Ok so I downloaded the PTS again and gave it another shot because again free and it's a better change from talking shit. What cataclysm content is exactly I don't know going into it, but I'm gonna focus just on that while going into this blind. Just gonna type my thoughts as I'm going along here too.
Starting off, I can immediately appreciate that there's been work done on improving PC optimization. After fiddling around with it for a bit, and based on suggestions from /u/ncBadrock, I have more steady FPS which is great. To me I don't care about gimmicks like 4K or SLI. Don't have it, don't care for it, and most PC gamers don't. It's a very very small and niche crowd. What does matter is whether or not I can run this at 1080p at a consistent FPS. So it's a huge plus to me that there's been more work done on that front. I mean there is still weird drops, which I'm blaming more on Frostbite, but it's getting better. Hopefully there's continued improvement on this front especially on the AMD side of things.
My initial cataclysm experience was that I hopped right into an instance that was already happening and just started dying immediately. It wasn't until I got into a fresh instance by myself, and saw the tutorial pop up, that things started to clear up and I started to dig into it.
It's a bit weird to describe cataclysm. You have a bunch of mini-events on a map to do, in whatever order, until the main boss shows up. If you played FFXIV, each one plays a lot like a FATE does but with slight puzzle solving elements to it. Had a good time with that. On normal, it's just way too easy so I bumped it to GM3 and remembered immediately why I hate GM3 and dropped it back down to GM2. It's a good balance between difficulty and fun there.
There's also more benefit on doing this content with a group. In comparison with strongholds, you just steamroll through without a thought about teamwork. Always thought strongholds were weak in that regard. In cataclysm, having a group makes the events easier to do, you get more of them done, you get more loot, and it makes it easier to get a high score. I don't believe you can solo some of those and it's more difficult solo in general there so a party, or help from randos that pop in, is beneficial.
The idea behind inversions itself in cataclysm are really good too. If you played D*stiny 2, it seems similar to modifiers from nightfalls but without the challenge card. Because of that, I'd really like to see that concept expanded from cataclysms to strongholds. A nightfall like thing every week would make strongholds more interesting to run and refreshing to folks that are running them over and over again.
Boss fight itself was fun. I kept wondering why I was dying until I realized "Oh this has actual mechanics wow." So seeing bosses have more involved mechanics is neato.
Ok to sum up my thoughts.
What works:
- Off the bat, I can see that they're trying to make better PC optimizations. If you've been waiting for better performance, it does seem like it's coming.
- Cataclysm map looks great and the smaller scale is working really well for level design too. Really wanted to explore it more than do the content at times.
- The actual content itself was fun and I liked that there was a bit more going on than just shooting stuff.
- Inversions are a great idea that I think should really be expanded on.
- Did notice more loot and good loot at that
- This might be a more of a subjective thing, but I had a more stable time. While writing this out, I haven't had the server shut off at all so yay for that.
What doesn't:
- The tutorial wasn't the best and it made for a bad initial experience.
- Blue filter. I'm assuming this is a placeholder because it sure looks like one.
- The new dominion enemies. What is up with their triangle backpacks? I feel like I missed something because they look really silly and out of place.
- The timer. In smaller groups, maybe 2-4 people, the idea behind the timer works because you feel the pressure to get stuff done faster especially at GM2. In larger groups, or maybe rather more experienced groups since idk how many people can actually fit in there, you can just steamroll right through without regard to the timer so it makes the timer feel more redundant.
- Leaderboards. Just not a fan. I'd rather worry more about loot than ranking.
- On the PTS itself, having to download it twice because of an update womps.
For people that have been committed to Anthem and have just been wanting more of it, I think for that kind of person they'll genuinely have a blast with this content. It's a good alternative to grinding away at strongholds especially with friends.
For people looking to get back in, that's a harder sell. Personally, I think it's fun, but is it something that would make me consider buying origin premier again to play Anthem or outright buying it by itself on PC? No. I see the beginnings of a framework being put in place there that could lead to better things, and the PC optimizations and bug fixes are nice, but buying Anthem because of "potential" is not a mistake I'm looking to repeat. I would rather wait it out until there's more content.
At the very least, the PTS is a more valuable way of saying that "Hey we really are doing our best to fix this" vs. the absolute radio silence we have seen so far from BioWare. I hope that a PTS is utilized more often as a way to garner feedback from the community.
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