M. A. G.

They need to really work out the spawning for this. The few sessions I had, my friend got in on the Beta, essentially involved me sprinting for a few minutes to get back into the action each time I died.

The Penny Arcade strip seems to be accurate:

http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2010/1/6/

Edit: Holy shit, this was my 2000th post!

It's the large maps. The same thing happens in Bad Company if you are not part of a squad. It's a pain in the ass to have to run from one base to the next base you are trying to take and then catch a round as soon as you get there.

I'm picking this up tomorrow, I think, unless anyone wants to talk me out of it. Heh.

Don't pick this up tomorrow.

Don't do it.

It's that good is it.

Save your $60 since you'll likely be able to pick it up for $20 used by April.

Heh. You've pretty much changed my mind.

I'd say its probably worth renting, but definitely not worth buying.

http://www.giantbomb.com/mag-thing-part-01/17-1934/

Looks completely un-fun.

Yeah, looks like a good rental. I don't have anymore cash to lay out for it than that.

The hate MAG is getting around here seems strange. The beta didn't exactly blow me away, but I didn't really give it a fair shot due to moving house.

I know quite a few friends that love the shit out of this game and can't get enough of it. It seems if you're playing with a group of people that know what they are doing and follow orders, the game really shines. Getting a free copy tomorrow, so I'll be joining my mates to see what the big deal is.

On a side note, I asked a good friend about the total number of players he's seen on screen at once in a packed 256 player game. Other games like Resistance 2 have large player matches too, but I rarely saw more than 10 people at a time on screen. My friend reckons he's seen between 40-50 people on screen at once with no lag. That's technically impressive. Doesn't mean much if the game play's shit. Well, I'm about to find out..

wow, different strokes for different folks I guess.

i have been playing for over a week now and I do love it. It's pulled me away from the hack filled games of screaming kids known as MW2. It does take a different mind set to play then the usual FPS and I honestly didn't care for it the first time I picked it up. Eventually I started working with my teammates (laying suppressive fire, covering flank, healing downed soldiers) and it just fell into its own. I have seen no major problems with lag (only 2 occasions there was a momentary skip and I didn't die), I do like the skill trees, and it does well to give you a epic feel of battle. Graphic aren't PS2 quality, but it doesn't have the refinement that a lot of current games. Good but not great. Sound is impressive. Its usually how you detect enemy soldiers, or the slight bullet trail. Of course silencers go a long way to keeping you hidden. As far a spawn spots go, that can be a issue. You can usually choose from multiple spawn locations, but its best to spawn at the same one as your other squad mates. Sometimes you can spawn in by parachuting in, but then you are subject to enemy fire as well.

Having played it for about 8 hours or so, I feel what xuldinga does towards the game. It's like a bastard step child of Day of Defeat/Counterstrike/COD with a dash of something else (quite possibly the gigantic maps and 128/256 player action).

I love that the game rewards you more xp for playing as a team while trying to achieve the goals your squad commander has laid out for you. I love that the game feels like a gigantic war game at times and then in an instant, while trying to defend one of many objectives with your squad, it can turn into a smaller more personal game like COD. The leveling up system takes a while to get used to, but it really lets you customise the style of game you want to play. I'm SMGing it up with close quarter run and guns. The hit detection is great, no crappy battlefield 1943 missed head shots.

I think what I least like about the game is the spawn points and the distance you have to run to get to something. Mind you, this doesn't happen as much as you would think. In the bigger games, the spawn points are usually in the midst of the action (or in transports if you are on the other side). The parachuting in happens when you've beaten the enemy to its final objective or when you've taken down all their SAMS.

PS3 owners should be giving the game a shot when the price goes down. It's worth it, especially if you like FPS's that do things a little bit different.

not to mention that spanwn points aren't as bad when you have teammates who have medical training. It's so much better getting a rez than the long walk. It just sucks when someone keeps rezzing you in front of the guy who killed you, because if you aren't quick enough you going to accrue another death.

