I really like this game, but it has a lot of issues and the new player experience is absolutely brutal and likely causes a lot of people to miss out on what makes this game a real solid experience.
Some background, I play this game "competitively." Yes, I know, it's a little silly. But there are teams that play 49v49 matches against each other in tournaments and friendly scrimmages for a whopping $0 and barely any viewers when it's streamed. It's good, quality fun, and is the only way the game clicks for me after 1200 hours.
The game relies a lot on cooperative play and teamwork. Nobody wants to do that? Enjoy a miserable match with nowhere to spawn and little to do except run for ages and die. You are also tied to a squad, and the skill of your squad lead determines how effective your group will ultimately be, how much action you really end up in, and how much fun you'll probably have. It also kind of requires a microphone, as you'll want to communicate a lot of tiny little things that add up to mean a lot over the course of 90 minutes. They're supposedly working on new communication tools though, so we'll see.
So, that's a lot of requirements. You will also likely spend your first 50-100, maybe even 200 hours not having a lot of success and probably not a lot of fun as you learn how to move without getting shot and killed constantly.
What I think makes this game work so well though, is how satisfying it feels when everything is going right. Whether it's you and your squad killing it with loads of chaos and action going around while you're all on comms trying to work through tough situations, blowing up tanks, destroying enemy garrisons, capturing strongpoints, every successful, meaningful action you take is a big deal and can affect every aspect in a given situation. I have gotten loads of awesome memories from intense matches that were tough back-and-forths that came down to the wire in those final seconds that'll remain with me for many years, and I've made some awesome friends too just hopping into squads and meeting new people.
I could ramble endlessly about the competitive scene, and how imbalanced and goofy it is with all sorts of issues, but it's not worth the time. All I can say is, this game is at its best when you're willing to sit down and take the time to learn how to play it, and once you have, you find yourself in a good quality, balanced match where both sides want to win and know how to make impactful decisions with everyone communicating and trying to do so.
It's not perfect, but it's the kind of game where you get a lot out of it only if you put a lot into it, and to me, the effort is worth it.
Some background, I play this game "competitively." Yes, I know, it's a little silly. But there are teams that play 49v49 matches against each other in tournaments and friendly scrimmages for a whopping $0 and barely any viewers when it's streamed. It's good, quality fun, and is the only way the game clicks for me after 1200 hours.
The game relies a lot on cooperative play and teamwork. Nobody wants to do that? Enjoy a miserable match with nowhere to spawn and little to do except run for ages and die. You are also tied to a squad, and the skill of your squad lead determines how effective your group will ultimately be, how much action you really end up in, and how much fun you'll probably have. It also kind of requires a microphone, as you'll want to communicate a lot of tiny little things that add up to mean a lot over the course of 90 minutes. They're supposedly working on new communication tools though, so we'll see.
So, that's a lot of requirements. You will also likely spend your first 50-100, maybe even 200 hours not having a lot of success and probably not a lot of fun as you learn how to move without getting shot and killed constantly.
What I think makes this game work so well though, is how satisfying it feels when everything is going right. Whether it's you and your squad killing it with loads of chaos and action going around while you're all on comms trying to work through tough situations, blowing up tanks, destroying enemy garrisons, capturing strongpoints, every successful, meaningful action you take is a big deal and can affect every aspect in a given situation. I have gotten loads of awesome memories from intense matches that were tough back-and-forths that came down to the wire in those final seconds that'll remain with me for many years, and I've made some awesome friends too just hopping into squads and meeting new people.
I could ramble endlessly about the competitive scene, and how imbalanced and goofy it is with all sorts of issues, but it's not worth the time. All I can say is, this game is at its best when you're willing to sit down and take the time to learn how to play it, and once you have, you find yourself in a good quality, balanced match where both sides want to win and know how to make impactful decisions with everyone communicating and trying to do so.
It's not perfect, but it's the kind of game where you get a lot out of it only if you put a lot into it, and to me, the effort is worth it.