''Titanfall 2'' is a
first-person shooter
First-person shooter (FPS) is a sub-genre of shooter video games centered on gun and other weapon-based combat in a first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action through the eyes of the protagonist and controlling the p ...
video game
Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This feedba ...
, developed by
Respawn Entertainment
Respawn Entertainment, LLC is an American video game development studio founded by Jason West and Vince Zampella. West and Zampella previously co-founded Infinity Ward and created the ''Call of Duty'' franchise, where they were responsible for i ...
and published by
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted the ...
. A sequel to 2014's ''
Titanfall'', the game was released worldwide on October 28, 2016, for
PlayStation 4
The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 i ...
,
Windows
Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for se ...
, and
Xbox One
The Xbox One is a home video game console developed by Microsoft. Announced in May 2013, it is the successor to Xbox 360 and the third base console in the Xbox series of video game consoles. It was first released in North America, parts of ...
. In ''Titanfall 2'', players control Titans,
mecha
In science fiction, or mechs are giant robots or machines controlled by people, typically depicted as humanoid walking vehicles. The term was first used in Japanese after shortening the English loanword or , but the meaning in Japanese is ...
-style
exoskeletons and their pilots, who are agile and equipped with a variety of skills ranging from wall-running to
cloaking
Cloaking is a search engine optimization (SEO) technique in which the content presented to the search engine spider is different from that presented to the user's browser. This is done by delivering content based on the IP addresses or the Us ...
. Set in a
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...
universe, the single-player campaign follows the story of Jack Cooper, a
rifleman
A rifleman is an infantry soldier armed with a rifled long gun. Although the rifleman role had its origin with 16th century hand cannoneers and 17th century musketeers, the term originated in the 18th century with the introduction of the ri ...
from the Frontier Militia, who bonds with his mentor's Titan BT-7274 after his mentor is
killed in action. Together, they embark on a quest to stop the Interstellar Manufacturing Corporation (IMC) from launching a
superweapon
A weapon of mass destruction (WMD) is a chemical, biological, radiological, nuclear, or any other weapon that can kill and bring significant harm to numerous individuals or cause great damage to artificial structures (e.g., buildings), natur ...
that is threatening to destroy the Militia planet Harmony.
The game's two-year development cycle began in mid-2014. The decision to add a single-player campaign to the game came about because the team wanted to expand the game's player base. They came up with different ideas and prototypes, and integrated them to form a single coherent campaign. ''
Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet
is a Japanese anime television series produced by Production I.G and directed by Kazuya Murata, and aired between April and June 2013. A manga adaptation began serialization in Kadokawa Shoten's ''Newtype Ace'' magazine in January 2013.
...
'' and
buddy cop films, as well as the video game ''
Half-Life
Half-life (symbol ) is the time required for a quantity (of substance) to reduce to half of its initial value. The term is commonly used in nuclear physics to describe how quickly unstable atoms undergo radioactive decay or how long stable ...
'' inspired the game's campaign and narrative. The team also overhauled the progression system and made subtle changes to the multiplayer to make the gameplay more fair. A heavily modified version of
Valve
A valve is a device or natural object that regulates, directs or controls the flow of a fluid (gases, liquids, fluidized solids, or slurries) by opening, closing, or partially obstructing various passageways. Valves are technically fitting ...
's
Source engine powers the game.
Stephen Barton
Stephen Barton (born 17 September 1982) is a British composer who has lived and worked in Los Angeles since 2001. He has composed the music for dozens of major film, television and video game projects.
Early life
As a child, Barton became a cat ...
returned to compose the game's music.
Upon release, the game received critical acclaim. The single-player campaign was praised for its design and execution, and the multiplayer modes for building on the foundation of the original game. Despite the positive reception, ''Titanfall 2'' underperformed commercially, with most attributing its underwhelming performance to going on sale in a crowded release window, placed between the release of ''
Battlefield 1
''Battlefield 1'' is a first-person shooter game developed by DICE and published by Electronic Arts. It is the tenth installment in the ''Battlefield'' series and the first main entry in the series since '' Battlefield 4'' in 2013. It was relea ...
'' and ''
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare''. It was nominated for multiple year-end accolades, including
Game of the Year
Game of the Year (GotY) is an award given by various award events and media publications to a video game that they feel represented the pinnacle of gaming that year.
Events and ceremonies
British Academy Games Awards (BAFTA Games Awards)
...
and Best Shooter awards, by several
gaming publications
Video game journalism is a branch of journalism concerned with the reporting and discussion of video games, typically based on a core "reveal–preview–review" cycle. With the prevalence and rise of independent media online, online publicati ...
. Respawn continued to support the game after its release, providing several updates and
downloadable content
Downloadable content (DLC) is additional content created for an already released video game, distributed through the Internet by the game's publisher. It can either be added for no extra cost or it can be a form of video game monetization, enabli ...
.
Gameplay
Similar to its predecessor, ''Titanfall 2'' is a
first-person shooter
First-person shooter (FPS) is a sub-genre of shooter video games centered on gun and other weapon-based combat in a first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action through the eyes of the protagonist and controlling the p ...
where players can control both a pilot and their Titans—mecha-style robots that stand roughly seven to ten meters tall. The pilot has a large variety of equipment that enhance their abilities during combat. All pilots have a jump kit which assists with
parkour
Parkour () is an athletic training discipline or sport in which practitioners (called ''traceurs'') attempt to get from point A to point B in the fastest and most efficient way possible, without assisting equipment and often while performing ...
, double-jumping, and wall-running.
Pilots have more specific abilities unique to each 'class' which augments their offensive and defensive ability, such as a
grappling hook
A grappling hook or grapnel is a device that typically has multiple hooks (known as ''claws'' or ''flukes'') attached to a rope; it is thrown, dropped, sunk, projected, or fastened directly by hand to where at least one hook may catch and ho ...
for enhanced mobility, or a holographic visual
cloaking device
A cloaking device is a hypothetical or fictional stealth technology that can cause objects, such as spaceships or individuals, to be partially or wholly invisible to parts of the electromagnetic (EM) spectrum. Fictional cloaking devices have be ...
. Pilots use their jump kits to run on walls, movements which can be
chained together to travel between locations quickly.
The game introduces several new gameplay mechanics. These include: a movement system that allows players to
slide on the ground, the pulse blade (which is a
throwing knife that reveals the location of any nearby enemy), the holo-pilot, (a holographic pilot that mimics players' action to confuse enemies), and a
grappling hook
A grappling hook or grapnel is a device that typically has multiple hooks (known as ''claws'' or ''flukes'') attached to a rope; it is thrown, dropped, sunk, projected, or fastened directly by hand to where at least one hook may catch and ho ...