@jmub, what PMC do you play? I am currently trying out Raven (lvl20). I have gone with the shotgun and a medical kit. I end up being on point with others because I get to rez and can deal tons of damage with the shotgun. I think I am listed as a commando class because I also have improved knife skills.

I bought this on Friday and I'm enjoying the hell out of it. Yes, I'm a LMG bitch for right now but I'm thinking of going shotgun here soon for some close up action.

Being a medic as well is VERY important. Hell, I tend to get more point running about healing then I do killing but I'm slowing getting better at console FPS.

Anyone having bluetooth issues? My PS3 syncs with mine just fine, but during game I can only hear, not talk. If I want to talk I've had to put the damn thing up to my mouth..which wont do me any good. I know it works though, I've had 1 game so far where people can hear me but nothing since..BLAH

@Nick
I hadn't had any issues yet, but I know we had someone who didn't have his chat settings properly set. He kept broadcasting to the the whole platoon instead of the squad. That wouldn't be so bad if he was actually coordinating with us. LMG is nasty with a reflex scope and a foregrip. too many times I get gunned down at mid range because my shottie can't compete at that range. I end up now quick drawing my pistol for mid range fights have gotten ok with it. Long ranged I am fucked.

I just got the foregrip last night, so I' hope to be busting some heads tonight!

I'll just play around with my settings I'm sure something can be fixed.

Xul, I chose to be Sever simply because all my friends were. Level 17, I've topped up my SMG and am now fixing up my health & stealth stats. And then I'll move to improved knife stabs. I hear the Sever SMG is the best outta the lot because it has a bigger clip size (65). It does quite well with long range combat as well, unless you are dealing with a sniper.

Nick, I have been working on the settings myself. It's odd that I have 2 separate controls for horizontal and vertical sensitivities, used to one general property. It's bad to over spin because with my shotgun I can end up killing a teammate with one shot.

Jmub, I made another account to play Sver because I wanted the hockey mask. Cory I know, but they do look cool. I haven't got to play it often because I concentrate on my Raven character, but I did get him to lvl4 with a both med skills. I might have to look into that SMG tho. I was going to go RPG and explosives spec because I thought it was humorous with a name like Jihadist.

Big update this morning.

The LMG is getting tinned down with is nice, the damn thing is over powered.

I'm still getting used to moving and aiming... I have yet to chang my control settings..yet

update? OOhhhh bout damn time. I went with the shotgun because I figured mass damage at close distance, there should be no other competition for damage at that range (besides explosives). However, the LMG is usually better at close range AND is lethal as hell in long distances. I was going to respec tonight, but I may just wait on that.

EDIT: Found the patch changes http://www.ironstarmovement.com/prof...ource=activity

btw- I made another account to play SVER (I want the damn hockey mask), so if you see JYHADist online send me a invite.

I play as SVER as well...I'll add ya on my PSN when I get home. The LMG is still a good gun, lethal at close range and does decent damage medium range as well, but what they did was make it not as accurate for long distance shooting. (which is a good thing) now if you get the bipod for it, i hear that it helps.. which makes sense.

I'm starting to build up points in the AR just to have some balance.

I'm only a lvl 18, so I'm still a noobie at this game.

Put me on as well, Moon. Being a fellow SVERite, I can say I was slightly misguided about the SMGs. SVERs smg is great don't get me wrong, with its big clip size. If anything it taught me to always aim for the head because anyone wearing heavy armour and a more powerful gun usually got you first if you didn't go for the head. Bad stopping power. Now I've respec-ed to the top MG and holy shit, I'm mowing people down, left and right. Much more powerful with a 100 clip, as long as I hit people (very crappy long distance, especially compared to the smg) they are pretty much dead.

Played a 256 player epic match on friday. It was wholesale war, both sides where fighting tooth and nail for every territory. I stumble in on 10 douches trying to capture a fuel depot. It was like a scene out of the Indiana jones and last crusade. 6 of them were perfectly lined up in a row and within 4 seconds my MG had mowed them down. The other 4 caught on, ignored the capturing the depot and my other team mates and proceeded to put me down. Laughed pretty hard at that.

