Things are finally happening with the battle royale shooter Planetside Arena (initially PC, later for PS4 and Xbox One). After the announcement of the early access phase, the developers are now showing the first gameplay. However, this has drawn heavy criticism.
What are the developers showing? A gameplay video of Planetside Arena has been released. In it, we see about 9 minutes of how the battle royale shooter plays. Players land on the map, grab equipment and vehicles, and hunt each other down.
Third-Person and Comic Style
What is special about the video? Two things stand out. Firstly, the colorful comic graphic style, and secondly, the third-person perspective.
This leads to Planetside Arena feeling different from common battle royale shooters like Playerunknown’s Battlegrounds or Fortnite, and the well-known Planetside 2 atmosphere is not evoked with the more realistic graphics.
How are players reacting to the video? 333 viewers have given a downvote, 195 an upvote (as of September 9, 10:15 AM). The video is not received particularly well. This is even reflected in the comments.
Strong Criticism
What are players saying about the gameplay? There is a lot of criticism.
- The third-person perspective is criticized – Planetside 2 uses a first-person viewpoint, just like Apex Legends. Other battle royale games like Fortnite and PUBG also offer a follower view, but players wish for the first-person perspective in Planetside.
- The graphics are not very well received – Players find the comic style inappropriate, especially since it has nothing to do with Planetside.
- There is too little happening – Players are running around for too long without engaging in any great battles.
- There are no interesting innovations that would distinguish Planetside Arena from other BR shooters.
- It simply lacks the feeling of massive battles that characterize Planetside 2.
Some players like what has been shown and are looking forward to a slightly “more compact” shooter with a cartoon graphic style. However, the majority of fans are disappointed with the first gameplay.
Those who like the gameplay explain that others should just wait. When the shooter starts, even 1,000 players are supposed to be active in the battles. Thus, Planetside Arena is expected to feel different from the rather empty gameplay video.
Others believe that the developers should at least remove the third-person view and switch to a first-person perspective. This might save the shooter.
When is it starting? After several delays, the early access phase starts on September 19. Then we will see what Planetside Arena has to offer gameplay-wise.
