FireFall Preview
PAX Prime 2010: Firefall Live Demonstration
After defending the Thumper and launching it back into space, the players called in a transport ship which landed nearby, got on board, and had it fly them to a nearby city. Without a single load screen making an appearance throughout the entire gameplay demo, the ship flew over vast landscapes on which other players could be seen mining and fighting enemy emplacements. From this point on, it was clear that the game not only looks incredible but portrays itself with an epic sense of scale that definitely stands out from typical MMO visuals.
In town, the players equipped gear that had dropped during the Thumper mission and strolled through several storefronts and a bar before a dynamic open-world mission started in which the primary enemy faction was attempting to take control of the city. If the players do not do an effective job of clearing the enemy from the region, the city can be taken by the enemy and must then be reclaimed at a later point in time by the players.
In an attempt to defend the town as best as possible, the player scaled several rooftops and took control of a huge weapons battery. While pounding down on the enemies making their way into the town from a group of nearby hills, a gigantic creature similar to the insectoid creatures fought earlier in the demonstration scaled a nearby mountain and began to rain down explosives onto the city. At this point, the game cut to the Firefall logo and the demonstration was over.
After the presentation, I got a chance to speak with one of Red 5’s designers briefly and was able to get some details on the pricing which may be the most interesting detail unveiled to date about Firefall. The game is going to be free to play, and by that, I mean entirely free to play. You will be able to go to the Firefall site, make an account, download the game, and start playing without any money changing hands. This, of course, means that microtransactions are a part of the picture, but the designer was quick to mention that Red 5 is creating a skill-based game with Firefall. As such, the microtransactions will reflect this, being able to buy cosmetic and convenience items rather than better armor and weaponry. Firefall is clearly looking to do the MMOFPS genre correctly as well as operate on a microtransaction model that may not actually damage the integrity of the game.
Going into this situation with a clean slate, I was very impressed with what Red 5 is bringing to the table. Like so many games before it, Firefall is looking to fuse the greatest elements of MMORPGs with the greatest elements of class-based shooters. Unlike so many games before it though, Firefall looks like it may actually be able to do it. There are many more details to be unveiled about the game, most importantly the microtransaction elements and what all you’ll be able to access with your hard-earned dollars. We’ll have to wait and watch as the development of Firefall continues, but as far as first impressions go, it certainly made a good one.
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Sep 9, 2010 13:48:34 (Sep 9, 2010 13:48)
