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The current state of FPS games

T0minator

Member
Now I'll admit I'm not expert in the genre, but I've played my fair share of FPS games across multiple consoles over the years.

With XDefiant having an open beta available now I decided to give it a shot. Almost instantly the controls felt "off" for me, I understand it's in beta so it can improve. But I started thinking of what studios nail the feel of FPS?

Infinity Ward
Respawn
Bungie

In my opinion, all of these studios have nailed the feel of a FPS. What studios out there have done really well and what up and comers do you feel may have a chance of breaking in to the genre?

Microsofts attempted buyout of AKB can secure them with some great FPS studios.

Sony's working with Bungie on Marathon as well as Firewalk Studios (comprised of Apex, Halo, Cod vets) on their FPS - Concord.

The future is looking very interesting for the genre. Who nails the "feel" of FPS games the best?
 

IFireflyl

Gold Member
redfall_6yj3.jpg


Old Men Laughing GIF by ABC Network
 

T0minator

Member
"What studios nailed the feel of an FPS" oh I don't know....Maybe the guys that made the genre what it îs today.

ID Software

I completely forgot about them 🤦🏻‍♂️, but you're right. ID games feel extremely natural to play and accurate.

I never have to think about the controls with them and the studios I mentioned.

So few studios nail the feel, especially in a competitive FPS.

The story behind some of these studios are interesting too, Respawn was born from issues at Infinity Ward. So many intertwining talent across all these studios
 

T0minator

Member
Bungie? hell no! they have among the worst feeling stick aiming of any current shooter.

their controller aiming hasn't evolved since Halo 2 basically, and is only tolerable due to the extreme aim assist measures that their games have
Destiny 2 feels natural to me I don't think about the controls..that's a good thing. XDefiant however, I kept thinking of the controls. The floaty feel wasn't working for me
 

bender

What time is it?
It's a genre I loved and mostly hate now. Dusk, despite rather weak bosses, is the rare exception. Love how the guns feel in that game.
 

nkarafo

Member
Original DOOM/DOOM 2 and their custom community maps on a modern source port that allows dual analog controls and uncapped frame rates, being played at 200-240fps on a high refresh rate VRR monitor.

Can't beat that feel.

The recent Quake remaster from Night Dive also comes close.
 
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01011001

Banned
Destiny 2 feels natural to me I don't think about the controls..that's a good thing. XDefiant however, I kept thinking of the controls. The floaty feel wasn't working for me

if you played Destiny 2 with the aim assist of say Apex Legends, you wouldn't hit a single shot.

Destiny 2 has a massive ass deadzone, axial deadzones, aim acceleration, and a weird ass reaction curve.

I haven't played XDefiant yet, but it almost can't be worse than Destiny 2
 

01011001

Banned
if you played Destiny 2 with the aim assist of say Apex Legends, you wouldn't hit a single shot.

Destiny 2 has a massive ass deadzone, axial deadzones, aim acceleration, and a weird ass reaction curve.

I haven't played XDefiant yet, but it almost can't be worse than Destiny 2

downloaded XDefiant to test it... let's see.


edit: it's good. WAY better controller aiming than Modern Warfare 2, which managed to have worse aiming than any previous game in the series
 
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T0minator

Member
downloaded XDefiant to test it... let's see.


edit: it's good. WAY better controller aiming than Modern Warfare 2, which managed to have worse aiming than any previous game in the series
Do you play on PC or console?

I'm having exactly the opposite feeling for all the games you've mentioned on PS5

Destiny 2 feels great
XDefiant feels too loose and floaty
MW2 feels just right, headshots all day in that game.

I wonder why, I guess there really is an audience for everything
 

twilo99

Member
Original DOOM/DOOM 2 and their custom community maps on a modern source port that allows dual analog controls and uncapped frame rates, being played at 200-240fps on a high refresh rate VRR monitor.

Can't beat that feel.

The recent Quake remaster from Night Dive also comes close.

I'm optimistic on a new Quake at some point...
 

01011001

Banned
Do you play on PC or console?

