Respawn Entertainment have confirmed that the next generation shooter for the PC, Xbox One and Xbox 360 will indeed feature a maximum limit of 12 players in a 6v6 setting. This is all started off (as most things tend to) on Twitter.
“6v6 is max player count, Turned out to be the best balance with AI for us,” Said the Respawn chief Vince Zampella tweeted “It is incredibly fun, we did a lot if testing. It is all about what we found most fun,” then, shortly after “A 6v6 game can be a crazy experience, very fun.” And: “We had it higher at points in testing, this felt best.”
As usual, things got quickly out of hand as the internet jumped on the tweet. One of posters over at Neogaf posted these tweets, and immediately there was a huge thread which sprung forth. Neogaf certainly isn’t the only website where these discussions are happening, but the Producer of Titanfall, Drew McCoy decided to jump in to calm fears.
Lots of armchair game designing going on in here,” he wrote. “I’d suggest playing before judging a something as insignificant as a number in a vacuum.
“Vince is right – we tried a huge amount of playercounts (all the way down to 1v1 and up quite high) and designed the maps, gameplay mechanics, and entire experience around which played best. If anyone wants to chase the numbers game, perhaps we’re not the experience they’re after? I dunno.
“And FYI, for amount of stuff happening at once in a map you’ll be hard pressed to find a game that keeps the action higher. I literally have to stop playing every few rounds because my heart just can’t take it some times. Remember, you can get out of your Titan and let it roam on AI mode – meaning there can be 12 Pilots wallrunning around, 12 Titans stomping below, and dozens of AI doing their thing.”
“The AI in Titanfall are not replacements for human players. Our playercount is not 6v6 because of AI – AI play their own role in the game and are a different class of character in the game.
“Can’t wait! Only a couple months until speculative threads like this are gone and people are actually talking about their experiences with the game. Its truly fun stuff, and I hope everyone at least gives it a try.”
The basic worry that many have is that the Xbox One isn’t capable of running more players, and the counter argument is that the game simply is best at the 6v6 player setting.
Titanfall will see a march release on the PC, Xbox One and Xbox 360.
