Steam Game Review: Dirty Bomb
With the rise of the MOBA (Multiplayer Online Battle Arena) gaming genre, the FPS seems to have taken a backseat and this has caused some adverse effects on major titles such as Halo or Call of Duty. These adverse effects have caused these mainstream titles to fall from glory because the developers feel as if they must change the mechanics and overall feel of these once heavy hitters of the gaming industry. That said, Dirty Bomb tries to deliver where most other FPS games can't.
First off, the graphics of Dirty Bomb are absolutely gorgeous, especially for a free-to-play game. The graphics are also quite easy to read, even in the heat of battle. On that note, Dirty Bomb deserves credit for this because for the general player (nowadays) if a game isn't aesthetically pleasing, nine times out of ten it will fall to the bottom of the barrel, never to be looked at again. So thank you Nexon/Splash Damage for noticing this particular detail and expounding on it.
While good graphics may get the player hooked and intrigued, it takes a combination of gameplay and decent features to keep the attention of the gamer. This is where Dirty Bomb is both unique and shining in some aspects, but also where it seems to fall short. Before this review hashes anything out, I would like to point out that this is not about the rumored "hackers" of the game or the presumed "Pay-to-Win" model. Rather though, Dirty Bomb's objective system is somewhat muddled. In some situations, it's incredibly easy to win, while in other scenarios it is just seemingly impossible to get even a leg up on the competition. Now understandably, there is a certain amount of experience or teamwork that makes these situations present themselves. That's great! That's wonderful, but there are also some points on every map that can be exploited and in some cases abused for the advantage that they give. One such "point of exploitation" is on the map Chapel where the defending team must prevent the EV from reaching it's destination. Countless times, I've seen this map won right within the hanger where EV must park. All it takes is a Proxy player standing right inside the hangar where they are completely sheltered from every possible angle, and then all the player has to do is drop mines continuously on the front end of the EV which in turn decimates the chances of the offensive team's victory. While small, this is quite significant.
Another critical point that really sways the gameplay is the actual classes that are offered to the player. Granted, while some of these classes are quite unique and others are simple in playstyle, it's these exact differences that make it hard to play certain classes. The example chosen for this review is the Fire Support Merc, Skyhammer. Skyhammer is without a doubt fun to play. His run and gun style mixed with his airstrike special ability makes for quite a fun experience, however, when it comes to actually achieving anything for the team, he really falls off. Other than hanging around in the back with a rifle and just chucking out air support strikes, he just doesn't deliver the "aggressive" playstyle one would expect. On the other hand, Proxy, who is an Objective Specialist, can be considered absolutely overpowered. Proxy is a force to be reckoned with and can single-handedly win an entire match by herself. This is all due to the fact that she is an engineer, and can therefore build fortifications, or destroy them, and her speed mixed with her mines make her efficient at holding said objectives. As far as the mercenary classes, there could be some work done to make things a bit more balanced.
While the gameplay does need some work in the areas of exploitation and actual mercenary class power, the objective system that Dirty Bomb offers is wonderful. It feels almost as if the developers took the feel of the typical RTS MOBA and mixed it with the high-paced action of FPS games. This is a great combo as it makes the player feel like there is in fact a time crunch. The "Stopwatch Mode" is a shining example of this. In "Stopwatch Mode" both teams are given the opportunity to defend and attack, and the team that does this in the fastest time is the winner. What makes "Stopwatch Mode" so unique is the fact that it requires the team to come together as one and actually strategize in order to win the game. In some cases, the game can be won in a matter of 20 minutes, and other times it takes a whopping hour just to get past the second objective. On that note, Splash Damage/Nexon must be commended because it really focuses on the need for strategy and teamwork, rather than running around and dummy-gunning just hoping you get a kill.
The final stop for this review on Dirty Bomb is the unique shop system that it has in place. The player is able to gain battle cards from cases (which are won in matches or can be bought for a certain amount of in-game currency) and these battle cards give your mercenaries certain "upgrades" to their abilities. Whether it's faster run speed, a special knife, cooldown reduction on abilities (and so much more) the battle cards are the icing on the proverbial cake for Dirty Bomb. This card system has stirred up much controversy in the idea that it makes the game "Pay-to-Win" but there is very little evidence to support this theory. At least in my own experience, I've noticed that it's not about the card you are holding, but rather, about the skill it takes to play.
Overall, Dirty Bomb offers a unique experience, and it does have it's gameplay flaws. However, it is also still in Open Beta, so these flaws are to be expected. Once the map exploitations get fixed and the mercenary classes become a bit more balanced, there's no reason why Dirty Bomb shouldn't be at the top of the list when it comes to competitive FPS games.
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