Dev.log Magenta

I have delved into many battle royales since the genre is very popular right now in the gaming and public sphere. I've tried Fortnite, Apex Legends, Fall Guys, etc.; all of them are great in their own right, but nothing captivated me enough to stay unless I was playing with friends. On September 3rd, I found a battle royale I truly enjoy no matter how often I lose or suffer from gameplay disadvantages: Spellbreak. Spellbreak is unique because it takes a heavily fantasy-driven approach and rolls with it with ease and grace.

Many other popular battle royales are shooting games with one or a few major features to differentiate them, but Spellbreak is what happens if you took mages and put them in an arena You start off the game by picking 1 of 6 gauntlets for your left arm: fire, ice, lightning, wind, ground, and poison. Then when you spawn into the map and land, you can find these gauntlets for your right arm and can upgrade your left one as well if you a better version. Another major difference is instead of ammunition, you have mana, which can either be used to traverse the land by levitating or use magic to destroy your opposition. This allows for longer fights and longer time to kill, you so don't have to worry about getting killed in one shot or getting hit from across the map. The game itself looks similar to Fortnite and Breath of the Wild in the sense that it has cell-shaded visuals and cartoon-style graphics that fit the fantasy look of the game. The terrain also plays into this very well with destroyed and dilapidated villages, castles, structures, and shacks; the environment tells a story that's begging to be explored. When all these pieces are put together, the battles are a sight to behold, looking like something out of a fantasy RPG: tornados, explosions, magic flying, etc. Even if you lose, you feel like you had a chance to contribute and you're given a fair amount of time to fight back. Your rewards are not only cosmetic but also change gameplay when you unlock pregame perks; your progress makes a difference.

I could go more into depth about the game and describe elements like all the possible elemental synergies and how progression works, but know that I really enjoy the game. I think the main reasons why this game is so captivating to me are the fantasy style combat, lack of instant death scenarios, and the unique approach to the Battle Royale genre; it follows the traditional rules while becoming a product that has not been matched yet.

Exercise 1.2: D.O.A.

Take one game that you’ve played that was D.O.A. By D.O.A., I mean “dead on arrival” (i.e., a game that’s no fun to play). Write down what you don’t like about it. What did the designers miss? How could the game be improved?

Many games within the last half of the 2010s have had some of the most amazing games, and also the birth of some of the worst, unfortunately. One of the most widespread commercial and critical failures I can remember is Star Wars Battlefront 2 by Electronic Arts. As a passionate fan, I couldn't buy the game; that was until 2020 when it was having a major sale and the community was shouting praises at the game. I figured I would try to play it and I had much more material to work with than I originally anticipated.

The main source of my complaints with the game was the balancing. I wrote about how the star cards for the different soldier classes and special characters allows veterans to trump over newcomers with major stat boosts that could only be gained by leveling up or buying them. I mentioned that the company that made this game, DICE, was following the greedy and money-hungry practices of its publisher, Electronic Arts, which hurts the game's appeal and player base. I concluded by saying that the developers did everything they could to fix the game's glitches and progression systems, but the damage was already done. Newer players will have a hard time getting into the game and the game feels empty because the small player base doesn't invest in any other game modes other than the standard shooter modes, like team deathmatch and domination.

Before I started the assignment, I did some research on Battlefront 2 and compared thoughts, opinions, and reviews from the initial release date to the present day. I then used my insight on the game to try to get rid of my nostalgia for the franchise so I can look at it objectively. I felt very displeased and even aggravated at how the game turned out, mainly due to the fact I know the company had the potential to do better, the original Battlefront 2 from over 15 years ago had much more replay value and that I really love Star Wars. I felt my assessment of the game was reasonable as many news outlets and public figures in the gaming industry shared the same complaints as well.