I'm having exactly the opposite feeling for all the games you've mentioned on PS5

Destiny 2 feels great
XDefiant feels too loose and floaty
MW2 feels just right, headshots all day in that game.

I wonder why, I guess there really is an audience for everything

I'm playing on Xbox, the aiming is better than any of the last 4 CoD games.

there's no acceleration, the default reaction curve is decent, there's a true linear curve as an option, you can add bonus speed on full tilt...

it's almost perfect basically.

the only thing that could be better is instead of having 3 premade reaction curves, to instead do what Apex does and allow for a custom curve.

also positive to note, the aim assist seems really low, which will make some people really happy. but to be sure of that I'd have to play a bit more.

the only negative things I can say so far is that you can't cancel a slide by pressing crouch. instead you have to jump, which is weird as a regular apex and Fortnite player.
and that the auto sprint feels a bit jumpy... and I like to use auto sprint :/

edit: oh fuck, I didn't even play at 120hz, didn't know that was an option.

gonna play a match in 120fps and see how that feels. should he even better
 
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01011001

Banned
so after 3½ matches now (last match crashed lol), also at 120fps... XDefiant plays really well on a controller.

it has better options than COD, !!!has no aim acceleration!!! (CoD has forced aim acceleration for comparison 🤮), has the typical reaction curves you'd expect (precision, linear, inverted S), the max speed is decently fast, you can add bonus speed on full tilt, X and Y speeds are separate, deadzone seems circular and can be turned to 0...

I don't see any issue with it. the guns feel like lasers tho, but that's what happens when you copy CoD lol. and the map design is meh from what I've played so far.
 
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Drizzlehell

Banned
Despite all the bullshit that comes with it, I feel like modern Call of Duty games have pretty much perfected the feel of firing a weapon in a video game. It just feels so impactful and satisfying it's ridiculous. I only wish it was in service of a game that isn't so motivated by greed.
 
It's Bungie. Coming from a playstation/PC background, I immediately understood the hype the moment I played Destiny. My best friend who tends to lean towards action/shooter games on playstation also noticed how Destiny's gunplay feels "different".

Just to rule out any possibility that this was just a fluff. I introduced him to the Halo franchise PC. He was put off by the graphics at first but the moment he started playing the game, it somehow "clicked" for him and he could immediately see where Destiny gets the gunplay from and we immediately ran through Halo 1 & 2 but the game crashed on the final chapter so many times it put us off. Be he did noticed how it feels so much better than any other FPS games he played out there (including COD and Battlefield which is his favourite franchise).

That right there, shows that skills can't be faked. A significant amount of playtesting must be achieved to nail that "feel" for FPS. I'd say Infinity Ward/Dice/Valve got it, but when you can get my friend to be pulled away from that, to the point he wants to get an Xbox. That's when you know you've nailed the FPS mechanic.
 

PanzerCute

Member
Now I'll admit I'm not expert in the genre, but I've played my fair share of FPS games across multiple consoles over the years.

With XDefiant having an open beta available now I decided to give it a shot. Almost instantly the controls felt "off" for me, I understand it's in beta so it can improve. But I started thinking of what studios nail the feel of FPS?

Infinity Ward
Respawn
Bungie

In my opinion, all of these studios have nailed the feel of a FPS. What studios out there have done really well and what up and comers do you feel may have a chance of breaking in to the genre?

Microsofts attempted buyout of AKB can secure them with some great FPS studios.

Sony's working with Bungie on Marathon as well as Firewalk Studios (comprised of Apex, Halo, Cod vets) on their FPS - Concord.

The future is looking very interesting for the genre. Who nails the "feel" of FPS games the best?
Hunt Showdown is absolutely incredible in terms of FPS mechanics.
 

T0minator

Member
Despite all the bullshit that comes with it, I feel like modern Call of Duty games have pretty much perfected the feel of firing a weapon in a video game. It just feels so impactful and satisfying it's ridiculous. I only wish it was in service of a game that isn't so motivated by greed.
I'm not sure how anyone that's actually argue against your comment. You're 100% correct. Alot of devs don't nail the feel. With upcoming studios like Firewall Studios, they've got to nail the feel of they want a chance at all in the genre.
 

