay down for an instant kill. Of course all three main weapons can be upgraded through the leveling system and will even change appearance as you do so. The Bow and Clubs actually have the benefit of having multiple variants. You can acquire the normal bow early on but through progression you can eventually get a Long Bow and also a Double Bow which shoots two arrows at the same time. The club gets a one handed option as well as a meatier two handed option that feels a lot more satisfactory as you send enemies flying. Overall I spent most of my time favoring the Bow and Spear combo as the Club tends to feel a little weak. It does have a weak and strong attack but its all tied to the same button so you end up just mashing it over and over until your enemy finally dies which isn't very engaging. The Bow and Spear though are infinitely satisfying for all the right reasons. Throwing a Spear and watching the enemy get pinned to a nearby wall always left a smile on my face. Landing a long distance head shot while on the move with the Bow makes you feel like you truly rule the land of Oros and everyone else is just visitor.

Another very important part of your arsenal are the animals. Your first friendly pet is the Owl. It acts essentially like a drone that you can send to scout over outposts or campfires to setup a plan of attack. It can be leveled to instant kill one enemy and also drop any bombs you have in your inventory. But most of the fun will come from the animals you find out in the wild. You can tame animals from the lowly Dhole, all the way up to the Bloodfang Sabretooth, or if you wish to troll everyone in Oros, a Honey Badger. Each animal has certain skills and perks that might work better in certain situations over others. I never found it completely necessary to switch out animals constantly but I played as aggressive as possible. If you plan to play more on the stealthy side you'll want to ditch the Sabretooth and summon the Jaguar as they are the stealthiest choice in the entire lineup. Again I never found it necessary to dive in too deep with the differences but having that extra layer of depth is nice.

Overall I really enjoyed my time with FarCry Primal. It was a big enough venture off the traditional formula of previous entries that I never had a case of deja vu. With that said this is still very much a FarCry game so a lot of aspects will seem familiar but are expanded upon and really shine in this particular entry. The land of Oros is beautiful and feels alive and begs to be explored and rewards you for doing so. If you can manage to lay down the rocket launcher and jet packs in favor of a spear and bow I don't think you'll regret it.

Witcher 3 Review

Little did I know that earlier this year in May I would be introduced to what would become one of my favorite games of all time, Witcher 3. Being familiar with the series but only having played Witcher 2 when it released on Xbox 360 I knew what to expect when it came to the characters and settings. What I didn't know is that CD Projekt Red (CPDR) would elevate everything that was in the previous entry to a whole new level in Witcher 3.

I have played and beaten most of the mainstream open world RPG's gamers are familiar with and simply put - CDPR has set a new standard for what the expect going forward in this genre. It's not a game that everyone will instantly fall in love with, and it may not be a game even after spending time with that you will want to go back to. It is a massive game that doesn't exactly hold your hand when it comes to it's game mechanics whether it be the crafting system or the combat. With that in mind I can understand where some might find the game a little daunting at first but I promise it all eventually becomes second nature and your reward for completing it is being able to say you experienced one of the finest RPG's ever crafted.

So what do you do in the Witcher? Well, you take on the role of Geralt of Rivia, a lone white haired scarred Witcher. You are in search of essentially your daughter Ciri who has been stolen from you by a new threat known as the Wild Hunt. Through your journey to rescue Ciri you will be thrown into a ton of various scenarios all ranging from family troubles, political assassinations, haunted mansions, or helping Skellige find it's new leader. Bound by no strict moral obligation or forced to do anyone's will he roams the world ridding it of its monsters, just as long as someone has the coin to pay him for doing so. If a monster isn't of interest to you maybe recovering a lost treasure buried at the bottom of the ocean is. If that doesn't sound interesting you can compete in a horse race or a bar fight or search for legendary Witcher gear/swords. If you simply need to relax, well Geralt is not short on people who are willing to help him warm a bed. Like any true RPG there are simply a ton of things to do and while most can feel like filler in other open world RPG's CDPR did a wonderful job in making everything feel organic, and every single quest no matter how big or small feels rooted in the world and has its own unique story.

From a graphical standpoint the game is simply a stunner and till this day one of the best looking games you can pop into your respective console/PC. I feel as if there are so many times that scenes could be mistaken as a painting. Riding horseback through a field full of various colored flowers with a creek bed to your right as the sun breaks to your left really creates a beautiful scene. So many of these moments occur where I simply had to stop and slowly pan the camera around to really admire the work that CDPR poured into his game. Whether you're wading through a swamp infested with drowners as the fog slowly hovers over the swampy waters, or riding cliff-side up a snow capped mountain as a fork-tail gives chase each area is crafted with so much atmosphere that they truly feel like unique places coexisting in one massive world.  My share button through my two play-thru's got quite the work out over my 400 hours of adventuring.