, which can be used to slingshot players to a building or reel in an enemy it attaches to. The Pilots have a large arsenal of gadgets and weapons, such as
shotgun
A shotgun (also known as a scattergun, or historically as a fowling piece) is a long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge known as a shotshell, which usually discharges numerous small pellet-like spherical sub- pr ...
s,
submachine gun
A submachine gun (SMG) is a magazine-fed, automatic carbine designed to fire handgun cartridges. The term "submachine gun" was coined by John T. Thompson, the inventor of the Thompson submachine gun, to describe its design concept as an autom ...
s,
pistol
A pistol is a handgun, more specifically one with the chamber integral to its gun barrel, though in common usage the two terms are often used interchangeably. The English word was introduced in , when early handguns were produced in Europe, a ...
s, and
grenades to fight their enemies. At close range, players can execute their opponents from behind in a short animation with a
melee attack. Melee attacks are always instantly fatal should they connect.
Titans are significantly less mobile than the pilots, but they have stronger firearms and superior protection. Replacing the three classes featured in the first ''Titanfall'', six Titans were introduced at launch—Ion, Scorch, Northstar, Ronin, Tone, and Legion, with Monarch being introduced in the May 2017 ''Monarch's Reign'' free
DLC. Ion uses a directed-energy arsenal and makes use of a shield that can catch then reflect enemy projectile attacks. Scorch engages in combat using area-denial incendiary weaponry and indirect-fire thermite mortar. Northstar excels in long-range precision attacks with a charged railgun, and sets movement-restricting traps, and is the only Titan with the ability to leave the ground and hover. Ronin specializes in hit-and-run combat, using a 'Leadwall' shotgun and a sword. Tone focuses on mid-range combat with its target locking weapons. Legion uses a
rotary cannon
A rotary cannon, rotary autocannon, rotary gun or Gatling cannon, is any large- caliber multiple-barreled automatic firearm that uses a Gatling-type rotating barrel assembly to deliver a sustained saturational direct fire at much greater r ...
designed for sustained fire at both mid- and close-range. Finally, Monarch—added post-release via downloadable content (DLC)—is a Vanguard-class chassis that can steal power from other Titans to power up its own defensive shield. The Titans have their own move sets which are different from those of the pilots—for instance, they can dodge quickly to evade attacks.
Single-player
Unlike its predecessor, ''Titanfall 2'' has a single-player story campaign with gameplay split between commanding the Titan (BT-7274, voiced by Glenn Steinbaum) and controlling the Pilot (Rifleman Third Class Jack Cooper, voiced by
Matthew Mercer
Matthew Christopher Miller (born June 29, 1982), better known as Matthew Mercer, is an American voice actor. He is best known for his work with Studiopolis, Funimation, Bang Zoom! Entertainment, Viz Media, and NYAV Post in anime, cartoons, and v ...
). It features a linear story, but levels offer players multiple paths to explore.
For most parts of the game the Titan BT-7274 accompanies players, alongside allied NPCs from the universe's Frontier Militia faction (of which BT-7274 and Jack Cooper are a part). He can change his weapon loadouts under players' command to maximize his efficiency when combating local wildlife, IMC infantry and other Titans. These loadouts are unlocked by finding abandoned equipment in each level, typically before a sequence which will benefit from the player switching to that loadout.
Players are able to use multiple ways to complete objectives and attack enemies, such as utilizing Cooper's Pilot
stealth
Stealth may refer to:
Military
* Stealth technology, technology used to conceal ships, aircraft, and missiles
** Stealth aircraft, aircraft which use stealth technology
**Stealth ground vehicle, ground vehicles which use stealth technology
** St ...
ability, jump-kit assisted traversal of the level and using firearms provided in the game.
Level
Level or levels may refer to:
Engineering
*Level (instrument), a device used to measure true horizontal or relative heights
*Spirit level, an instrument designed to indicate whether a surface is horizontal or vertical
* Canal pound or level
*Reg ...
s are large, and there are multiple paths for players to choose from to reach their destination. The game also features
platform elements, which task players to make use of Cooper's parkour abilities to solve environmental puzzles, and travel to previously inaccessible areas. Some weapons are level-specific and can only be used in certain areas.
There are also level-specific gameplay mechanics. For instance, in the "
Effect and Cause
"Effect and Cause" is the fifth level in the 2016 video game ''Titanfall 2.'' It features a unique gameplay mechanic which allows the player to shift back and forth in time between the level's dilapidated present-day state and its functioning pa ...
" level, players are required to shift between the present and past with a time travel device. Players can also select dialogue options and have Cooper talk to BT-7274 at certain points in the campaign to develop the characters' personalities and often to comedic effect.
The single-player also features a training gauntlet, which acts as a
tutorial
A tutorial, in education, is a method of transferring knowledge and may be used as a part of a learning process. More interactive and specific than a book or a lecture, a tutorial seeks to teach by example and supply the information to complete ...
for players. The faster they complete the gauntlet, the higher their position will be on a
leaderboard.
Multiplayer
The multiplayer mode sees the return of Titanfall's Titan meter, which fills slowly when the player is playing the game. It fills faster when the player kills an opponent, inflicts damage on enemies, or completes the map's objectives such as capturing points in the Hardpoint game mode.
When the meter is completely filled, the player can summon their selected Titan, which descends from the sky in a titular titanfall deployment. A titanfall can crush opponents if it lands on one when summoned and will instantly kill any enemy directly impacted. When the Titan meter is filled completely while in a Titan, the Titan can use its 'Core' ability, which often takes the form of a special attack or otherwise augments the Titan's abilities.
Examples include the Ion Titan's Laser Core, which makes the Titan emit a bright red laser attack, or the Monarch Titan's Upgrade Core, which upgrades the Titan's abilities, defenses, or primary weapon. Pilots are able to
rodeo
Rodeo () is a competitive equestrian sport that arose out of the working practices of cattle herding in Spain and Mexico, expanding throughout the Americas and to other nations. It was originally based on the skills required of the working vaq ...
a Titan similar to the original ''Titanfall'', but rather than attacking a weak point with their weapon Pilots now steal a Titan's battery, causing damage to it and giving the Pilot a Titan battery. The battery can be taken and inserted into a friendly Titan, charging its shield and partially filling both the Titan's Core Meter and the Pilot player's Titan Meter.
Players can disembark from their Titan at any time. It will continue attacking nearby opponents under "follow mode", where the Titan follows the pilot as closely as it can. Players can also set it to "guard mode" and it will stay put, attacking any opponent that comes close.
Finally, the Pilot can activate the Titan's ejection system, destroying the titan (and creating a large explosion if the 'Nuclear Eject' perk is selected in the Titan's loadout) and launching the Pilot high into the air.
Players earn "merits", also known as
experience points
An experience point (often abbreviated as exp or XP) is a unit of measurement used in some tabletop role-playing games (RPGs) and role-playing video games to quantify a player character's life experience and progression through the game. Experien ...
, based on their performance in a multiplayer match and whether their team wins or loses. Players need to accumulate merits to level up, which unlocks additional weapons, abilities, customization options, and more. There are also other ways to earn merits, like surviving the evacuation phase when the players' team loses a match. Players can also earn Credits, a form of currency used to buy weapons, boosts, Titans, or abilities before they are unlocked. These can be earned by gaining merits and completing challenges.
The game's customization options have expanded significantly compared to ''Titanfall''. Players' outfits and weapons, as well as Titans' appearances and combat efficiency, can be extensively customized.
