Phoenix Down Under: MAG 2.0

MAG 2.0 is what MAG 1.0 should have been, but you can't say Zipper didn't try. You also can't say they didn't fail.

... in some aspects, at least. After extensive research and various injuries resulting from that research, I received my Phd. and discovered that MAG has not yet been reviewed on this site. I don't intend to do one of those in this body of text, but I will provide information regarding the game, the new patch, and my opinions on said game and patch.

I admire a company that cares. Especially a game developer. Naughty Dog, for example, were always fixing the problems with Uncharted 2... sometimes reversing the fixes, but dammit they tried. Valve is the exemplar here, and despite their strange hat DLC thing, they deliver a lot of free stuff to the fans and actually care about the industry and their customers. They also give subtle middle-fingers to Microsoft every so often, so we can all admire that too.

Zipper seems to care too, but I'm no entirely unconvinced that this is just because Sony is pushing them to do so. I'm not sure why. It was probably just a random rumour I heard on an internet forum. In any case, a game that reaches the 2.0 phase should be cause for celebration... unless they've taken far too long to reach that phase, and that phase should have been the game on release.

Still, we must recognize their efforts. Really though, don't they play test these things? I get that the graphics took a hit in order to be able to support 256 players in a single game, but the actual game mechanics, though somewhat tactical, seem like something I would have played on the PS2. I haven't played SOCOM, but perhaps Zipper is simply inexperienced at crafting controls and game mechanics. That's right. I went there.

DLC was released introducing a nifty new game mode, but every MAG owner seemed to adopt a "I'll wait and see how many people buy it" approach, resulting in the few who actually did buy it not being able to get a game. There's more to come, but it's likely the same thing will happen.

Patch 2.0 then. There have been a number of additions, the most notable being changes to the skill tree to make it more customizable. Move support has been added, but as I don't own a Move controller I don't know what it's like. Seems to me as though it would be slightly unfair. MAG features no aim-assist, and from the water-cooler rumours I've heard, Move is deadly accurate. There are many other positive changes to enhance the massive action experience - to view them, click these words here.