Day 1 Impressions - People Make Better Allies Than Computers
Hi Artillery team and testing buddies,
Finally sitting down to collect all my impressions over the first 24 hours with the game. So far, I've played 6 games, and already I feel that I've both gotten the hang of the flow of the game and that I have much, much more to learn over the next two weeks. Now that I know what I'm doing, all 5 squads I've tried are fun and rewarding to play, and I can't wait to play against real people tomorrow.
The most striking thing I felt is how isolating it is to play a 3v3 game with AI teammates. In fact, I was taken aback in my first attempt at playing because I felt like I had no impact on the game, and I actually ended up quitting without finishing because it looked like I was losing. I realized after a couple more games that this was only because I chose Hydros in that first game, but I then tried to go out and do the damage for my team. I ended up in long fights where little happened, and without backup from my AI teammates, it felt like all things I did were pointless.
Later, I teamed up with two other testers from the global chat and decided to give Hydros another go. In that game, I spawned top with the party leader, and for the entire game we walked our two armies around, my tanky crabs out in front with his ranged army sitting back and doing the damage. In that game, with similar overall circumstances and squad choices, I had an AMAZING time. Every choice I made felt impactful, I felt rewarding synergy with my teammate, and I could clearly see the benefit my actions were having as we won battle after battle and took over the entire map.
I've been left with the feeling that some sort of warning away from playing a low damage squad in my first game, when I had only AI allies to rely on, would have improved my first impression of the game, even though it has since redeemed itself for me.
My main other comment is how much I love the music as it is now. I don't exactly know how to describe the feeling the music gives me, but it is perfect. Even in that first game, where my impression was still undecided, the music kept me going.
Overall, I've been left enthralled and excited, and wishing I could tell all my friends how great this game is. But, since the NDA silences me, I guess I'll just keep playing instead!