Drizzlehell

Banned
PC's, for me, are for work. When I get home Id rather not be on my PC again. playing bon a consoles on my couch with a nice TV has always been my escape from the PC.

But that's an entirely different argument lol
Yeah, that became especially true with the dawn of home office work after 2020. After spending most of my day in front of a computer doing stuff for work, all I want to do is to get away from it and for gaming in particular, I always prefer to crash on the couch with a gamepad.
 
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Wildebeest

Member
What ruined FPS?

Aim down sights in action games because it "is more realistic". Highly lethal weapons, leading to repetitive see enemy, dead enemy gameplay. Encroachment of anti-fun infantry sim nerds in the genre, who lose their cool if a gun reload animation is 1% inaccurate.
Highly linear corridor amusement park ride level design.
Increasingly "in your face" visual elements like forced low FOV with huge on-screen guns, VFX effect overload and elaborate hand-to-hand kill animations. Camera jerking around like everyone is a character in the exorcist.
PvP purists, who think that it is a waste of budget to have any sort of single player campaign.
 

Bernkastel

Ask me about my fanboy energy!
Max Hoberman lead the development of Halo CE/2 multiplayer. So, we will see how good Certain Affinity's Tatanka is.
 
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rodrigolfp

Haptic Gamepads 4 Life
Why not? Couch gaming is a thing you know. Not all the time i have to be stuck on my desk.

Also, it's DOOM. It's not like you have to be ultra precise or that the game doesn't have auto aim all the time either way.
Couch, chair, desk, mattress, tatame, etc m+kb gaming is a thing you know.

You can (and should) mod auto aim off.
 
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nkarafo

Member
Couch, chair, desk, mattress, tatame, etc m+kb gaming is a thing you know.

You can (and should) mod auto aim off.

It's DOOM. It has no vertical aim and most people prefer it this way. It relies on auto aim for enemies in different heights. It doesn't have headshots or anything that needs precision. It's more about movement, target priority and positioning and less about aim precision. It's single player. It plays great with a gamepad, enough for me to be able to beat most megawads in Ultra Violence.

And no, i'm not going to lay on my bed with a KB/Mouse. Precision aiming with a kb/mouse has it's place and if i need it i'll sit on my desk. But when i just want to relax and be comfortable and lazy, i prefer the gamepad. Much better feel and smoother movement since it doesn't have the twitchy hand/mouse movement. At 240fps is like candy for my eyes. Thank you.
 

Men_in_Boxes

Snake Oil Salesman
What ruined FPS?

Aim down sights in action games because it "is more realistic". Highly lethal weapons, leading to repetitive see enemy, dead enemy gameplay. Encroachment of anti-fun infantry sim nerds in the genre, who lose their cool if a gun reload animation is 1% inaccurate.
Highly linear corridor amusement park ride level design.
Increasingly "in your face" visual elements like forced low FOV with huge on-screen guns, VFX effect overload and elaborate hand-to-hand kill animations. Camera jerking around like everyone is a character in the exorcist.
PvP purists, who think that it is a waste of budget to have any sort of single player campaign.

Aim down sights primary goal is to get the attacker to stop moving for a moment in time. It's supposed to slow down the pace of play.

Developers choose how lethal hip shooting is vs how lethal aim down sights is.

As for PvP puritsts who think single player is a waste of budget...they're damn right.
 

JCK75

Member
FPS are dying to me and IMO this is why

When I think of the shooters that just grabbed me and held me for years I think of TFC, Counter-Strike, TF2, etc
Shooters that came out with a healthy number of maps, user run servers and tools for users to make new maps...the amount of content is unlimited.

Console shooters that I gave a shit about were few and far between but when they did come out they offered the ability to get 4 buddies together with some beers and have a blast fragging each other.

Today they have tried to merge the two worlds, dumbing down the PC side, beefing up aim assist on the console side.. not supporting 4 player splitscreen and no means of adding user made content..

to make up for this lack of content they either do free to play with tons of stupid microtransactions or they sell you seasons..
it makes sense they need to make money to keep putting out content, but at the same time this model sucks.

I honestly don't know how we get back
 

Guilty_AI

Member
What ruined FPS?