In regards to setting the right atmosphere music and sound is just as important as graphics. Having an intense fight with a challenging enemy wouldn't mean much if the music was distracting due it not fitting the scenario. Luckily CDPR didn't cut corners when it came to the music. Whether you are involved in an intense fight, exploring the open world of a region or grabbing a pint at the nearest bar the music matches the setting perfectly and keeps you involved in that setting. My favorite piece throughout the entire game is the music when exploring the Skellige isles. With its Nordic setting Skellige was in my opinion the most fascinating and beautiful area in the Witcher 3. While beautiful, it was the music coexisting with the scenery that seemed to tie everything together and really make the isles come to life. No matter what your current objective or goal is you'll find that the music is always there to help make your current situation feel all that much more impactful as you continue on your journey.

We have established that the game is both beautiful and sounds great but what about game-play? You know the thing you do during your long stay. Game-play can come across as a mixed bag. While it's better than Witcher 2 and therefore feels like an improvement to those coming from the previous game it may feel a little stiff to completely new players. There are multiple ways to encounter your enemy and there is no one single way to do things. You will have to learn the effects of each type of attack to maximize Geralt's chance of triumphing over his foe. You have at your disposal your trusty Steel and Silver sword, grenades, oils, potions, and of course Signs. Signs function as magic in the world of the Witcher and what's great is through your entire journey you can beef Geralt up to simply being a unstoppable butcher with his sword; or you can focus entirely on his Signs and melt every enemy you come across. The best way to play I found was to mix the two. While there may not necessarily be built in combos, you can clearly form your own style and see what works best for you. So what I meant earlier by it possibly coming off a little stiff is when encountered with multiple enemies it can get a little frustrating without patience in how to plan out your attacks. You can lock onto an enemy and then simply flick the stick to move to a different one and so forth. It works for the most part but for whatever reason occasionally when trying to do so - due to it not performing perfectly you might find yourself open to an attack and possibly killed. I found it infinitely easier unless dealing with maybe just 1 or 2 enemies to simply stay in free flow combat until you're actually going in for the attack. This keeps you from forcing your camera to focus on one enemy while leaving your back open to someone from behind. I wouldn't even necessarily say the game-play is bad just don't go into expecting it to control like Dante from Devil May Cry and you will be fine. Be patient, learn the systems and what works best and you will quickly learn why most avoid the Witcher at all cost.

I could honestly continue to go on and on due to my passion for this franchise and most importantly the last entry in Geralt's journey. Where most third titles in a trilogy seem to falter and go out with a whimper rather than a bang, CDPR ensured that Witcher 3 closes out Geralt's story with the utmost respect to the players and fans of this universe; and gave gamers one of the best gaming experiences of 2015. With the newly released Hearts of Stone expansion that was welcomed with raving reviews, and the soon to be released Blood and Wine expansions 1st quarter of 2016 there is always reason to revisit the world of the Witcher and see what CDPR has cooked up to continue making this journey a memorable one. While it can be nit-picked for some of its control nuances or odd glitches you can come across which seem to be pretty standard in these types of games (looking at you, Fallout). None of this ever detracts from the overall experience and if I was forced to give it a score on a basic scale from 1-10 I would have to give it a 10. At this exact moment I can confidently say it will keep its place among one of my favorite games ever, and if CDPR ever decides to revisit the world of the Witcher, I will be there day one without question. I strongly urge anyone who is a RPG fan in search of a wonderful story who has the time to truly give this game the attention it deserves to buy a copy immediately and support CDPR, you wont regret it.

Rainbow 6 Siege Review

Back in 2002 a game called SOCOM was released on the Playstation 2. It offered a smart, tactical, team-based shooter that also served as a introduction to many people what an online gaming experience could offer. Since then there have been many games released that somewhat mirror that experience but for the most part the majority have turned into a more "approachable" experience. The two biggest shooters with the largest audience for consoles are currently Halo and Call of Duty. The main portions of both of these games feature a fast paced near instant respawn system with realism in any regards being tossed out the window. So what's left for those who are yearning for the more realistic and tactical approach to online shooters, well insert Rainbow Six: Siege.

The latest attempt by Ubisoft to revive an old-time favorite hasn't come as easily as some may have hoped. The game went through quite a few changes, one major being the campaign was entirely scraped and the game essentially became exclusively an online game. Now I have been vocal how I feel concerning full priced games that are strictly multiplayer, my opinion was that if the game is good enough to warrant the $60 than who really cares what portions may or may not be present. The very game I referenced in the opening sentence, SOCOM, had a campaign but 100% of my time was strictly spent in the online mode. So the question begs to be answered, is R6 worth the full price of admission? My short answer is yes, but my long answer is...well keep reading.

