Hitting a target with a projectile is the most basic goal in
every shooter, but Tribes: Ascend might make it the most satisfying.
Not because it sounds awesome, or because the guns make you feel powerful
(though they do), but because scoring a hit takes a unique set of skills. The
movement system in Tribes makes every battlefield into a
playground, where good
players can soar above the competition – both in terms of score and
verticality. Tribes feels like a breath of fresh air for the shooter genre, and
is quite possibly the best free-to-play game to date.
After a multi-year hiatus, Tribes: Ascend revives the
beloved multiplayer franchise for a new generation. It's still a first-person
shooter, and still features classic modes for up to 32 players like deathmatch,
capture the flag (CTF), control point, and smaller, five-versus-five arena
battles. But most importantly Tribes: Ascend has kept the same sprawling
landscapes full of hills and cliffs. Admittedly, things can look a little
barren at times (a random tree or crumbling ruin occasionally dots the
surface), but it's on purpose. One of the most important parts of the Tribes
experience boils down to the long-standing movement system, and Ascend
integrates it masterfully.
You can run through a level in Tribes: Ascend, but unless
you're indoors and / or defending a stationary object, you'll be missing out on
the game's unconventional method for getting around. Tribes enables players to
move faster than any other shooter, letting them "ski" on downslopes
and operate a limited-power jetpack on the uphill. Once you get the hang of it
you can soar through the levels, gaining massive amounts of air and speed. It
requires a lot of finesse to hit a hill at just the right angle, but finding a
route that takes you precisely into the path of a fleeing enemy or their flag
makes Tribes much more rewarding.
Of course moving and aiming at speeds that make Call of Duty
or Quake look slow requires a more thoughtful and measured approach to
shooting. Typically, shooters task you with aiming your cursor at the enemy and
squeezing off a few rounds, but in Tribes it's about anticipating and
obfuscation. Projectiles are powerful but often move slow or have a delay
before they detonate. This means you'll have to aim ahead of your opponent,
trying to predict what route they're going to take. Similarly, you have to try
balancing your own pathing so it uses the environment to build speed while also
changing up enough to make you a hard target. Firefights between two or more
opponents thus turn into a dance of sorts, wherein everyone soars through the
air, trying to fire that one artfully aimed kill shot. Kills occur much less
frequently in Tribes than other shooters, so earning them is vastly more
gratifying.
As a class-based game, Tribes' many modes are all fun, but
CTF is the highlight by far. Like countless other shooters Tribes places two
teams at opposite sides of the map, tasking you with defending your flag while
also grabbing the enemy's. Here the assortment of classes shine, with
heavily-armored and slower units making great defenders, while engineers repair
your turrets and place defenses to bolster the area around the flag. Likewise
scouts and soldiers can duke it out in the battlefield, or work the environment
so they can make for an insanely high-speed flag grab. Even stealth-based
classes work well. They can infiltrate the enemy fortress and sabotage
emplacements or assassinate a cowering flag holder. All of these classes are
usable in the other modes, but some are blatantly more useful in one context
over others. After all, why would you want to use an engineer in death match
when you can use a grenade-wielding soldier?
A person coming into Tribes without spending a dime has
access to three classes, and either unlocks the rest with earned experience or
by throwing down some cash. New players can compete using only the default
classes, though for about $30 you can afford every other class immediately and
have money to spare. Alternate weapons and secondary items like grenades can
also be earned, but it takes quite a long time so if you like Tribes it's
definitely worth dropping a bit of cash. Spending money is especially valuable
because the first time you do, no matter the amount, your account becomes VIP
for life, earning you extra experience for every match. Prices for items and
classes feel really fair, too; it never feels like developer Hi-Rez is trying
to nickel and dime you for a weapon, item or class that gives you a distinct
advantage. In short, it's free-to-play done right.
The menus look a bit generic, which is odd juxtaposed with
Tribes' generally beautiful visuals. Created in Unreal Engine 3 (the same thing
powering games like Gears of War and BioShock: Infinite), Tribes is
unsurprisingly gorgeous, with striking explosions and fantastic-looking vistas.
As you're soaring through the air it's nice to look around and see the beauty
of your surroundings even as it teems with battle.
Tribes does a good job of rewarding performance during a
match, but some of the purchasable items sorely need a rework. Every action
benefiting the team generally nets you match points, allowing you to buy
artillery strikes, upgrade parts of your base and call in vehicles. The strikes
work well, balancing out their extreme power with a slow, concentrated area of
fire and high cost. Likewise upgrading your base often ensures victory, and
gives defensive players a way to be especially useful. Turrets start out fairly
weak, but if the team upgrades them they can often take out would-be flag
stealers on their own. The vehicles underwhelm, though. Not only are they
expensive, but you're more agile on your feet. You're a liability to yourself
on wheels and an easy target for foot soldiers thanks to the cumbersome driving
controls.
THE VERDICT
Even with its relatively minor flaws, anyone with even a
cursory interest in Ascend should play it. No other shooter conveys the
same sense of speed – or the rush of pleasure that comes from nailing someone
at over 100 KPH – as Tribes. With no barrier to entry outside of the time it
takes to download and give it a try, there’s pretty much no good reason to not
check out Tribes.
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