Update a few days ago, but this time it's ober the PSN.. I selected what I want and it's not Downloading for me.. I know I'm not a wiz on the PS3 so I'm sure I'm missing a step here.

I have downloaded other items off the PSN and have never had a problem untill now.

nevermind...i figured it out...now off to get flash banged all to hell

Trying the game out now. I played both betas, didn't like it at first but it grew on me. Now I'm trying the full game. I joined Sver.

Maybe now I'll have a chance to catch up to you on BC2. I wanted to get MAG, but I'm broke as shit right now. Maybe later.

I have mixed feelings about this game. The model animations are choppy, their movements too quick and spazzy, while lacking the complicated size and shape of MW2 models. It looks like you're aiming at quick rectangles. And the gameplay lacks that fake sense of "weight" (ie. how your character moves and aims the gun) that Modern Warfare perfected. The controls, movement and animations aren't as bad as "Army of Two: The 40th Day", but I'm still glad I only rented this one. The shooting mechanics are subpar, not that another polish over them would help you dispatch the enemies who spawn out of thin air before you.

Anyone remember this game?

I recently traded in Bioshock 2 (huge disappointment) at bought this game used for an extra $5 at a local store Thursday. I played the beta and it didn't do a whole lot for me. Spent a bunch of time with it at a friend's and really enjoyed it, but didn't feel like it was worth the $60.

They just released a HUGE update, "Mag 2.0" and the game is a lot better. It's what the game should have been on release. It really is a ton of fun. I'm having a blast. I'm finding it to be a lot more of an enjoyable and fulfilling multiplayer experience than MW2. The squad-based play is great and makes for some intense fire fights. More so than COD's lone wolf run-n-gun attitude. Plus I find that there's just a generally more mature player community in this game than something like Halo or MW. It's nice playing with people who actually care about accomplishing mission objectives rather than sprinting around like an idiot just trying to improve their kill/death ratio.

The new game economy system is a brilliant idea. Allows you to spend your XP buying new arms and gear.

You can also spend 'skill points' to purchase, well, 'Skills" (MAG's version of 'Perks') that are much more useful than the Perks found in COD, eventhough you must follow a skill tree.

And there's a whole ton of other improvements. The patch itself was nearly 600mb.

Probably the biggest addition is Move support. It takes a lot of getting used to and at first I wasn't sure if I'd stick with it, but I'm getting better quickly. It's nowhere near the accuracy of a mouse and keys, but I'm already finding it easier to target people and make precision shots faster than with a DualShock (which I'm not that great at still). It took a good hour to set the custom settings and bounding boxes to where I felt I could play competitively (the presets are worthless), but it was worth the time. Looking down the iron sights and taking down an enemy is incredibly intuitive. It feels natural. Following and taking out moving enemies, especially sprinters is much better. I can say I'd certainly stick with the Move while playing this game, but it's definitely not for everyone that's for sure.

But as good as the Move is sniping, I've learned, is nearly impossible with the it unfortunately. The scope crosshairs seem to lazily float around. Rather than stop at where you're aiming, it sort of drifts like a balloon in the direction of your movement. Not sure why that is.

It's on Greatest Hits right now for $30. If you find it used, you can probably snag it for $18 and for that you really can't go wrong. For those of you that still have it, I recommend you give it another go. They've made some great improvements and there are still a ton of players enjoying the hell out of this game. And if you're gonna give it a try with the Move and Nav controller, I'd say give it a week or two before you officially give up on it. It takes some practice, but it rewards your efforts.

Yeah, I'm planning on picking this up soon but I want to finish up my Halo achievements before I do. I've got the move and want to play a game besides Sports Champions that uses the controls.

I was thinking about picking this up too. Between the drop in price and the big update, it seems like a good idea now.

I don't know where I'll find the time between this, what I already have, and I am really interested in getting MOH and COD:BO. Sometimes I like to try out the different styles of game play, and I usually get a beat down trying. I'm not great at the COD series, but it's fun when you are playing on a big screen with the offline matches.