Boosts replace burn cards featured in the earlier game. They are tactical abilities that enhance the players' combat efficiency. Each boost has its own specific access requirement. Ticks, which are explosive mines that track enemies, for example, require 65% of the Titan meter filled. Amped Weapons, where players inflict more damage with their firearms, need 80%. Players must decide which boost they are going to use before a match begins; they cannot swap their boost during the game.
''Titanfall 2'' features several multiplayer modes. These modes include:
* Amped Hardpoint: In this mode, teams receive points if they can hold control points for an extended period. The team that accumulates more points wins.
* Bounty Hunt: Players are rewarded with money if they kill enemies, opponents or
AI-controlled grunts. Players need to return to specific points to deposit the money. Players can also steal opponents' money by killing them. The team that has the highest score wins.
* Pilot vs. Pilot: A standard
team deathmatch
Deathmatch, also known as free-for-all, is a gameplay mode integrated into many shooter games, including first-person shooter (FPS), and real-time strategy (RTS) video games, where the goal is to kill (or "frag") the other players' characters a ...
mode but players cannot summon any Titan.
* Capture the Flag: Players are tasked to
capture the flag
Capture the flag (CTF) is a traditional outdoor sport where two or more teams each have a flag (or other markers) and the objective is to capture the other team's flag, located at the team's "base", and bring it safely back to their own base. ...
of an enemy and bring it to their team's base, while preventing opponents from stealing the player's flag.
* Attrition: A standard team deathmatch mode in which players can summon Titans. Points are rewarded to a player's team when they kill a human-controlled enemy or an AI-controlled grunt. When a team earns enough points, the game transitions into the following phase: the losing team needs to reach the evacuation zone and escape, while the winning team needs to eliminate all opponents.
* Skirmish: This mode is like Attrition, but there is no AI-controlled grunts and the score needed for phase transitioning is lower.
* Last Titan Standing: A last player standing mode, where the first team to eliminate all opposing titans wins. Players are spawned in their titan and can collect batteries scattered around the map.
* Free for All: Players are tasked to kill each other in this mode. All other players will be marked as their opponents. This has since been removed from the game.
* Coliseum: This is a one-versus-one multiplayer mode where the player is tasked to eliminate the other player. Players can gain access to this mode through Coliseum tickets. These are earned by playing other multiplayer modes, buying them with credits, or receiving them in gifts granted when the player levels up a faction.
* Titan Brawl: A standard
team deathmatch
Deathmatch, also known as free-for-all, is a gameplay mode integrated into many shooter games, including first-person shooter (FPS), and real-time strategy (RTS) video games, where the goal is to kill (or "frag") the other players' characters a ...
mode, but players spawn with their titans and cannot eject or disembark from their titans.
* Frontier Defense: A
player versus environment
Player versus environment or player versus enemy (PvE, also known as player versus monster (PvM)), is a term used for both single player and online games, particularly MMORPGs, CORPGs, MUDs, other online role-playing video games and survival ga ...
(PvE) multiplayer game mode where four players must face up to five waves of enemies.
Matchmaking is also enhanced, with the game automatically helping players to find a new match after the end of every match. The game also introduces a new feature called "Networks", which allows players to form a group, similar to a
guild
A guild ( ) is an association of artisans and merchants who oversee the practice of their craft/trade in a particular area. The earliest types of guild formed as organizations of tradesmen belonging to a professional association. They sometim ...
. The game automatically groups both the player and other members of the network together in a match. Players can join more than one network and can switch between joined networks in-game.
Each network has its own "happy hour". If the player plays the game during this period, they gain extra merits.
Campaign
Setting
The game's conflict takes place in "The Frontier", a region of star systems far removed from the "Core Systems" where Earth is located. The Interstellar Manufacturing Corporation (IMC) and the Frontier Militia battle for control of the Frontier. The IMC seeks to exploit the Frontier's rich resources regardless of the consequences for planetary environments and civilian populations, while the Militia fight to expel the IMC and gain the Frontier's independence. In the wake of the
Battle of Demeter, the Militia is on the offensive, battling for resources and control of the Frontier planets. Though weakened by the lack of reinforcements from the core systems because of the destruction of the refueling facility by James MacAllan, the IMC is still a dominant fighting force attempting to drive the Militia out and put down any resistance to their control of the Frontier.
In the single player campaign the player assumes control of Jack Cooper, a lowly rifleman from the Frontier Militia, sent to the alien planet of Typhon as part of an assault on the planet by the Militia, who must join his former mentor Captain Tai Lastimosa's Titan—named BT-7274—to foil the IMC's plans of interstellar domination.
Plot
![Matthew Mercer by Gage Skidmore](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/27/Matthew_Mercer_by_Gage_Skidmore.jpg)
Jack Cooper is a rifleman in the Militia. He aspires to become a Titan Pilot and is receiving off-the-books training from Captain Tai Lastimosa to prepare for his candidacy. The two are part of a Militia force which attacks the IMC-held planet of Typhon. In the initial battle, the Apex Predators, a group of mercenaries led by Kuben Blisk and contracted by the leader of the IMC's science division, General Marder, mortally wounds Lastimosa and incapacitates his Vanguard-class Titan, BT-7274. With his dying breath, Lastimosa transfers control of BT to Cooper. BT explains that Cooper has also inherited Lastimosa's mission, Special Operation 217: to rendezvous with Major Eli Anderson and assist in the completion of their original assignment. Anderson's last known position is at an IMC laboratory. BT and Cooper are forced to detour, first through a water reclamation facility then a manufacturing plant, killing the Apex Predators Kane and Ash along the way.
BT and Cooper continue to the IMC laboratory only to find it destroyed, with corpses artificially aged due to time-travel distortion scattered across the facility. Cooper finds Anderson, deceased from a time-travel mishap. Cooper learns Anderson was gathering intelligence on a new IMC device, the "Fold Weapon", which utilizes time-displacement technology to destroy entire planets. The planet Harmony, which is the home planet of Lastimosa and houses the Militia headquarters, will be the first target. Fortunately for the Militia, the Fold Weapon is dependent upon a power source known as the Ark. Cooper and BT hijack an IMC communications array to broadcast a signal to the Militia fleet and kill another of the Apex Predators, Richter. The transmission contains sensor data on the Ark's electromagnetic signature so that the Militia can find and seize it.
After receiving the transmission, the Militia's Marauder Corps, led by Commander Sarah Briggs, assaults the IMC-held installation where the Ark is being kept, arriving too late to prevent it from being loaded onto the Draconis, an IMC transport. The Militia gives chase in hijacked IMC ships. BT and Cooper attempt to board the Draconis but are attacked by the Apex Predator Viper. Cooper kills Viper and successfully boards the Draconis with BT.
