There is still a campaign but it is a multiplayer affair and it needs to be completed in order to unlock everything. Honestly, it kind of sucks for a lot of reasons. As Kotaku pointed out, you can finish the campaign without having ever fired a shot. It's really just a set of multiplayer matches that have to run their course. Secondly, I'm not impressed with the story at all. People yell stuff at you, there is the odd interesting idea but it doesn't impact what you are doing at all in terms of gameplay. The other factor with this is that, paying attention to the story will wind you up shot in the head; it is too fast-paced to stop and smell the CGI. Finally, it's really hard to find a match, especially for the particular campaign mission you are up to. The campaign seems to be amongst the worst for this but as you'll find out, matchmaking in general is a big issue.
Matchmaking is almost totally automatic, which could be nice but it is riddled with troublesome issues. You can choose which data centre to use, whether that be Australian, US, etc. and which type of match you want to play but you can't see a list of servers to choose from. Titanfall offers 5 game modes at the moment but if you want to login and get to a match straight away you'll just be playing Attrition. It's so hard to find a match of anything else except for maybe the Variety Pack mode. Titanfall does not support cross-platform play, which I think really contributes to the server desolation. I thought Xbone and PC players would be able to link up, at the very least. Also there is no autobalance of any kind, you will not even be swapped to the other team if they have several less players, let alone if you/they are kicking arse. It's incredibly rare to find a match that approaches an approximation of even.
Titanfall Makes up for all of this by having awesome gameplay. It's frantic and the rewards come thick and fast. Whether it be a new weapon or you've just received a burn card, something is always causing you to check your build. The burn cards are a cool idea, they give you a little boost such as a more powerful version of your gun but once you die it's gone. A lot of thought went into making this game accessible to a range of players. The clever thing about it is by adding those dumb AI minions into the mix even poor FPS players like myself can build up confidence. You kill a couple of those and then you are in the swing of things. I have done stuff in this game I never thought I would be capable of in a FPS, going on kill-streaks, actually detonating a satchel charge on time, the list goes on. However I think some fudging does go into this. It seems easier to kill someone in this game then in other titles. The hit-boxes seem to be larger than average and I swear I have killed people when technically they should have been around a corner. It certainly happens a lot to me in the replays. This is not to say there is no skill in it, there is a lot to learn from good parkour technique, when to activate your special abilities and of course, being accurate enough to get a headshot.
Respawn Entertainment have announced they are working on matchmaking and perhaps in time it will be a lot better. There is also a promise of some free DLC as well. Either way, Titanfall is a great game, that just has a few niggling issues. As long as you are willing to focus on playing the Attrition mode, (face it, it's the best anyway) you'll never have to worry about getting into a match quickly but then what is the point of all these other modes? Still, if you want a shooter to play with your friends who aren't the best at them, this could be a way to encourage them to join you. In that sense Titanfall really achieves it's purpose. Go buy it and join a non-Attrition mode, maybe I'll see you waiting in the lobby... 8.4/10.
