titanfall review roundup

Easily one of the most important first-person-shooters of 2014, Titanfall is being seen as the game that will help boost Xbox One sales and help Microsoft's next-gen console beat Sony's PLayStation 4 sales numbers.

Microsoft is placing all its bets on the game, ensuring that the the title, which is developed by Respawn and Published by EA, gets a lot of attention. It has also released a Titanfall Xbox One bundle to get fans excited.

Should you buy the game and is it any good? Here's what the experts say.

PC Gamer

"The things you do in Titanfall are likely to be some of the most exciting things you do in any game this year. It is clearly the work of sharp, analytical designers, and it deserves to penetrate the thick layer of cynicism that traditionally surrounds big budget shooters of this type.

"It's just a shame that this same intelligence and restraint isn't evident in the business culture that surrounds the game. If you choose to invest in Titanfall, make it your mission to track down the stories that emerge when all of its systems come together and sing.

"They are why this genre became so popular in the first place, and Titanfall is a fine way to rediscover that attraction. Just know what you're being dropped into."

IGN

"Titanfall represents a potent fusion of established and modern design ideas, creating a tense and rewarding balance of power and moment-to-moment unpredictability.

"MOBA-like minions mix with traditional on-foot deathmatch, jetpack-powered locomotion, and giant-robot combat – each role playing its own part in the battle and coming with its own tactics and strategies – while the well-designed maps make the ideal weapons and loadout completely situational and dynamic.

"Though Titanfall is somewhat regrettably a barebones game in terms of modes and customization features available at launch, its intense action is almost as exciting to watch a friend play as it is to pick up the controller yourself.

"It's surprisingly lacking many accoutrements we've come to expect in a multiplayer shooter, but it nevertheless unites its elements in a cohesive, approachable way. Titanfall earns a seat at the table with the genre's entrenched powerhouses."

Polygon 9/10

"Titanfall is the rare game that feels like it came out on top of the few compromises Respawn has had to make. Sliding the spectacle and holy shit moments of an epic campaign among bold, fast multiplayer that steals unlikely elements, Respawn has made them shine like they belonged there all along.

"Titanfall may not mark the same kind of sea change thatModern Warfare started but the pieces are all there in a game that delivers on its potential as the next big thing."

Giant Bomb

"Titanfall is a very specific game built for a specific type of person. When you add it all up, the list of available content and the various options for speccing out your pilot feel light, and that might make this game a little hard to swallow at $60.

"But getting into these wild situations and shooting your way out of them feels fresh and fun in a way that the other shooters on the market don't. If you like the basic form but need more of a twist on how you move and how you shoot, Titanfall's core action is extremely satisfying, which makes it a little easier to overlook the lack of available modes."

Gamespot 9/10

"The overarching experience of playing Titanfall is one of rejuvenation and reinvigoration. The sprint speed, the arsenal, the game modes, and more are all firmly derived from some of the most successful online shooters of recent years.

"But by reinventing the way you move, Titanfall reinvents what it feels like to play a competitive shooter. The high-flying action intertwines beautifully with the brutish, tactical titan battles, creating battlefields that crackle with possibility. Titanfall is a leap forward for shooters, a game that combines the vibrant and new with the tried and true to create something special."

Eurogamer

"Titanfall gets so much right that it's easy to start taking it for granted, as game-changing ideas become second nature so quickly and so easily. There's still room for improvement, most notably in that rather drab line-up of game modes, and in its current form it's perhaps more of a step forward for shooters than a giant leap.

"But that still represents the most positive momentum seen in the genre for at least five years. Quite simply, if you feel like you're in danger of falling out of love with multiplayer shooters, Titanfall is the game to win you back."

Joystiq 4.5/5

"When it's not all a clash of the you-know-whats, when there's a volatile mix of scampering boots and earth-rattling bipeds on the battlefield, Titanfall truly excels. It subsists on imbalance and the race to bear big arms first.

"It feeds on the fallout that results when equality means the other guy gets a robot too. Titanfall isn't tuned to perfection for everyone yet, but it starts as a smart, swift and startling movement in well-traveled space."

Xbox One PS4