On PS4 Pro. Played for a few hours for the first time last night. I wouldn't call myself a BR master but I have fun nonetheless. Most of the time I got wrecked, but was occasionally able to pick up 1-2 eliminations. My best squad round was 6 eliminations, and my best solo round was 3 eliminations with a win (which I was happy to get).

The Good

• The core gameplay is incredibly fun.
• The active:passive ratio is more active than other BR games, which is served in part thanks to the ghost form.
• I LOVE that there is no DBNO state. This makes sense considering how you can be revived, but I think I've come to despite the DBNO state. This may be one of the sleeper benefits of this game.
• Hacks are extremely fun!
• Love how pure combat dominance isn't the only way to progress through your pass. I like the 5 star system for various metrics. This means a great recon or healer who isn't great at combat can still work their way through the BP tiers.
• I like how the lore is integrated into the game, and will be added over time via collectables (more on this later)
• The futurist urban world design is amazing.
• Also, the music? I'm not a huge a electronic/EDM fan but this really just hits the spot. Laid back, in the pocket electronic groove that gives it that Tron-esque vibe. Soundtrack deserves a lot of praise here! I did not anticipate liking it as much as I did.
• I like the fresh take on how zones are disabled, and how the end of round plays with the crown (no more....let's all squeeze into the tiny circle!)

Needs Work / Bugs

• There is something about the stick aiming controls that feel, weird. I find it too hard to make adjustments in some situations, and both wind up overshooting or not being able to keep up inconsistently. Maybe it is a response curve issue? I wish I could elaborate more, but it doesn't seem quite as tight. It could be that I'm just garbage (and I'm sure this is a part of it), but I feel like sometimes my crosshairs just seem to be flying around the enemy more so than they would in other games. It's unwieldy.
• Loot visibility can benefit from being able to more easily identify items you already have equipped (and thus serve as fusions) from a distance. For example, rather than being the same blue color, perhaps a teal, green or purple to signify it's a duplicate of a weapon/hack you already have.
• I wasn't able to hear people's VoIP in chat, despite seeing the mic icon move. Everyone appeared to be in the correct chat channel so I don't know why that was happening
• It's probably too early for me to comment on weapon balance, but it did seem like the minigun might have been disproportionately powered compared to the AR/SMG, or at least was overused. It feels like even reactionary it can smoke you in CQB. I wonder if a minor spin-up time would help require a bit extra planning before firing off your 150+ rounds.
• I had a hard time determining position from sound. Was using PS Gold headphones, with the Hi-Fi audio setting. For example when I landed, it sounded like 20 other people landed right next to me. However when I look I see nobody. I don't know if it's a mixing issue or a matter of sound location, but I felt like the audio was not very helpful. If I were to try to guess, maybe the sounds of other players are too loud at distance?
• It's minor: but I feel like Daily Challenges being worth only 40 pts is a bit of an undervalue. In an ideal world I'd say completing all 3 daily challenges should give you 1 level, but if that is unrealistic I think 50 per daily would at least be better than 40.
• Wasn't able to place a ping on the mini-map (was using Button Ping controller layout if that matters) using either circle (the normal ping button) or clicking R3 (what the UI said to do).
• Guessing this is because servers still need some work, but there is noticeable lag when many players get near each other and start fighting.

What Can Set This Game Apart In The Future

Believe it or not, the LORE of Hyper Scape sets the game up for an incredible amount of potential. If Crown Rush is a game in a virtual world, who's to say this virtual world cannot have other components and games to it?

I think Ubi has an wonderful opportunity to break down some barriers in the BR space, by... get this.. NOT LIMITING THEMSELVES TO BATTLE ROYALE. Don't get me wrong, Crown Rush is great fun and it should always be in there. However the core gameplay is SO GOOD there is so much potential for using that in other contexts. It would be a shame not to see the gameplay utilized in other ways.

Could you imagine a deathmatch or TDM in this game set in Neo Arcadia? Remember when deathmatches had PICKUPS?? Those were the days! This could be that game to bring that back in a really special way, and as a gamer who started playing with the Genesis, seeing the potential for game modes like this really excites me. It would be an awesome mix of the new and the old.

There is so much freedom in the lore here, that even a co-op mode could make sense. I can't stress enough how adding new permanent staples to Hyper Scape over time, and therefore offering new ways to play is such a critical part of keeping people invested. Sure, Hyper Scape could be only BR forever and that's it. It'd be fun, but it'd eventually get old.

There is no reason why games that start as BRs need to shackle themselves to that mode. I'd be even more inclined to say I'd rather have 2 other permanent signature modes in addition to Crown Rush over new maps. Plus, consider Hyper Scape seems to be a high-skill, highly competitive game, this opens the game up to all types of players, skill levels, and competitive interests to enjoy.

For example, more casual players might have more fun playing TDM with unlimited lives, or may be looking for competitive ranked battle royale options.

So that's my major takeaway. Ubi, you have built an awesome world with incredible potential: fun as heck gameplay, awesome environment, and cool world and lore. Use that to your advantage!

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