R6 is spread across 3 different modes that all can be played with friends to an extent. There is 'Situations' which just like it sounds is in a way a bunch of tutorial missions that serve as a way to teach you how to overcome various obstacles. By completing these you unlock more challenges that ultimately all go towards upgrading your operators. Then there is Terrorist Hunt which is a Rainbow 6 classic.  This is probably the closest thing to a "story" mode that R6 offers. This is a much more guided and difficult mode in the game that can be played with up to 4 players. Then there is of course the mode most will spend their time in which is simply titled 'Multiplayer'. The way multiplayer works is two teams of 5 members that are split between Attackers vs Defenders; both have an objective and each team works to complete said-objective. There is no option to pick a specific game type, instead the map and mode are randomly generated before the game actually starts. Some might feel this limits certain things but I like to think in a game like this it really keeps players on their toes and at the end of the day everyone should learn each map along with each 3 random situations. So the 3 types of situations are 'Bomb defusal', 'Hostage Rescue', and simply 'TDM'. Attackers obviously will be attempting to defuse the bomb and rescue the hostage whereas the defenders will attempt to keep the bombs active and keep the attackers from extracting the hostage. I thoroughly enjoy every single mode and even within the map the location of any of these 3 random situations will spawn in different portions of the map. So every single round even within a single game can play out differently. There is no one sure way to achieve victory and again it's really refreshing because it makes players actually think.

One of the biggest things in a shooter is obviously the guns and character customization that is available. So this is something else that may or may not sit well with some but ill explain why I love it. So instead of traditional shooters where you can basically deck your character out with any weapon, perk, sidearm, etc, R6 opts to give the option of selecting an Operator. You start off as a recruit and as you play and win matches you will earn what's called "Renown Points". You then use these points to purchase Operators. These are split between 5 different factions each featuring 2 Attackers and 2 Defenders. Each Operator has their own specific perk that makes them special given whatever circumstance you are trying to overcome, some also feature exclusive weapons. The perks are never otherworldly or break the flow of the game or give any extreme advantage to one player over another. They range from being able to breach a wall from a distance, carry a riot shield, lay down a turret, disable electronic devices, any many other options. There are even some Operators you will want to avoid during certain situations. Obviously you don't want to play as an Operator whose special is a cluster grenade when you are trying to rescue a hostage because you run the risk of killing the hostage and costing your team the round. It's this kind of thinking and really planning out your team and strategy that gives the game much needed depth. Also important to understand is that no 2 players on the same team can pick the same Operator. So essentially if you purchase your first Operator and go to play your next round and someone picks that Operator then you will be playing as a Recruit until you can either select that Operator or purchase more. Obviously you'll want to buy all the Operators regardless so after a few games this specific situation becomes obsolete and in the end it just forces you to learn and get good with each class. I enjoy this cause it means that no Operator can really become over powered and eventually abused by players.

Your options of weaponry are very grounded and built around Close-quarters-combat. They range between MP5s, Shotguns, pistols, and sub-machine guns. There are a few attachments you can purchase with Renown points such as a few sights, grips, silencers, and paint schemes for those that want to look fabulous during combat. Ultimately its all very sensible attachments and again very grounded in the type of game that R6 is. The aspect that really makes R6 special and elevates the tactical game is the fact that almost all objects can be manipulated to either provide cover or a vantage point. Think someone is on the other side of a wall? Go ahead and shoot and watch your bullets penetrate and hopefully kill the enemy on the other side. See a weak point in the room you need to protect? Board it up and reinforce areas you feel are weak points. Hear someone coming up the stairs but don't want to expose yourself? Knock a small hole in the wall and wait for the enemy to come into your sights. All of these scenarios play out nearly every single round. There is no run and gun to be found here as it doesn't take a lot of bullets to take you out and force you to hopefully watch your team pull off a win. You have to be smart and communicate and plan accordingly because any  wrong move can cause your entire team to come under fire and ruin the mission.

 

The magic of R6 shines through when you can squad up with a whole team with mics that is actually communicating and using their Operators appropriately, so your experience can change drastically based on what type of team you are on. So I do have one qualm with the game and as I'm typing the issue has for the most part been addressed and is being patched within a week's time. I am speaking towards the server issues that are currently causing some players to say screw the hostage and leave the game entirely. I can say since my time playing I have encountered two situations where I was experiencing extreme server issues that forced me to close down the game entirely and reboot.  Again they have recognized this and a patch has more than likely been released by the time you are even reading this. I do have hopes that Ubisoft can also attempt to tighten up the time from grouping up and actually getting into a game. It can sometimes be lighting fast whereas other times you'd swear your game forgot you wanted to play and just left you staring at an "attempting to find a match" screen. While these scenarios do not occur to an extent to ruin the game I wanted to be honest with those reading. Now with all of this said I still can comfortably recommend this game to those who understand what type of game it is. This is not Halo or Call of Duty, when you die you are done for the round, there are no giant explosions or vehicles to be found here or wall running or what-have-you. This is as close to a old school team based tactical shooter we have been given on consoles in quite some time. For those who understand that then I would say you'll feel right at home diving into this game, for those who are a little unsure I would say rent it or borrow from a friend and give it a spin with a good team and see how it resonates with you.

I feel Ubisoft really took a risk at releasing a game of this type in a sea of instant action shooters especially being online only. Good news is all maps will be free for all players, the only thing the season pass gets you is early access to some new Operators and gun skins. So there will never be an instance where the player base is divided due to map packs or DLC which I think Ubisoft should be commended for.