Cooper and BT secure the Ark before the ship crashes. BT becomes incapacitated from damage sustained in his fight with Viper, and the duo are captured by Blisk and his second-in-command, Slone. BT surrenders the Ark to save Cooper but is destroyed by Slone for trying to help Cooper escape. However, BT gives Cooper a
SERE kit and his data core before his chassis fails, and Cooper uses it to revive BT by installing it in a new Vanguard chassis provided by Briggs after he escapes captivity. Reunited, Cooper and BT fight their way to the base where the Fold Weapon is being prepared for use against Harmony. They kill Slone, earning Blisk's respect; Blisk spares Cooper and offers him a place in the Apex Predators before departing. BT and Cooper then launch themselves into the Fold Weapon's superstructure where the Ark has already been installed. BT hurls Cooper free before sacrificing himself, destroying the Ark, Fold Weapon, and the planet itself.
The game ends with a monologue by Cooper, talking about having his status as a pilot affirmed and being inducted into the Marauder Corps, as well as reminiscing over his experiences with BT. In a post-credits scene, the Titan neural link to Cooper's helmet flashes with the message "Jack?" encoded in binary, suggesting some fragment of BT's AI managed to survive due BT uploading his AI during the mission "Effect and Cause".
Development
Respawn Entertainment
Respawn Entertainment, LLC is an American video game development studio founded by Jason West and Vince Zampella. West and Zampella previously co-founded Infinity Ward and created the ''Call of Duty'' franchise, where they were responsible for i ...
, founded by
Vince Zampella, and a team of ninety people developed the game. ''
Titanfall''s original director, Steve Fukuda, producer Drew McCoy, and composer
Stephen Barton
Stephen Barton (born 17 September 1982) is a British composer who has lived and worked in Los Angeles since 2001. He has composed the music for dozens of major film, television and video game projects.
Early life
As a child, Barton became a cat ...
returned for the sequel. Production of the title began in mid-2014 with a two-year development cycle.
Publisher
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts Inc. (EA) is an American video game company headquartered in Redwood City, California. Founded in May 1982 by Apple employee Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer game industry and promoted the ...
provided funding and marketing support.
The game's development was completed on September 29, 2016, with Respawn confirming it had been declared
gold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile ...
, indicating it was being prepared for duplication and release.
Single-player
''Titanfall'' had a low engagement with players post-release, despite huge initial sales. Fukuda believed the dwindling size of the community was due mainly to the game's lack of a single-player campaign.
Zampella confirmed the introduction of a single-player campaign was intended to expand the player base,
and McCoy believed this could make the overall package more complete. The team's vision for the campaign was to make it different from other
first-person shooter
First-person shooter (FPS) is a sub-genre of shooter video games centered on gun and other weapon-based combat in a first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action through the eyes of the protagonist and controlling the p ...
s, especially ''
Call of Duty
''Call of Duty'' is a first-person shooter video game franchise published by Activision. Starting out in 2003, it first focused on games set in World War II. Over time, the series has seen games set in the midst of the Cold War, futuristic ...
''.
This proved to be a challenge since many of them had worked at
Infinity Ward
Infinity Ward, Inc. is an American video game developer. They developed the video game ''Call of Duty'', along with seven other installments in the ''Call of Duty'' series. Vince Zampella, Grant Collier, and Jason West established Infinity War ...
, the developer of ''Call of Duty'', before joining Respawn and had become accustomed to making a campaign in that style. According to McCoy, the team initially tried putting all the mechanics from the first ''Titanfall'' into the campaign, but it did not work out. As a result, the team decided to host many
game jams in the studio, where team members were free to create new designs and experiment with technology with few constraints other than adhering to ''Titanfall''s existing mechanics. The team was tasked not to follow traditional shooter campaign's design conventions. Team members were free to build prototypes for it, which would then be integrated to form a coherent campaign. These prototypes were internally referred to as "action blocks". They allowed the team to introduce "ideas after ideas" in the full game since these blocks were often independent of each other and had unique gameplay features. For instance, players would be time traveling in one level and assaulting Titans in the next. These blocks enabled the team to discover new ideas and work out the structure of the overall campaign. Internally it was called "211" as every level consisted of two parts involving pilot combat, one part involving pilot movement and puzzle solving, and one part involving Titan combat.
![AH-64D Apache Longbow](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/AH-64D_Apache_Longbow.jpg)
The "action blocks" approach meant ''Titanfall 2''s gameplay was designed before the story. The team intended making the game similar to the ''
Half-Life
Half-life (symbol ) is the time required for a quantity (of substance) to reduce to half of its initial value. The term is commonly used in nuclear physics to describe how quickly unstable atoms undergo radioactive decay or how long stable ...
'' series, where a mystery takes center stage in the story, hooking players to continue exploring it and completing the campaign. ''
Portal
Portal often refers to:
*Portal (architecture), an opening in a wall of a building, gate or fortification, or the extremities (ends) of a tunnel
Portal may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Gaming
* ''Portal'' (series), two video games ...
'' also influenced the game's design.
One of the major components of the campaign is the interactions between Cooper and his Titan BT-7274.
Fukuda described it as a "buddy" story, inspired by
buddy cop films like ''
Lethal Weapon
''Lethal Weapon'' is a 1987 American buddy cop action comedy film directed and co-produced by Richard Donner, written by Shane Black, and co-produced by Joel Silver. It stars Mel Gibson and Danny Glover alongside Gary Busey, Tom Atkins, D ...
'' or ''
Beverly Hills Cop
''Beverly Hills Cop'' is a 1984 American buddy cop action comedy film directed by Martin Brest, screenplay by Daniel Petrie Jr., story by Danilo Bach and Daniel Petrie Jr., and starring Eddie Murphy as Axel Foley, a street-smart Detroit cop ...
'', as well as
anime
is Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside of Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, in Japan and in Japane ...
''
Gargantia on the Verdurous Planet
is a Japanese anime television series produced by Production I.G and directed by Kazuya Murata, and aired between April and June 2013. A manga adaptation began serialization in Kadokawa Shoten's ''Newtype Ace'' magazine in January 2013.
...
''. "BT" stood for "Buddy Titan", a name the team hated, but Fukuda insisted on using. To increase the chemistry between the duo, the two characters have opposite personalities: Jack is enthusiastic, while BT is robotic and calm. Cooper was difficult for the team to write since his personality may not align with players' choices or vision for the character.
While the team intentionally avoided making BT similar to characters like
Optimus Prime
Optimus Prime, , is a fictional character in the ''Transformers'' franchise. The Transformers characters were developed for an American market after Hasbro representatives visited the 1983 Tokyo Toy Show. The characters were modified and the ...
or cute robots like
Wall-E
''WALL-E'' (stylized with an interpunct as ''WALL·E'') is a 2008 American computer-animated science fiction film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and released by Walt Disney Pictures. It was directed and co-written by Andrew Stanton, pro ...
, they found BT's personality difficult to write, as they had to find a balance between making it "a lovable partner and a 20-foot-tall war machine". Early drafts of BT's scripts were deemed too "bossy", and five writers took five months to rework them. To make BT more human, the team designed a large emotive eye, so players would know where the titan is looking, and a small pair of robotic arms that allow it to interact with other characters in a more natural way. The front of BT is filled with colored paints which inform players of the Titan's head movement. The team added a design choice that let players communicate with BT enabling players to bond with the Titan without using any
cutscene
A cutscene or event scene (sometimes in-game cinematic or in-game movie) is a sequence in a video game that is not interactive, interrupting the gameplay. Such scenes are used to show conversations between characters, set the mood, reward the ...
