Tag: Gaming

Anyone who follows me on Twitter might have noticed that I’ve been rather vocal about Square-Enix’s Marvel’s Avengers. In general, the game has some major flaws. There is no way to deny that. Games as a Service tend to have rough starts. There are different levels of issues, but it has been there since even before Destiny. Some of these games needed a year or even longer before they hit their true stride. So, I tried to spend some time after finishing the campaign to see what more is there to this game. You can check out my thoughts on the campaign by clicking here. It’s a heartfelt story that offers a unique perspective on our favorite heroes. I probably played around 14 hours to finish it. It’s the same campaign length I had with Batman: Arkham Origins back in the day. Now, it was time for the endgame content. Here we can see if the game truly holds up for the long-time commitment.

An Enjoyable Aftermath

One thing the game handled well is that the story continues. While cutscenes are now more sparse than before, I was surprised to get small moments throughout the hero-specific missions. Thor’s mission with a fake was quite the highlight as A.I.M. soldiers were defecting. Sadly, they didn’t have any unique designs but that could still come once we return to the Woken storyline. I was a bit surprised that Kamala and Iron Man didn’t have any unique mission types. Still, my main focus was to fulfill the various fraction missions to get my hands on the Darkhold. Yes, the evil book that was featured in Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is a big reward once you finish a major mission chain focused on A.I.M.s cloning technology teased at the end of the campaign.

I think this part is done well. You have missions that grant you additional gear which lets you level up accordingly. I was having fun as I unlocked a variety of new missions that weren’t available before. After some time you do start to notice a trend. These missions start to reuse assets frequently. Plus, the Hive mission becomes the main focus. The 1.3 patch just added a new mission type that I will get to later. The issue is that with their strong focus on A.I.M. there aren’t any surprises after you finish the story. There’s no bonus villain here. You’ll revisit a lot of the same places as you try to grind for gear.

A Questionable Grind

The grind is a selling point of looter games. You receive gear with unique perks. At first, you’ll focus mainly on the power level. It isn’t until you hit 130 that you start caring about stats. This aspect is a lot of fun. It made me think about my character customization. Yes, gears don’t change anything visually but they can have their perks. So, why not grind for gear that lets Thor freeze his enemies as he hits them. You can even add a Jotunheim ability to his heroics, so you can create your custom version of Thor. I am still building up the character but am excited to play around with his abilities and gear. There is a sense of accomplishment that makes the character your version. Some have even started giving their builds unique names.

The issue is that the best gear is not easy to get. It does make sense. You don’t want players to finish the game too fast. The problem is that most of the perks aren’t that unique. The new Mega Hive adds a single-player experience to grind for them. It’s a “Last Man Standing” mission. Originally, it was just going to be one ongoing level. They split it up so you can spread it out throughout the week. Now, you aren’t forced to finish it in one sitting. The only issue is, it doesn’t change anything. It’s the same assets as before. Crystal Dynamics focused on the challenge of it. That is fine but the reward doesn’t necessarily mean you’ll get the best gear. Of course, this created more friction with players. There is a lack of reward. It also doesn’t include the multiplayer aspect that many play it for. The game has to walk this tightrope. As such, it should’ve at least offered a multiplayer variation. We are going to receive A.I.M. Secret Base missions that will be multiplayer-focused. I like that they are adding single-player options in the endgame. Just think they should’ve focused on multiplayer first.

A Barebones Endgame

Does this break the game? No, not at all. It just hampers the experience as you wait for the next real content drop. I think a general issue is the bugs that the developers are actively working on. Yes, they shouldn’t have been around when it launched. In reality, this is the GaaS standard that sadly perpetuates throughout this industry. No one is defending it but we also can’t change it now. I do believe that Crystal Dynamics has been hard at work. They have moments of more active conversation but they do show that they care. People mocked their reveal of 1,000 bugs being fixed but I appreciate the honesty. Most games have bugs that are hidden and get patched out throughout their life cycle. World of Warcraft, Destiny, Final Fantasy XIV Online, and many more repeat these issues. It wasn’t until the A Realm Reborn update that FF XIV was truly playable and got where it is now. It’s due to their dependence on having an active online connection that creates unique bugs that sadly pop up after launch. I wouldn’t want to be in the shoes of these developers.

