TL;DR: I like Brink.
Dear Splash Damage,
I’ve finally been able to spend some quality time with Brink this weekend and after waiting for the game for a couple of years, I just wanted to tell you that my friends and I are having a freakin’ blast playing Brink. We have played together since W:ET, but most of us also played RTCW separately. I personally became an SD fan with the RTCW game of the year map pack. Since then, your company has only impressed me with its dedication to its customers. I reference:
A) The final patches you helped release for W:ET when the ETPro team needed your help even though you didn’t have to support the game
B) The release of the ETQW 1.5 patch (QA paid for by SD-No QA contract with Activision iirc) and ETQW SDK wiki
C) Your reasonably open communication on the forums.
With Brink, I really enjoy:
-The story of the Ark that gets played between the maps.
-The general feel of the weapons and shooting in general. The weapons are well balanced because they are fairly similar. This was one of the things I loved about ET.
-Didn’t have to grind to unlock weapons. Leveling is fairly easy and a level 1 character has good odds against a level 20 character due to team buffs and weapon choices.
-The parkour movement. It’s not circle strafe jumping, but it adds a fun, rewarding dynamic.
-I think the sounds of the weapons are really well done.
-Overtime! We went into overtime for the first time last night and getting that last second win made for much cheering on voice comms.
-Love the artwork on the maps. TBH, I think you have great artists working there.
-Maps sizes, weapons, and x>2 headshot kills have given a return to more 1v1 and 1v2 battles. Good players really shine. I just glimmer a little.
-The balance between the body types (although I haven’t played Heavy much). It seems all body types have pros/cons and one needs to learn when to use which class.
-I’ve played >15 hours and I still have a lot to learn about the game, weapons, maps, cvars, and body types.
-Objective gameplay.
Thanks again for the game. I am looking forward to the patches.
Ender/Chris
PS: I am definitely biased, but I think you got a little screwed with some of the reviews. One read like the journalist rage quit and then wrote the review like an internet rant. I don’t understand why people had no trouble with objective gametypes in 2001 but in 2011 it’s really complicated. I’m just baffled.
Let the flaming begin below.