.
This also provided players with more insights into the game's world,
though some staff questioned the decision since ''Half-Life''
's protagonist is silenced. To make players feel that Cooper and BT are separate entities even when they are controlling the Titan, the team included several small graphical hints to remind them that BT will still continue to talk to the player character.
Akira Kurosawa
was a Japanese filmmaker and painter who directed thirty films in a career spanning over five decades. He is widely regarded as one of the most important and influential filmmakers in the history of cinema. Kurosawa displayed a bold, dyna ...
films and
Clint Eastwood
Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western TV series '' Rawhide'', he rose to international fame with his role as the "Man with No Name" in Sergio Leone's "''Doll ...
and
Sam Elliott
Samuel Pack Elliott (born August 9, 1944) is an American actor. He is the recipient of several accolades, including a National Board of Review Award, and has been nominated for an Academy Award, two Golden Globe Awards, two Primetime Emmy Aw ...
's cowboy roles inspired animator Shawn Lee Wilson creation of BT's unique physical appearance and expression. The
Apache helicopter
The Boeing AH-64 Apache () is an American twin-turboshaft attack helicopter with a tailwheel-type landing gear arrangement and a tandem cockpit for a crew of two. It features a nose-mounted sensor suite for target acquisition and night visi ...
and other military technologies also inspired BT's design. Wilson provided motion capture for the Titan.
While designing the game's single-player, one of the team's goals was to keep the energy present in ''Titanfall''s multiplayer mode. The team wanted to make the campaign more creative instead of simply having robots in it. Both the unique traits of pilots and Titans had to be used and expanded upon. Therefore, the team decided to create both intricate environments for pilots' transversal and large open space for titan combat, instead of making it a
corridor shooter. According to gameplay designer Mohammed Alavi, this gave players greater control and freedom over the character's movement.
The team focused a great deal on
platforming designed to further expand the use of the pilot movement sets. Many team members created action blocks dedicated to platforming, including ideas such as having players solve puzzles to find a new surface to wall-run on, and Titan being able to throw the pilot, so they could travel over long distances. The concept of Titan throwing pilots was ultimately discarded from the gameplay and became part of a cinematic cutscene because the team had trouble implementing it due to its lack of interactivity.
The game also features a variety of puzzles inspired by ''
BioShock
''BioShock'' is a 2007 first-person shooter game developed by 2K Boston (later Irrational Games) and 2K Australia, and published by 2K Games. The first game in the ''BioShock'' series, it was released for Microsoft Windows and Xbox 360 pla ...
'' and ''Half-Life'', where players maintain "a certain level of speed" while solving puzzles.
There are also puzzles which change the game's pace and require players to stop to think of a solution.
''
X2''s
Nightcrawler and the documentary series ''
Life After People
''Life After People'' is a television series on which scientists, mechanical engineers, and other experts speculate about what might become of planet Earth if humanity suddenly disappeared. The featured experts also talk about the impact of hu ...
'' inspired the most acclaimed level, "Effect and Cause", initially an action block created by designer Jake Keating involving time travel. He had the idea before the development of ''Titanfall''. He experimented with it with one of ''Titanfall''s multiplayer maps. The action block was warmly welcomed by the entire development team, with some feeling that it had the potential to be the main feature through the entire game rather than being confined to one level. However, Keating insisted on limiting its use to one level so that the mechanic would not become boring for players. To make the level, the team created two building
computer model
Computer simulation is the process of mathematical modelling, performed on a computer, which is designed to predict the behaviour of, or the outcome of, a real-world or physical system. The reliability of some mathematical models can be deter ...
s with one on top of the other. As the player switches timelines, they are teleported from one building to the other. Fukuda added it was the landmark level the team was looking for and it did not need demanding technology. However, the added level created more work for the team since the two buildings, each with different features and characteristics, needed to be built twice.
The game's single-player starts with simple missions before gradually introducing players to more complicated situations which demand more skills and precision. The game story also supplements this, as Cooper transforms from a normal Frontier grunt to a skillful pilot at the end.
The campaign was created as a stepping stone for inexperienced players by providing a more "relaxing" environment that teaches players' the basic gameplay mechanics, training them before they join multiplayer matches.
Multiplayer
The team evaluated ''Titanfall'' and listened to both feedback and analytical research from gaming journalists and identified two major concerns: there was not enough content for players, and at times the game became too chaotic. The team slowed down the gameplay pace of ''Titanfall 2''s multiplayer so that players could actively make decisions relying less on
reflex
In biology, a reflex, or reflex action, is an involuntary, unplanned sequence or action and nearly instantaneous response to a stimulus.
Reflexes are found with varying levels of complexity in organisms with a nervous system. A reflex occurs ...
. The team also improved the game's map design by introducing more verticality to each map. Fukuda described it as the
3D swiss cheese effect. The team also employed the strategy of "window pane", where each map has three obvious paths: left, middle and right. This helped make each map's environments more predictable to players. ''Titanfall 2'' features a brighter color palette and environments compared to both the first game and contemporary shooter games,
as the team aimed for graphical quality that is "postcard-worthy".
There is also a greater variety of environments featured in the multiplayer maps, ranging from industrial centers, outdoor maps with more foliage, and the return of remastered maps from the first ''Titanfall'' game.
There are also various revisions to the game's multiplayer mode. McCoy described these changes as "subtle" as the team focused more on adding slight modifications to existing mechanics. The Titans were redesigned to have distinct silhouettes unique to each chassis (and thus ability set and weapons) so that players can "tell at a glance everything that
hey
Hey or Hey! may refer to:
Music
* Hey (band), a Polish rock band
Albums
* ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014
* ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980
* ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the title s ...
need to know" and stay prepared for each combat encounter. This enabled players to have a clearer picture of the combat situations and facilitated learning from each defeat. The team also introduced cosmetic changes to the pilots and the six Titan class giving them distinct visual characteristics so that players can easily identify an opponent's abilities. The team attempted to add more depth to the gameplay by introducing more Titans, gadgets, weapons, and pilot abilities, allowing players to customize a set of loadouts to suit their preferred playstyle, by creating specialized loadouts (for example a high mobility long ranged combatant by combining a sniper rifle with the mobility-enhancing grapple Pilot ability) or a stealthy Titan-hunter (taking a grenade launcher in addition to an Anti-Titan weapon along with the Cloak kit). These added more variety to the game so there are more things for players to discover and master.
The game's extensive customization options and progression system were designed to engage players, so they can "get the most out of the game".
Like its predecessor, Titans need to be earned using certain gameplay actions such as defeating opponents or completing objectives.
Technology
The game used a heavily modified version of
Valve
A valve is a device or natural object that regulates, directs or controls the flow of a fluid (gases, liquids, fluidized solids, or slurries) by opening, closing, or partially obstructing various passageways. Valves are technically fitting ...
