Fans both new and old to the Splitgate universe are finally getting their hands on Splitgate 2‘s early playtest, and while they recognize the game as a shooter, it just isn’t feeling like the Splitgate of old yet.
Fearing for the worst, some fans of the franchise believe Splitgate 2 plays a whole lot more like every other class-based game and hero shooter right now and has moved away from what made it unique. The signs that the sequel would follow the generic hero shooter model were there early when the trailer was released but Splitgate fans held out hope that developer 1047 Games would maintain the series’ identity in its sequel.
That dream appears shattered now: Players on social media noted that from their experiences, the game feels slower, the inclusion of factions is disorienting, portals seem to be much less of a priority, and the game’s map design comes off as bland.
People have described the new iteration of Splitgate as feeling much closer to Ubisoft’s new shooter XDefiant. Both titles emphasize playing as the member of a faction with unique abilities and gadgets that influence team composition in squad-based gameplay. Other comparisons have been made to THE FINALS, but the most unfortunate comparison is to an Unreal Engine starter game, Lyra.
Lyra and Splitgate 2 especially bear aesthetic and map similarities, but this isn’t what players aren’t happy about—it’s that the games supposedly play way too much alike. Fans are most upset the creativity that set Splitgate apart from the crowd doesn’t feel nearly as present, and for some of the series’ diehard fans, they just want to play a revamped version of the old game they loved.
Despite this, Splitgate 2 may not be dead on arrival. Others are really enjoying the way the new game plays. Some are even saying that the maneuverability problems are a skill issue more than anything else. What might save Splitgate 2 is this so-called skill drop, with a newer crowd believing portals were kind of a chore in old Splitgate, and that the new maps are “fantastic.”
It’s clear there’s a fracture between the playing group, with it believed that 1047 Games is pushing to be more commercially viable rather than being the Halo-like that made them popular in the first place—but do the consequences of 1047 doing this outweigh the loss of its core fanbase? The presence of new gamers who enjoy these changes is indicative of the fact that there is a market, but it calls into question how big that market is.
There is time for Splitgate 2 to appease its fanbase. 1047 is typically receptive and dedicated to making good on player requests, but that might show the need for a greater conversation between developers and gamers over what this game’s vision should be.
Splitgate 2‘s alpha has begun, but we won’t see the game release until 2025.
Published: Aug 23, 2024 08:42 pm