I still firmly believe in the game’s potential. Yes, it’s a rough start but it sadly is kind of the norm with GaaS. The gameplay is a lot of fun. Each character offers something unique. I love that the game is also offering alternatives for single-player. It was the gear aspect that was handled wrong and should be fixed. I’ve probably put in well over 100 hours so I got my money’s worth from the base game. I would still recommend it to anyone interested. If you’re not in a rush to play it just wait until more content is added and bugs are fixed. Right now, it is just very minimal once you reach a certain threshold. It is okay to play it and take breaks between sessions. The reason I started this as a journal is that more is on the way. It keeps evolving and that is an exciting prospect. Now, I just cannot wait to try out the new Secret Base and Kate Bishop once she arrives next month.

Not too long ago, I shared my experience with the single-player campaign of Marvel’s Avengers. Reassemble tells the story of Kamala Khan, as she reunites the Avengers five years after the A-Day incident. It is a surprisingly heartfelt and grounded coming-of-age story. Kamala becomes the emotional anchor for the team. Now that the campaign is over, we enter the Avengers Initiative. Here, I was able to explore what the game truly has to offer. We get quite a few missions teasing future storylines. There are even unique mission types like HIVE raids to add some variety. Sadly, live-service games have a certain reputation due to past experiences. Avengers isn’t innocent of sticking to those conventions. Yet, Crystal Dynamics has a chance to grow beyond those tropes. Here are some aspects that I believe will accomplish that goal. 

A Loot of Issues

So, the loot system isn’t great. It is used to level up the power of your character. Like classic RPGs, the stat changes are the focus. To put it in comparison, Destiny adds different visuals to gear. Yet, I have to confess that I didn’t care much for this aspect. When I finally found a design I liked, I had to replace it with something more powerful anyways. So, it was a bit pointless to me. When Avengers revealed the loot included different abilities based on Marvel’s history, I loved this approach. It gives you an incentive to find them with unique attributes to enhance your playstyle. Yet, at the end of the day, the gear is mainly just to upgrade your stats. You go through so many different versions that you can’t stick to a specific style throughout. I mean, you could if you are willing to grind it out for hours-on-end. Especially with the necessity of power levels for missions.

There’s a lack of incentive to invest time in grinding for gear. For some, it’s the design changes. There supposedly is Epic Gear in the game that does add some visual flourishes. I do believe that this addition would be enough to make it worth the time. It could be something small like Iron Man’s arc reactor glowing green if a Gamma-based gear is attached. This way it doesn’t affect the skins. Also, give people the chance to create or add effects to existing loot. Would love to see the tech lab add a new station. You can combine gear to create a new one. If you gather enough resources, you can even add your preferred effect to the weapon. Giving players a bit more freedom would also give them more of an incentive.

A Feeling of Déjà-vu

So, I am currently going through the endgame content. Taking my time to go through the character-specific missions and post-game content. I was excited when I finally unlocked my first HIVE raid mission. It felt like every time I was going through the story, I was opening up new aspects of the game. The only problem was that you start to realize a pattern between these missions. They commonly consist of multiple parts that are in a different order. You start by destroying an elite squad of A.I.M. goons. This is then followed by a hacking mission where you get bombarded in a small circular area. You might also have to protect three defecting A.I.M. scientists, S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, or hunted Inhumans. I love the gameplay and the missions but it’s hard to deny that they tend to repeat. Just switching the order doesn’t make it less noticeable. Especially if you tend to retread familiar ground through recycled A.I.M. bases.