's
Source as its
game engine
A game engine is a software framework primarily designed for the development of video games and generally includes relevant libraries and support programs. The "engine" terminology is similar to the term "software engine" used in the software i ...
. Many improvements were made to the engine's aspects such as
physically based rendering
Physically based rendering (PBR) is a computer graphics approach that seeks to render images in a way that models the flow of light in the real world. Many PBR pipelines aim to achieve photorealism. Feasible and quick approximations of the b ...
, a texture streaming system developed in house,
high dynamic range
High dynamic range (HDR) is a dynamic range higher than usual, synonyms are wide dynamic range, extended dynamic range, expanded dynamic range.
The term is often used in discussing the dynamic range of various signals such as images, videos, au ...
and
depth of field
The depth of field (DOF) is the distance between the nearest and the furthest objects that are in acceptably sharp focus in an image captured with a camera.
Factors affecting depth of field
For cameras that can only focus on one object dist ...
. The team also made changes to the audio, such as introducing
sound occlusion and
reverberation
Reverberation (also known as reverb), in acoustics, is a persistence of sound, after a sound is produced. Reverberation is created when a sound or signal is reflected causing numerous reflections to build up and then decay as the sound is abso ...
.
According to John Haggerty, senior software engineer, the team broke part of the engine's code for level progression and saves when they were making the first game. The programming team found it a huge challenge to fix and reinstate these codes to accommodate the sequel's single-player campaign. The team also developed a scripting system from scratch, allowing designers to quickly assemble action blocks.
The game's
artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence (AI) is intelligence—perceiving, synthesizing, and inferring information—demonstrated by machines, as opposed to intelligence displayed by animals and humans. Example tasks in which this is done include speech re ...
was significantly enhanced, with new movesets and behaviors for pilots and titans in both single-player and multiplayer modes.
As ''Titanfall 2'' was the first game Respawn developed for the
PlayStation 4
The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 i ...
, the engineering team spent a lot of time and effort to get it running on the platform.
A
virtual reality
Virtual reality (VR) is a simulated experience that employs pose tracking and 3D near-eye displays to give the user an immersive feel of a virtual world. Applications of virtual reality include entertainment (particularly video games), educ ...
version of the game was prototyped but never went into full production because, according to Joe Emslie, the player would "vomit all over their controller."
Combat
animation
Animation is a method by which image, still figures are manipulated to appear as Motion picture, moving images. In traditional animation, images are drawn or painted by hand on transparent cel, celluloid sheets to be photographed and exhibited ...
can be interrupted by players' movement, which gives them more direct control instead of needing to wait for the animation to end.
Most ''Titanfall''s pilots' movesets returned in ''Titanfall 2'' but with some slight modifications. For instance, players no longer fall off as they are wall running near the tops of walls. Before players begin to wall run, the game's
camera
A camera is an Optics, optical instrument that can capture an image. Most cameras can capture 2D images, with some more advanced models being able to capture 3D images. At a basic level, most cameras consist of sealed boxes (the camera body), ...
also tilts slightly so that players can anticipate the movement.
Release
In May 2014, two months after the first game's release, publisher Electronic Arts announced they would collaborate with Respawn Entertainment for more experiences set within the ''Titanfall'' universe. A sequel was officially confirmed on March 12, 2015, by Respawn's Vince Zampella at the
12th British Academy Games Awards. He also confirmed the game would come to
PlayStation 4
The PlayStation 4 (PS4) is a home video game console developed by Sony Interactive Entertainment. Announced as the successor to the PlayStation 3 in February 2013, it was launched on November 15, 2013, in North America, November 29, 2013 i ...
, unlike the first one.
EA opened their press conference at
EA Play
EA Play (formerly EA Access and Origin Access) is a subscription-based video game service from Electronic Arts for the Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 and Microsoft Windows platforms, offering access to selected game ...
2016 with ''Titanfall 2'', and announced that the game would be released worldwide on October 28, 2016. This meant the title would have to compete with other
triple-A first-person shooter
First-person shooter (FPS) is a sub-genre of shooter video games centered on gun and other weapon-based combat in a first-person perspective, with the player experiencing the action through the eyes of the protagonist and controlling the p ...
s including ''
Battlefield 1
''Battlefield 1'' is a first-person shooter game developed by DICE and published by Electronic Arts. It is the tenth installment in the ''Battlefield'' series and the first main entry in the series since '' Battlefield 4'' in 2013. It was relea ...
'', made by
DICE
Dice (singular die or dice) are small, throwable objects with marked sides that can rest in multiple positions. They are used for generating random values, commonly as part of tabletop games, including dice games, board games, role-playing g ...
(one of EA's studios), and
Activision
Activision Publishing, Inc. is an American video game publisher based in Santa Monica, California. It serves as the publishing business for its parent company, Activision Blizzard, and consists of several subsidiary studios. Activision is one o ...
's futuristic ''
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare'', developed by Zampella's old studio Infinity Ward. According to McCoy, the release date was confirmed long before and the team could not change it. The game's Collector's Edition and Vanguard SRS Collector's Edition, which include additional content, were released on the same day as the standard edition. ''Titanfall 2'' was added to
EA Access
EA Play (formerly EA Access and Origin Access) is a subscription-based video game service from Electronic Arts for the Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5 and Microsoft Windows platforms, offering access to selected games ...
and
Origin Access
Origin is a digital distribution platform developed by Electronic Arts for purchasing and playing video games. In October 2022, Origin ceased operations for its Windows platform, directing players to EA Play. The Mac and mobile versions remain ...
on July 7, 2017. An Ultimate Edition, which bundles the base game and all the updates as well as some bonus content, was released on the same day.
EA partnered with a restaurant and a snack food company to promote the game. Players who purchased food or drink at any
Buffalo Wild Wings
Buffalo Wild Wings (originally Buffalo Wild Wings & Weck, hence the nickname BDubs, or BW3) is an American casual dining restaurant and sports bar franchise in the United States, Canada, India, Mexico, Panama, Philippines, Saudi Arabia, and Unit ...
restaurant received a free customization item and access to a multiplayer mode. Similarly, players who purchased
Mountain Dew
Mountain Dew, stylized as Mtn Dew, is a carbonated soft drink brand produced and owned by PepsiCo. The original formula was invented in 1940 by Tennessee beverage bottlers Barney and Ally Hartman. A revised formula was created by Bill Brid ...
or
Doritos
Doritos () is an American brand of flavored tortilla chips produced since 1964 by Frito-Lay, a wholly owned subsidiary of PepsiCo. The original Doritos were not flavored. The first flavor was Toasted Corn, released in 1966, followed by Taco in ...
were given a code granting them double XP, early access to a new multiplayer mode, a Titan, and Titan customization items. EA also partnered with toy manufacturer
McFarlane Toys
McFarlane Toys is an American company founded by comic book creator Todd McFarlane which makes highly detailed model action figures of characters from films, comics, popular music, video games and various sporting genres. The company, a subsidia ...
to produce a toyline for the game which includes a seven-inch tall Cooper figure and a ten-inch tall BT-7274 figure. Respawn prepared two technical tests for the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One users in August 2016, allowing players to try some of the game's multiplayer modes and maps. They made several major gameplay adjustments after hearing feedback from players participating in these tests. The official ''Titanfall''
Twitter
Twitter is an online social media and social networking service owned and operated by American company Twitter, Inc., on which users post and interact with 280-character-long messages known as "tweets". Registered users can post, like, and ...
account, controlled by EA rather than Respawn, also helped promote the game by suggesting it to Twitter users who indicated they were looking for games to play. It was also used to mock its competitors. Players who purchased ''Battlefield 1'' and this game also had exclusive access to a Titan skin inspired by
World War I
World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
.
