Respawn is making sure that its upcoming mech title Titanfall is free from any kind controversy or public grudge by making it as user-friendly as possible. The company has now revealed that the game can be packed with nearly 50 combatants – including AI, players and Titans.
Respawn faced a bit of stick from fans and critics alike after it was previous announced by the company that the game would only support 12 players. And although the company also indicated that each player would have their own Titan with them in either follow or guard mode, fans still criticized the company for deciding to support lesser number of combatants.
However, recently in a conversation with Polygon lead designer Justin Hendry went on to describe as to why the company decided to walk that route and that the in-game improved movement features (combined with wall-running and jet packs) required limiting the number of players in the game.
"The higher the player count, the more uncomfortable the game gets," he stated. "Unlike in most games where you can sit there and guard the two ways in, in Titanfall the guy can come in through the window right behind you, he can come from the window to your left, he can come from straight ahead, he can come in from the stairway and he can come in from the doorway, or whatever.”
“Essentially there are five directions you can get killed from and the higher that player count, the more likely you are to get killed from behind and the more difficult it is to kind of manage your surroundings," he added.
He further defended the company’s policies on the number of players by stating that this is the number the company has had in mind for quite some time now.
“We are pretty avid players in the studio. People speak their minds and we listen and make changes. This is the number that felt best,” he said. “The game is essentially built to be six on six.”
“There are at least two maps that are really big, one of those is huge. The map size isn't a technical limitation, it's what felt best. It's, 'How do we make this thing feel good?' Some maps are smaller, some are medium size and some are bigger,” he added.
"I think the only thing that the player count does is really affect the overall chaotic level of the game."
And as far as in-game 50 combatants are concerned, Polygon points it out perfectly. “Each map also supports up to 12 AI-controlled characters per side and each of a match's six player-controlled characters can, in theory, have a Titan following them like over-protective, weaponized pets,” it states.
“So counting AI, counting players and counting Titans in guard or follow mode, a match can feature nearly 50 characters trying to kill one another.”
Titanfall is currently scheduled for a March 11 release in North America and March 14 release in the United Kingdom for Xbox One, Xbox 360 and PC.