I was there in that fateful month of January 2010. Never before had I seen such carnage; such madness, and so many damn snipers. Had I been shipped abroad to fight in the war? No – I was playing Zipper Interactive’s online only FPS ‘MAG’. Yes, rather unbelievably MAG is a year old this month so TSA is taking the opportunity to take a look at what’s changed over the last twelve months.
I was one of the people who went out and bought MAG on day one, and to be honest it was a struggle. Not being the most adept at online shooters anyway, MAG was a harsh introduction and after a month or so I gave up, tail between my legs. Things change though, and I had heard so many positive comments that I went out and purchased the game again recently to give it a second chance.
Wow, what a difference a year makes! I suppose the biggest addition is ‘MAG 2.0’. One might call this an update, but essentially it’s turned MAG in to a brand new game. One of the biggest additions has been PlayStation Move support. Having been banished upstairs for my MAG sessions, I have yet to play the game with Move, but those I have spoken to say it’s difficult and takes a lot of getting used to. For those of you who baulk at the idea of a measly level 60 cap, it has now been upped to 70.
The game’s ‘skill tree’ has been completely redone, with some new additions. I found this particularly useful, and as all new skills now only cost one ‘skill point’ I was able to unlock useful skills (such as the medical kit) much earlier than in MAG 1.0. This helps the sense of progression and in just an hour and a half I have unlocked about 70% of the Medic’s skill tree. An ‘Economy System’ has also been added, where you earn in-game currency for completing missions, earning ribbons etc. With this currency you can then go on and buy new weapons, or gear (once you have unlocked the relevant skill and reached the required level). This sense of customization is fantastic, and I can’t wait to get my hands on some new guns…or I may tinker with my existing gun to make it better, I haven’t decided yet. Gear and weapons can also be sold so you can make some extra cash.
An interesting new feature is ‘Multiqueue’, which replaces the ‘Directives’ deploy option. Multiqueue gives players the opportunity to queue up for any or all game modes simultaneously. This allows users to jump into the action quickly without forcing them into game types they don’t want to play. All you have to do is uncheck the modes you’re not interested in playing and the Multiqueue will take care of the rest. As an added bonus, Zipper has also equipped the Multiqueue with a stackable XP reward that grows in its payout depending on how many modes you’re willing to play.
Those wishing to turn to the dark side can also buy up to two additional character slots for 79p a month, which will allow you to create a character in one of the other factions.
One of my favourite new features though is being able to take 720p resolution in-game screenshots. Just got shot in the backside and team-killed by a mate? Take a screen grab of it as proof for when he proclaims his innocence!
Overall I’m so impressed with how far MAG has come in twelve months, and the stuff I’ve detailed above is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of tweaks and modifications. Sure, it’s still a hard game to get into but the wealth of post release support has made it a much superior product. The servers have apparently seen a spike in activity recently, so now would be a great time to jump in and have a go.
Kovacs
Still very fond of MAG. I can understand why some wouldn’t be but, for me, (when on a great squad), it’s really quite something.
TheShepanator
Add me now. :D I’ve just got back into it, and a while ago I had a great group of people to play with and it was so much fun. And having your name appear in the “top players” at the end of the game made it so much sweeter. But now I’m so lonery…
linkavich
I’m always finding it a chore when your squad just splits up and buggers off, definitly gonna crack this on tonight
JamesF
I was fortunate enough to get to the launch party for MAG (Eurogamer and IGN were asked to recruit 64 readers each, and　Ｉwas fortunately picked). The 256 player game against the Zipper (and if I recall Naughty Dog) guys was great, albeit humiliating.
I still occasionally log on to MAG but not knowing anyone else that plays it, or being a member of a clan, kind of limits the enjoyment for me. It’s a pity because I love the game despite its few flaws.
SpikeyMikey23
I had to give this a miss. With MW2 released in the november before and battlefield bad company 2 not long after, I didnt have the time to invest in this. Im a lover of MW2 so most of my November – March was taken up with than, only to be replaced with BFBC2.
I would have considered buying it on a whim, off the store if they started churning it out at £9.99. But for me, with so many games to play and to come, its a no.