We know that we will get a lot more content when Kate Bishop is released next month. While I do believe it will great to have various content additions alongside new characters, I hope they don’t restrict themselves here. Hopefully, this game will see years of content to come. It doesn’t always have to be in the form of a new character or story mission. A concept like the Avengers lends itself to a major variety of possible conflict. It could be something as simple, as a mission getting interrupted by a brand new enemy type. Maybe HYDRA has returned and you end up in a conflict between them and A.I.M. that sets up a future storyline. Even just adding a new faction like former A.I.M. scientists that want to help you and formed after Black Widow’s unique story.

A Faction of Conflict

Factions are an interesting addition to the game. It’s something that was obviously inspired by Destiny. After taking on different objective types, you can rank up your connection to either S.H.I.E.L.D. or the Inhuman resistance led by Hank Pym. On paper, this is a great idea that gives you an incentive to replay missions. It even unlocks unique Villain Raids where you take down a boss you encountered in the main story. My only problem lies in the fact that you barely really get anything out of a Fraction rank up. You get some resources, maybe even unlock some collectible and you get access to more purchasable weapons. It doesn’t change much as you also have two available vendors. It sadly is just a bit underwhelming from what they could’ve done with this concept.

I hope they expand it with new factions, as the world continues to grow. Also, it opens up rivalries and unique story moments. Inhumans don’t trust A.I.M. scientists after the experiments. So what if a faction of A.I.M. defectors is founded. Supporting them ends up decreasing your alliance with the Inhuman faction. It isn’t until you solve a unique mission line that they learn to work together. Also, it lets your activities within the game have actual consequences. How about you can invest in the factions that see their outposts grow. Maybe the Ant Hill gets some upgrades. Crystal Dynamics could add some mini-games that are unique to the base. Players can win some free resources or credits. As of now, the only reason you need to visit the Ant Hill is to get the faction missions. It’s a shame that there isn’t much to them as of now.

A Chimera of Potential

I believe one aspect of this game has the biggest potential. The Helicarrier Chimara was a huge selling point for me. Just the idea of exploring your own Helicarrier was fun. I couldn’t wait to see it back in the air after resting in Utah. One of the best missions in the story was when the Helicarrier got attacked by A.I.M. Suddenly, everything you repaired throughout the story was gone. The S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and Inhumans that joined you vanished. It reflected the story’s narrative and was a great way to add something to the story. Now, in the post-game, the Chimera lost that charm a bit. You mainly use it as a hub for small interactions and accessing the War Table. Yet, there is so much more Crystal Dynamics could do with this concept.

Now that you have a base crew together to keep the Chimera flying. With a war with A.I.M. on the horizon, it is time to build up a team. Let our activities with the Factions allow us to recruit Inhumans or S.H.I.E.L.D. agents with different abilities. They can either act as support during missions or be sent out on their own to gather resources. You can build up an entire team that has their personalities as you talk to them on your flying battleship. Perhaps they even give you rewards if you regularly talk to them and build up their loyalty. Maybe some will become new vendors that specialize in specific gear like cryo or gamma. All that is up to your decisions throughout your journey. After a time, you can even customize and specialize your Helicarrier. Maybe you are more focused on mobility or firepower for your team’s missions. Invest some time to upgrade the Quinjets that let you call in for backup during a mission.

A Sign of Growth

I won’t deny that Avengers is a bit barebones as of now. Yet, the price of admission was worth it. The story and gameplay alone hooked me in. Thes ideas are just ways that could really make this game stand out. It would add so much more variety. This way. Plus, it would just offer some variety to the core gameplay that keeps you coming back. The game’s biggest issue is the lack of polish. Of course, the bugs are the most apparent issue alongside the rather high costs for the marketplace. With a lack of diversity in skins, there is no real incentive to buy anything especially at some of these prices. It’s also a waste for the marketplace not to be available in the actual Chimera. They could add a meta-joke with the CEO of Square-Enix as the vendor. It would be quite funny and similar to how he was a secret boss in Nier: Automata. The potential of the game is the whole reason I aim to keep up this journal. Hopefully, Crystal Dynamics will stick to it and we will have years of content to come. I’ll also be selfish and hope they actually implement some of the ideas I’ve mentioned here.