So I’ve been playing this morning level 14 already, this are my thoughts:

-DESIGN:

- Sometimes innovative design is counter-intuitive, but that is point; if the changes were obvious, everyone would do them. Reading some of the key design choices as bullet points for TitanFall make for a eyebrow raise: bots? parkour? Mechs vs Infantry?

- TitanFall is a delicate balance between all their parts, There is no fillers, no bullet point features to sell the game. It does feels the content is lacking when you read it: only 3 mechs, 6v6, etc. However, they all put together make for a fun formula that allow you to succeed with various layers of skill:

- You can play smart and farm grunts, which actually farming them has a nice tactical layer to it, you can easily have tunnel vision and get killed over and over again, I do find really smart the way they distribute along the map. When they said they were like minions in a Moba, I literally imagine them running from one corner to the map to the center like hamsters, noup.. they infact are positioned in the maps hot-spots, The more you farm the more you risk yourself.

-Infantry vs Mech: Playing against a mech its fun, a hide and seek game, its all about awareness, map positioning and being clever.

-Mech vs Mech/Infantry: It feels like a time against the clock, you know you are the center of attention and you want to do as much damage as possible before that prick rodeo you finally doom your mech to death. Pure adrenaline for me. The titans controls and tune is pretty well done, the dash and the vortex field are key pieces to succeed in a Titan, it’s all about the timing.

-So basically in a 10min match I feel like I played 3 different matches with different challenges that force me to think differently, that is a good stuff in a videogame.

-LEVEL DESIGN

- IMO TitanFall level design is just genius, it is the key for the subtle balance between mechs and pilots, The map design allows for basically 2 multiplayers game to be happening at once. The buildings scale position allow for pilots to be insidious bugs biting the Titans heels, and while in a Titan the city scale turn the map into a more classic close quarter map, it is all about the scale.

-GUN FEEL

-Yeah, it is pretty good.

-TECHNICAL STUFF

- I’m guy who like the way CS:GO and TF2 looks... so mhee don’t care for visuals, they are functional, a bit bland but in some sense I think it is a good thing because there is so much stuff going on all the time... a saturated environment would subtract for the experience, that is my perception but is hard to tell really.

-Technical Stuff that Matters: Frame rate feels consistent even when shit goes crazy, hit detection is source engine good(so yeah is good), and there is the usual lag spike here and there, For a beta thou, feels polished as fuck.. I mean after BF4, I guess the bar is low now.

-Versions

I’m level 3 on PC, and lvl 14 on XBOX One, as I said I’m not a big “visuals quality” guy, they both look kind of the same to me honestly, said so and weird enough I’m kinda leaning towards the Xbox one version. Mostly because the parkour feels better with a control according to me. On PC It got to a point I get a little bit deezy.. (even with 90 degree FOV), but that is probably just me being old now.

So that’s it, I like it a lot..

I was very harsh after the original XBONE event, MS really messed up their message in my opinion. We all know how it went: too much TV, to much Kinect, to much BS really.

Anyway, Both consoles are out, and after watching lengthy sessions of both consoles I ended up buying a XBONE today.

Why a XBONE!? well this are my reasons:

1- Software Software Software: PS4 is a sexy powerful machine, and SONY is a excellent hardware manufacture, however when I'm playing video games I care about Software. As much as I like to shit on MS, they know how to make software and services, SkyDrive is pretty ballers. I bet my ass MS has a horde of developers iterating on the Xbone OS already. Remember this:

2-The Cloud(AKA the internet) Watching the Giantbomb's PS4 cast was kind of a downer, Dawg SONY is building their shit in the same old shit. I think that is going to bite them in the mid/long term. While I think MS is stretching their cloud marketing a bit to much, Make no mistake having a powerful back end for cloud apps and services is key.