At
E3 2016
The Electronic Entertainment Expo 2016 (E3 2016) was the 22nd E3, during which several hardware manufacturers and software developers and publishers from the video game industry presented new and upcoming products to the attendees, primarily re ...
, Respawn announced that all the updates and
downloadable content
Downloadable content (DLC) is additional content created for an already released video game, distributed through the Internet by the game's publisher. It can either be added for no extra cost or it can be a form of video game monetization, enabli ...
would be free for all players. Inspired by ''
Evolve''s free maps model, the team hoped this approach would make players more satisfied with the full-priced package.
Respawn supported the game with multiple pieces of downloadable content in the first year after the game's release, including:
Since early 2021, ''Titanfall 2'' and its predecessor were hit with frequent
DDoS attack
In computing, a denial-of-service attack (DoS attack) is a cyber-attack in which the perpetrator seeks to make a machine or network resource unavailable to its intended users by temporarily or indefinitely disrupting services of a host connec ...
s, which rendered the online multiplayer unplayable. A
mod
Mod, MOD or mods may refer to:
Places
* Modesto City–County Airport, Stanislaus County, California, US
Arts, entertainment, and media Music
* Mods (band), a Norwegian rock band
* M.O.D. (Method of Destruction), a band from New York City, US ...
, named Northstar (named after the eponymous Titan chassis), was released, giving support for custom servers to counter-act the unplayable servers.
Reception
''Titanfall 2'' received "generally favorable" reviews, according to
review aggregator
A review aggregator is a system that collects reviews of products and services (such as films, books, video games, software, hardware, and cars). This system stores the reviews and uses them for purposes such as supporting a website where users ...
Metacritic
Metacritic is a website that review aggregator, aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted arithmetic mean, weighted average). M ...
.
GamesRadar
''GamesRadar+'' (formerly ''GamesRadar'') is an entertainment website for video game-related news, previews, and reviews. It is owned by Future plc. In late 2014, Future Publishing-owned sites ''Total Film'', '' SFX'', ''Edge'' and '' Computer ...
selected it as their
game of the year
Game of the Year (GotY) is an award given by various award events and media publications to a video game that they feel represented the pinnacle of gaming that year.
Events and ceremonies
British Academy Games Awards (BAFTA Games Awards)
...
, while ''PC Gamer'' chose it as their shooter of the year. ''Polygon'' named it among the decade's best.
The game's plot received mixed reviews. Nic Rowen of ''
Destructoid
''Destructoid'' is a website that was founded as a video game-focused blog in March 2006 by Yanier Gonzalez, a Cuban-American cartoonist and author. Enthusiast Gaming acquired the website in 2017, and sold it to Gamurs Group in 2022.
History
' ...
'' found it had an unsurprising and "by the number" sci-fi plot. He was disappointed by the campaign's five-hour length and noted that the emotional core of the story lacked development.
''
Game Informer
''Game Informer'' (''GI'', most often stylized ''gameinformer'' from the 2010s onward) is an American monthly video game magazine featuring articles, news, strategy, and reviews of video games and associated consoles. It debuted in August 1991 w ...
''
's Javy Gwaltney compared the plot to a "buddy comedy" remarking positively that BT is a relatable character.
Peter Paras of
Game Revolution
''GameRevolution'' (formerly ''Game-Revolution'') is a gaming website created in 1996. Based in Berkeley, California, the site includes reviews, previews, a gaming download area, cheats, and a merchandise store, as well as webcomics, screenshots ...
praised the interesting story, despite feeling the nine-chapter story is basic. He also liked BT's personality, calling it a "straight-laced 'I take what you say literally' thinking machine". He noted the interactions with the Titan successfully added more context to the game's world and setting.
Jon Denton of
Eurogamer
''Eurogamer'' is a British video game journalism website launched in 1999 and owned by alongside formed company Gamer Network. Its editor-in-chief is Martin Robinson.
Since 2008, it is known for the formerly eponymous games trade fair EGX ...
praised BT's character, saying its lines were skillfully written.
GameSpot
''GameSpot'' is an American video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information on video games. The site was launched on May 1, 1996, created by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. In addition ...
's Mike Mahardy felt the story was poorly written and that it ended abruptly.
Arthur Gies of ''
Polygon
In geometry, a polygon () is a plane figure that is described by a finite number of straight line segments connected to form a closed ''polygonal chain'' (or ''polygonal circuit''). The bounded plane region, the bounding circuit, or the two toge ...
'' felt the narrative was subpar, with mediocre voice acting, "corny names" for characters, and insufficient context for players to truly remember the story.
''Titanfall 2'' gameplay received critical acclaim. Rowen described it as "frantic and exhilarating", saying the fluidity of gameplay further enhanced the quality of the single-player campaign.
Gwaltney shared similar thoughts, saying that no matter how players chose to approach a mission, combat or stealth, it was satisfying. Furthermore, he found controlling the Titan an interesting experience that resembles ''
MechWarrior'' and ''
Star Fox
is an arcade style rail shooter and third person action-adventure video game series created by Shigeru Miyamoto, produced and published by Nintendo. The games follow the Star Fox combat team of anthropomorphic animals, led by chief protagoni ...
''.
Mahardy also felt that player movement controls remained "invigorating". He liked the Titan combat more for often presenting "David versus Goliath" scenarios. Mahardy and described the game as a "thinking man"s shooter, adding it required players to think tactically instead of simply having good reflexes.
David Houghton of
GamesRadar
''GamesRadar+'' (formerly ''GamesRadar'') is an entertainment website for video game-related news, previews, and reviews. It is owned by Future plc. In late 2014, Future Publishing-owned sites ''Total Film'', '' SFX'', ''Edge'' and '' Computer ...
praised the game's controls and movement options for turning many seemingly gameplay obstacles and barriers into opportunities for players to manipulate.
Chris Thursten of ''
PC Gamer
''PC Gamer'' is a magazine and website founded in the United Kingdom in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future plc. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games ma ...
'' praised the game's variety of weapons and their sounds and the "brilliant" freedom of movement.
Rowen praised the level design, which he found one of the game's "real stars". He was impressed by the variety of settings and set pieces featured in each level and praised the design for having tricky environments for transversal encouraging free movements. He singled out "Effect and Cause" as one of the game's most imaginative levels, comparing it favorably with ''
Portal
Portal often refers to:
*Portal (architecture), an opening in a wall of a building, gate or fortification, or the extremities (ends) of a tunnel
Portal may also refer to:
Arts and entertainment Gaming
* ''Portal'' (series), two video games ...