Aim down sights in action games because it "is more realistic". Highly lethal weapons, leading to repetitive see enemy, dead enemy gameplay. Encroachment of anti-fun infantry sim nerds in the genre, who lose their cool if a gun reload animation is 1% inaccurate.
Highly linear corridor amusement park ride level design.
Increasingly "in your face" visual elements like forced low FOV with huge on-screen guns, VFX effect overload and elaborate hand-to-hand kill animations. Camera jerking around like everyone is a character in the exorcist.
PvP purists, who think that it is a waste of budget to have any sort of single player campaign.
What saved it?

Incredibly high amount of independent and AA FPS coming out in the last few years, either inspired by 90s/early 2000s titles or with their own takes on the genre.
 

rodrigolfp

Haptic Gamepads 4 Life
It's DOOM. It has no vertical aim and most people prefer it this way. It relies on auto aim for enemies in different heights. It doesn't have headshots or anything that needs precision. It's more about movement, target priority and positioning and less about aim precision. It's single player. It plays great with a gamepad, enough for me to be able to beat most megawads in Ultra Violence.

And no, i'm not going to lay on my bed with a KB/Mouse. Precision aiming with a kb/mouse has it's place and if i need it i'll sit on my desk. But when i just want to relax and be comfortable and lazy, i prefer the gamepad. Much better feel and smoother movement since it doesn't have the twitchy hand/mouse movement. At 240fps is like candy for my eyes. Thank you.
What part of modding you don't understand? What is the point/fun in having auto aim helping me?

Your loss.
 

nkarafo

Member
What part of modding you don't understand? What is the point/fun in having auto aim helping me?

Your loss.

Nobody mods DOOM to remove it's auto aim.

You obviously never played this game and have no idea what you are talking about. You don't need to win this argument pal.
 

Sub_Level

wants to fuck an Asian grill.
I’m happy with the state of FPS. I play cod after work and fire up Doom/Half Life mods ocasssionally. I also have an endless supply of new boomer shooters I haven’t even tried yet like Dusk.

Halo and Battlefield fans are the only ones who have it rotten these days. I feel like everyone else is content with their offerings.
 

Wildebeest

Member
Aim down sights primary goal is to get the attacker to stop moving for a moment in time. It's supposed to slow down the pace of play.

Developers choose how lethal hip shooting is vs how lethal aim down sights is.

As for PvP puritsts who think single player is a waste of budget...they're damn right.
How does having someone stand still with a very restricted fov make pace of gameplay slower? It doesn't, it accelerates it as you have to microsecond time how long you can risk aiming, and it increases overall lethality as people have less map awareness and defensive options.

FPS that are not action games work perfectly well with just having movement degrade accuracy. The idea that you can, in real life, get perfect accuracy with a sniper by using magic "quickscope" and still walk around and even jump while doing it is some nonsense. All these "realism" games that have you controlling full auto machinegun fire using magic ads and landing every shot with laser accuracy is nonsense. It is just a crappy convention that we are stuck with, makes games no better, and makes no sense.

Going PvP only, for a lot of these games, is just straight up abandoning your roots and leaving people wondering why they care about an IP in the first place.
 

nkarafo

Member

You do know i'm talking about the original DOOM engine game, do you? From 1993? Not the 2016 DOOM or Eternal.

I've been in the DOOM modding community for years. Played almost every good megawad that exists. And i never heard anyone modding the game to be about more precise aiming, headshots, etc. Again, it's not what the game is about.

Sure you can play with a mouse if you want and that allows for faster turning left/right and better control and timing. But even then it's not about aiming the enemy between it's eyes to kill it instantly. DOOM never worked this way. The best players don't even enable vertical aiming, for the game to be more authentic. It's about the maps and all the things i mentioned in my previous post, it's not about competition with other players, fragging, headshots, etc.
 
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Guilty_AI

Member
Nobody mods DOOM to remove it's auto aim.

You obviously never played this game and have no idea what you are talking about. You don't need to win this argument pal.
You can remove autoaim in the settings of ZDoom&GZDoom... both of which count as modding i guess.
 
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