M.A.G. Review
MAG is first person shooter for the PS3 developed by the same crew that made the beloved Socom series, and is an online only game. The big selling point of the game was it’s support of 256 players in a single match, and yes it does have that, and yes it is(for the most part) lag free. I only played the first Socom and thought it was pretty good, but the other games never really drew me in. It reminds me of that style, just from a first person view. I like this game, its a nice break from the normal Halo, and COD games out there.
There is not much of story going on here, seeing as there is no single player, but it does have one. It takes place in 2025 during what is known as The Shadow War, and there are 3 sides in this war. S.V.E.R(Seryi Volk Executive Response) is countries like Russia, China, Asia, and India, and they are like mercs, and have AK’s and whatever they can scrap up. Raven is Germany, Italy, and France, and they are the most technical of the sides, think Metal Gear and you’ve got it. Valor is the United States, Canada, and Mexico, and they are your normal military like of the COD games. I pearsonally chose S.V.E.R. because I thought their background was cooler, but they all pretty much play the same.
The graphics are not the best, but as many people as each games has really makes up for that. Your games modes are: Suppression(have from the get go) which is a deathmatch with the members of the side you choose, this is really just for a warm up mach or practice and has 64 players. Sabotage(have from the get go) which you attack or defend 3 objectives and this match type has 64 players. Acquisition(unlock at level 6) which you have a few more objesctives to attack or defend and transport vehicles from base to base, and this has 128 players. Domination(unlock at level 8) which is the big 256 player match and you have a lot to attack or defend. One thing I really love about this game is the importance of team work. You can’t just go all COD and run n gun, or you’ll die real fast, and you only get 5 points for each kill. You get a bonus for staying with your squad(which is made of 8 players) and doing what your objective is. You can be a squad leader and control what you want your team to do once you reach 15, but i’m not good enough to do that, so I never have. You can also unlock guns, upgrades, and armor/clothing as you level up.
This is a very slow burn game, and it takes A LOT of playing to level up with a level cap of 60. Also, once you pick a side your stuck with them unless you want to create a new PSN account, which is free so I guess its not too big of a deal, but it kinda bothered me. You can change sides when you reach level 60, but that takes a good long while! It takes a little getting used to with the controls as well, not a big deal, but its much different than any other FPS I’ve played. The fact that it’s an online only game may also turn some people off as well. The only real question about this game is, is how long the community will play this game. Because if more and more peple start buying it and playing a lot then this game is a complete sucsess, but if they don’t it’s a flop. As of now, a lot of people play this game, and even with it’s large number of players it never takes more than a few mins to load up a game. It’s a very impressive technical achievement and I hope they make a second one to improve on the flaws, or at least have a patch.
If you have a PS3 and you are tired of COD and love FPS then I would at least give this game a try. Rent it, borrow it, just try it.
3.5/5