''.
Paras remarked that two of the game's chapters were extremely impressive, and that they "
e-examinelevel design in most action games". Thursten also enjoyed these levels but added that not all of them share this level of creativity. He wished some of the novel concepts introduced "stuck around longer" during his playtime.
Gwaltney liked the flexibility of the game's campaign, which provides players plenty of freedom to handle combat encounters. He also appreciated the inclusion of the game's puzzles, which requires players to "think outside the box".
Both Paras and Houghton liked the levels for incorporating elements of Pilot and Titan gameplay. Paras said it added variety to the package,
and Houghton felt it improved the game's pacing, making it very "exhilarating" to play.
Mahardy admired the pacing, attributing its success to the fact that players can switch BT's loadouts to handle various combat situations, presenting a different dynamic from multiplayer.
Brandin Tyrrel of ''
IGN
''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
'' admired the game's sense of scale and map design, where each level stage felt large but at the same time linear enough to direct players' progression.
The game's multiplayer was also acclaimed. Rowen described it as "more than solid" and praised the more complex and extended progression system for rectifying ''Titanfall''s lack of long-term appeal. While Titan's customization became more limited, he felt this was a necessary change to make the Titan combat deeper and more rewarding. He noted there were many "smart" gameplay adjustments and design changes that emphasize players' skills, but he was disappointed there were not enough modes featuring AI opponents.
Gwaltney, however, felt there were no significant changes to the multiplayer, but there were sufficient subtle design adjustments making it more refined and improved than its predecessor. He still found the progression system lacking in substance. He appreciated the new gadgets, which make the game more tactical. He commented positively on the game modes' structure, which prompts all types of players to engage in teamwork.
Paras criticized the multiplayer for being unforgiving, though he enjoyed some of the game modes, like Bounty Hunt.
Mahardy praised the six new Titans types for being easy to learn and difficult to master. As the six Titan types have distinct controls and attack schemes, Mahardy noted that combat resembles that of a
fighting game
A fighting game, also known as a versus fighting game, is a video game genre, genre of video game that involves combat between two or more players. Fighting game combat often features mechanics such as Blocking (martial arts), blocking, grappli ...
and
multiplayer online battle arena
Multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) is a subgenre of strategy video games in which two teams of players compete against each other on a predefined battlefield. Each player controls a single character with a set of distinctive abilities that im ...
s games.
Tyrrel praised the overhauled rodeo mechanic, which promoted teamwork, and Boosts, which make the game more balanced.
Gies described some of the design changes as "odd" and "difficult to understand", including the rodeo mechanic which he found mostly useless. In addition, he criticized the maps for being too confined, and not fitting with the game's fast gameplay.
Critics generally had a positive reception to the overall package. Rowen admired the game for being an imaginative and creative shooter, one that no other competitor in the market can achieve.
Gwaltney described the game as a "must-play" that unlike most other shooters offered a complete package with both a fully-fledged single-player campaign and a refined multiplayer.
Paras felt that ''Titanfall 2'' successfully delivered on the promises made by the first game.
Tyrrel also shared similar opinions, calling the game a rare and exceptional title that improved on every aspect of its predecessor.
Houghton called the game the year's surprise, describing it as one of the most "creative and rewarding FPS in recent memory".
Thursten worried that ''Titanfall 2'' would suffer from a short lifespan like its predecessor due to the same poor release timing. He noted the single-player campaign was the game's true highlight.
Denton strongly recommended the game and gave it the highest possible rating, but he shared the same concern as Thursten.
Sales
Electronic Arts expected the game to sell approximately nine to ten million units in its first year of release.
However, financial analysts predicted the game's sales would be substantially disappointing due to EA's decision to release the game in late October, a period between the launch of EA's own ''
Battlefield 1
''Battlefield 1'' is a first-person shooter game developed by DICE and published by Electronic Arts. It is the tenth installment in the ''Battlefield'' series and the first main entry in the series since '' Battlefield 4'' in 2013. It was relea ...
'', and Activision's ''
Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare''. Despite that, EA expressed no concern about the release window, as they felt that the player base of ''Battlefield 1'' and ''Titanfall 2'' would not overlap.
The game was the fourth best-selling retail game in the UK in its week of release, behind ''Battlefield 1'', ''
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim – Special Edition'', and ''
FIFA 17''. Its first-week sales only reached a quarter of the launch-week sales of ''Titanfall'' despite ''Titanfall 2'' being a multi-platform release. Digital sales of the game were also down, only reaching a quarter of its predecessor's sales. According to the
NPD Group
The NPD Group, Inc. (NPD; formerly National Purchase Diary Panel Inc. and NPD Research Inc.) is an American market research company founded on September 28, 1966, and based in Port Washington, New York. In 2017, NPD ranked as the 8th largest mar ...
, the game was the ninth best-selling game in October 2016 and the fifth best-selling game in November 2016. In their earnings call for the third quarter of the 2017 fiscal year, EA stated that the game's sales fell below expectations. However, EA COO and CFO Blake Jorgensen went on to say the company was pleased with the positive reviews the game received and expected it to have strong sales into the next fiscal year. According to Zampella, ''Titanfall 2'' sold well and was successful, but it could have sold better. In January 2017, financial firm
Morgan Stanley
Morgan Stanley is an American multinational investment management and financial services company headquartered at 1585 Broadway in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. With offices in more than 41 countries and more than 75,000 employees, the fir ...
estimated that the game had sold 4 million units. The game's release on
Steam
Steam is a substance containing water in the gas phase, and sometimes also an aerosol of liquid water droplets, or air. This may occur due to evaporation or due to boiling, where heat is applied until water reaches the enthalpy of vaporization ...
in June 2020 helped to reinvigorate its player base on PC.
Accolades
Sequel
In October 2016, Zampella said the team would like to deliver more experiences for the player set within the franchise, though a trilogy was not planned. When publisher Electronic Arts acquired Respawn Entertainment, however, it was revealed that a new mainline ''Titanfall'' title was in development.
A
battle royale spin-off game, ''
Apex Legends
''Apex Legends'' is a free-to-play Battle royale game, battle royale-hero shooter game developed by Respawn Entertainment and published by Electronic Arts. It was released for PlayStation 4, Windows, and Xbox One in February 2019, for Nintendo ...
'', which takes place in the same universe, featuring some of the same characters from ''Titanfall 2'', such as Ash and Kuben Blisk, the Apex Predators that the game is aptly named after, was released on February 4, 2019. The game's lead developer, Drew McCoy stated "There are some people who think there are too many battle royale games or it's a fad, the world thinks we're making ''Titanfall 3'' and we're not - this is what we're making." With the focus on ''Apex Legends'', the team halted the development of a new ''Titanfall'' game. On October 18, 2021, Ash was revealed to be a playable character for the eleventh season of ''Apex Legends,'' previously having narrated the ''Arenas'' gamemode.
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