Dan Lee
Well I won’t name names, but it’s on sale at a couple of well known retailers for £12.98 – which kind of sealed the deal for me.
SpikeyMikey23
yeah i’ve seen it cheap, but when i think about buying it, i keep putting myself off. Ive got so much mulitplayer to get through. Im half way through leveling up in MOH, nearly at level 50 for black ops. havent even started assassins creed brotherhood online. Plus killzone 3 and brink coming soon. I really wanted to try it out and did have a beta code, but never got round to it.
cc_star
You need to commit to what you buy, you’d have zero chance at doing yourself justice in MAG, KZ3 and Brink… your approach to MW2 and then 4 months later with BFBC2 is probably the way to go
hol
I’ve been playing mag since beta & the changes Zipper have implemented certainly have changed mag vastly, for the better I might add too!
Generally I now play once or twice a week rather than every night on launch but since I’m now clanned up with a big Valor clan (=V=) I’m still enjoying the game.
Let’s face it, now you can pick this up for a tenner, add the DLC & and you’ll be busy for a long time.
It isn’t COD or BFBC but better than both IMHO ;)
Kolossal_K
It’s great to hear that MAG has freshen itself up a bit, rather then just making a sequel. However I never bothered my time with it, I always enjoyed a great story over mindless guns. That said if the two were to combine then we’d have something great ala Killzone.
F022Y
Yet another day one owner here :)
Had the misfortune of believing the hype about MW2 and getting my 100% trophy award in under a month lol, when i saw MAG i thought worth a bash and here i am one year on and still playing and just as fun thanks to zipper continually evolving it. In my opinion the last online FPS that i enjoyed as much was battlefield 2 on PC. My thanks to zipper for stealing all my free time :)
Dan Lee
One of the guys in the clan I play with had over 400 hours clocked up on MAG. When I commented on it he said “yeah, that’s only on one of my accounts!” People have lost so much time to it!
F022Y
Not far off that myself, me a few friends play every friday night, good times
E8_BALL_
was on the fence when i played beta, but now tempted to give it a go.
BrendanCalls
I was much like yourself, I got it on release, played it for maybe 2 months then just gave up.
With the whole sale changes, which seemed to have improved the experience, it may be worth a 2nd purchase if I can get the right price
DrNate86
I desperately want to have the time to play this. I’m so bogged down with quality titles at the moment though. It has been something that has been on my radar since release, but as others have said, things like COD, AC, Red Dead and other massive titles have always slightly trumped it for my time. which is a shame, as I would have loved to give it a go. Does it still have a strong online following?
Dan Lee
Online still seems strong!
teflon
I was never that big a clan or squad player, really, but when you land in a good squad on a good side, and defend or attack well, the game is an absolute joy.
When I restarted with Valor, though, that was so rare, and with SVER the game was so easy to win, it kind of put me off a little in the end. Even so, I had an absolute blast getting my Platinum trophy.
It took me roughly 200 hours all said, and after that I’m not planning on returning to the game. Maybe I will at some point, but not for a little while.
TheUgandanGamer
I have basked many wonderful hours in front of the television screen playing MAG. A truly remarkable experience.
Personally, I love everything about it – From the possible participation in one of three factions to the absolutely hectic on-line gameplay experience.
I too, was a day one buyer – mixed emotions running through my head as I thought to my self “I hope I haven’t just wasted £40..”, And to my delight – It was quite simply one of the best FPS experiences I have ever had.
Whilst it took a good while to get to grips with the slightly awkward-at-the-time control scheme (R2/L2 triggers = primary/secondary selection) as opposed to, say Call of Duty, the game soon whisked me away into huge multi-player battles.
The 2.0 update – Damn; talk about customisation.
Skill trees, a points system, graphical update, etc… I was amazed that a subscription model hadn’t been put in place for such a great game.
However, since Black Ops had come out, I have not found much time to play MAG; However I will be making a comeback VERY SOON!
It’s time to play..
(PSN: GigoByte)
TheUgandanGamer
Forgot to say,
I absolutely ADORE the whole team-based squad/platoon idea & the MASSIVE 256 player fire fights.
A simple yet awesome addition to the game!
(Also the players are great)