3-Games: Dead Rising and Killer Instinct are the things I'm the most interested in. Killzone looks fine, but hee I don't know. Multiplayer maps that look like high end malls... no thanks I liked Killzone when it was old, rusty, gritty, and WW2-ish. Also ya know Titan Fall! its coming yoo

4-Kinect: So this is weird, because I've done nothing but hate the stupid kinect for years by now... Said so, even if kinect sole reason to exist was to put code cards into an Xbone, that would be more than enough. Seriously I can't express how wonderful is not having to write a stupid Y6NK-23ER "··$$%·$%FUCK OFF code anymore.

So that's it lads: Don't get me wrong I love all consoles, all videogames, and wish them tons of sales to all of them. This industry needs a catch of fresh air, and it is good to see both consoles having compelling reasons to be bough. This is not a console warz bait, I'm just happy my consumerist-self figure it out what to buy, anyway if you angry redirect yourself to neogaf and take all banderas memes there.

Cheers

also:

I've been buying into BF since the first Vietnam ex-pac for 1942, it is been one of those games I can always count on. However I think BF4 is the first one I'm gonna skip, after playing the beta for a few hours I can say at least to me eyes: BF4 is a glorified Map pack for BF3.

Really I have no moral issue with it, but at this point wouldn't be wiser of EA/DICE to stop pretending and just charge for a monthly fee? I don't want to pay $50 for a campaign god knows I'm not going to play.

Business model aside what hurt my Battlefield hearth the most is the lack of an interesting creative direction. Dice has done interesting themes/settings before Bad Company 1 had funny dialogues and characters weirdly enough, and BF2142 was a fun spin off. But this vanilla modern military B.S. we've seen like a thousand times already? seriously!?

With Titan Fall and Destiny coming out for PC next year, I'm eager to check something different. Battlefield keeps growing: It keeps getting prettier, more technically impressive, feature pack and polished than ever... yet I can't help but feel like: Battlefield 4 is like one of those euro cars packed with cool tech and sophistication... yet they so boring and vanilla to look at.

I was watching the 2005 unveil of the 360 early on.. It got me thinking, When? How? Why!? did MS turn into this snooty pretentious company!?

I mean seriously:

good times..

Ohhh look like Steve Jobs... just lammer.

Last podcast while compared the 2 unveil, Brad mentioned "we all have grow up" since that last MTV unveil. I'd like to think there are better ways to grow up, you don't need to become an up tide ass, apparently MS does.

I'm 32, I love tech, I have a decent budget, I should be exited about the XBONE, yet MS manage to do the opposite in me. They seem to have lost touch with reality, this unveil feels so alienating. As I said I'm not a technophobe, I love tech.. but when it is presented with such pompous and arrogant manners its actually a bummer.

When I speak about arrogance I'm not talking just about the unveil production, I have nothing against good production values.. I'm talking about tone and message. Apparently MS knows better than everyone else: what we want. They gonna revolutionize:

- How we watch TV, and make it easy - because apparently we are to dumb to use cable or something, also is 2013 who the %&/( pays for cable anymore, common people.

- How we navigate the internet on our TV - yeah because using internet to consume text in a huge ass screen is always a lot of fun. Also consider myself and the people who has the budget to buy this thing at launch most likely have at least a smartphone, a table and a couple of laptops/ultra books hanging around. Why would you use your TV to internet!?

- How we skype .. or something? - yoo skype on your TV amaaazing... again because you sure haven't heard of f"#ing smartphones . yooo WE ALL HAVE freaking smartphones by now. Also: it gotta be polite to talk with friends/relatives while playing a video game they gonna be enchanted about your multi-tasking skills.

Last but not least: The unveil tone reflects my general feeling about the XBONE, it is target to a mythical creature that is Half Dudebro - Half Internet Junkie, and has pathological case of Attention Deficit. Not to mention deep pockets, because ya know you need to pay a fee so you are granted with the right to pay another fee.

GG MS.

(apologies if grammar or spelling mistakes, my English is rusty nowadays)