I played every map multiple times, cycled through some classes, and put in a few hours. I left an open mind this time so it would be fair.
Maps - Many modifications to maps some good some bad. Overall you have the same problems. Defense is spawning on the objective, with elevated advantage. Ultimately, it ends up being a battle of attrition into a stalemate for 8+ minutes. This is the same issue you had in Brink (if you can recall the Brink tournament where most teams did not even finish the maps because of stalemates.)
I mentioned it before, and I will again. The objectives need to be elevated with the defense spawning below it not on top of it. This gives the offense the opportunity to take out the defense, secure the objective, and then allow the defense to rally and take out the offense and diffuse the objective.
In general, the maps feel tight and confined however I am getting hit from multiple directions. It’s not as bad as it used to be, but it still feels like there are too many angles you can get hit from.
Gunplay - I’m not sure where to begin. People are complaining to TTK is too low others it’s too high. Honestly, I don’t care if it’s higher or lower. What I do care about is that if I land 3 headshots with an automatic the target needs to go down. Using Arty I was landing 2 headshots with a semi auto and targets were still alive with 20% ish HP. Pyro I was landing 4 headshots, thunder 5 or so headshots. Thunder was the only Merc that I felt the gun fired well and my bullets were landing where I was aiming.
Horizontal recoil is too high. Firing felt sporadic, unreliable, and it does feel that RNG plays a factor. I for me, that isn’t enjoyable in an FPS.
Spam - It is excessive… air strikes, artilitary strikes, cooked nades, flame nades, grenade launcher. Getting to where I needed to go with full HP is impossible. This system worked in RtCW because the maps were open. But nader can just sit back on an ammo depot and launch a volley of grenades down and alley completely shutting it down. Fragger cooks and tosses, I was getting double and triple kills constantly.
Ultimately, the game feels like a mess. The more and more I played the more and more I noticed things that should be changed instead of things that I enjoy. In the games current state, if you took out, Nader, Fragger, Pyro, and Vasseli I feel it would be considerably more enjoyable. If you put the 1st objective in Train under the bridge, widened it out a little bit and closed off the top towards the defenders side it would flow so much better.
It still feels like the game is in worse condition now, than it was two years ago. Chapel has no character and has quite possibly the worst last stage in a map I’ve ever experienced in a game. Camden’s first and last and last objective do not feel as well as they did when there was an extra objective after the chopper… Dome might have potential, it’s hard to tell with all the angles. I don’t mind it but that’s because it’s blockout and I can actually see the models of players. Waterloo last objective is worse now than it was before. Especially with a competent sniper. Canary Warf’s first objective is a nightmare.
I’m rambling now with all my gripes but I just don’t see this game being very successful after launch. You really need to reevaluate your maps, cut all the excess ideas you have, and make them more basic. You’re trying to make it so complex and intricate that it is not enjoyable. Actually not even playable on objective mode because it’s constantly a shutdown on the first stage.
