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> I personally found Fortnite to be a huge slog to play I think that applies to the entire battle royale genre. Unless you're good, it's 20+ minutes of downtim

by tomc1985 5y ago

> I personally found Fortnite to be a huge slog to play I think that applies to the entire battle royale genre. Unless you're good, it's 20+ minutes of downtime (between waiting for the map to set, load, and for you to complete your jump and start finding opponents) for at minimum a few seconds of gameplay with an opponent. It really pains me how so few people play arena shooters any more. They are brilliant, and you can get into (and stay in!) the thick of the action for the entire time you are logged on, save for the match ending and a new map loading.

smolder 5y ago
Splitgate is a recently popular free to play arena shooter which is basically a Halo knockoff but with the addition of portals like in the game Portal. It's worth checking out.
merlincorey 5y ago
You might enjoy the recently re-released and currently available "Late Game Arena" mode which you can start within 1 or 2 minutes and be back in the lobby for another round 1 or 2 minutes later. It starts you off the bus with a random but complete load out in a small circle with up to 60 (instead of 100) players.
- exdsq 5y ago
  Redownloading Apex for this now :D
bentcorner 5y ago
I play Apex Legends and I like that it's up to you for the kind of gaming experience you want. A buddy and I have played cautious slow looting gameplay, only 3rd partying near the end and have won many times. Sometimes we drop hot and fight as soon as possible. This is vastly less successful but makes for shorter, faster, more intense games. It helps that matchmaking and loading is generally quick so there isn't much "fluff" downtime.
- josefresco 5y ago
  Fortnite has this same element. Drop immediately off the bus into an area with lots of loot and you'll have instant action until you either die, or kill off every opponent in the area. Sure the movement in Apex Legends is faster and "feels" better to me, but the speed and complexity are actually cons for me as I don't have significant hours to invest whereas in Fortnite I can easily jump in once a week and compete.
baq 5y ago
a recent example of an absolutely great release which flopped hard, diabotical by 2GD and company. Q3 physics with some twists, very limited downtime, as hardcore as it gets, unfortunately no players...
kipchak 5y ago
I think one major cause of the decline of arena shooters is those who are very good can expect to never die versus new players, causing a very high Dropout rate. In Battle Royales like Fortnite where a player will eventually get the drop on a better player thanks to the element of surprise, picking off two players already fighting, or better gear. Titanfall 2 is a somewhat recent example of a way to balance around this, with the more fun to use guns (Kraber, Cold War, Mozambique) but less effective than a hitscan bullet hose like the CAR. This video is a good example of what I mean, giving good players something to do other than racking up kills with meta weapons. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5szruNvGT5c https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5szruNvGT5c Double Action: Boogaloo, an action movie themed source mod, takes this a step further with score being earned based largely on the weapon being used, which makes running around punching people more effective than say sitting in a corner with a powerful weapon.
- ineedasername 5y ago
  one major cause of the decline of arena shooters is those who are very good can expect to never die versus new players, causing a very high Dropout rate I remember there was an interesting twist on this when, IIRC, Fortnite changed its matching algorithm to more likely place better players together with each other. A bunch of those players were frustrate-to-outraged over the change. The reason that at least some gave? They were losing too much, and sometimes they don't want all the high adrenaline & stress of competitive matches and just want to relax and have it easy. (Yes, I know there have been more issues and complaints about the details of SBMM in Fortnite, this is just one of them) It struck me as a uniquely selfish view, as though the entire ecosystem should be structured to their own enjoyment rather than that of typical players. Like if Gary Kasporov wanted to play in the local High School chess leagues and threw a fit when he was told he couldn't.
  - smolder 5y ago
    Yes, you're right that it's selfish, but that's also fundamental to competition. Winners take the glory that losers don't get. People enjoy winning more than hard work. So do groups of people: sports teams, governments, LLCs, etc. Gamers often abuse the matchmaking systems to get this result themselves. They make "smurf" accounts in the competitive games they like, underrated for their skill level either from being new accounts or by intentional losing, because it let's them bully less skilled players and avoid being bullied themselves.

smolder 5y ago

Splitgate is a recently popular free to play arena shooter which is basically a Halo knockoff but with the addition of portals like in the game Portal. It's worth checking out.

merlincorey 5y ago

You might enjoy the recently re-released and currently available "Late Game Arena" mode which you can start within 1 or 2 minutes and be back in the lobby for another round 1 or 2 minutes later. It starts you off the bus with a random but complete load out in a small circle with up to 60 (instead of 100) players.

exdsq 5y ago
Redownloading Apex for this now :D

bentcorner 5y ago

I play Apex Legends and I like that it's up to you for the kind of gaming experience you want. A buddy and I have played cautious slow looting gameplay, only 3rd partying near the end and have won many times. Sometimes we drop hot and fight as soon as possible. This is vastly less successful but makes for shorter, faster, more intense games. It helps that matchmaking and loading is generally quick so there isn't much "fluff" downtime.

josefresco 5y ago
Fortnite has this same element. Drop immediately off the bus into an area with lots of loot and you'll have instant action until you either die, or kill off every opponent in the area. Sure the movement in Apex Legends is faster and "feels" better to me, but the speed and complexity are actually cons for me as I don't have significant hours to invest whereas in Fortnite I can easily jump in once a week and compete.

baq 5y ago

a recent example of an absolutely great release which flopped hard, diabotical by 2GD and company. Q3 physics with some twists, very limited downtime, as hardcore as it gets, unfortunately no players...

kipchak 5y ago

I think one major cause of the decline of arena shooters is those who are very good can expect to never die versus new players, causing a very high Dropout rate. In Battle Royales like Fortnite where a player will eventually get the drop on a better player thanks to the element of surprise, picking off two players already fighting, or better gear. Titanfall 2 is a somewhat recent example of a way to balance around this, with the more fun to use guns (Kraber, Cold War, Mozambique) but less effective than a hitscan bullet hose like the CAR. This video is a good example of what I mean, giving good players something to do other than racking up kills with meta weapons. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5szruNvGT5c https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5szruNvGT5c Double Action: Boogaloo, an action movie themed source mod, takes this a step further with score being earned based largely on the weapon being used, which makes running around punching people more effective than say sitting in a corner with a powerful weapon.

ineedasername 5y ago
one major cause of the decline of arena shooters is those who are very good can expect to never die versus new players, causing a very high Dropout rate I remember there was an interesting twist on this when, IIRC, Fortnite changed its matching algorithm to more likely place better players together with each other. A bunch of those players were frustrate-to-outraged over the change. The reason that at least some gave? They were losing too much, and sometimes they don't want all the high adrenaline & stress of competitive matches and just want to relax and have it easy. (Yes, I know there have been more issues and complaints about the details of SBMM in Fortnite, this is just one of them) It struck me as a uniquely selfish view, as though the entire ecosystem should be structured to their own enjoyment rather than that of typical players. Like if Gary Kasporov wanted to play in the local High School chess leagues and threw a fit when he was told he couldn't.
- smolder 5y ago
  Yes, you're right that it's selfish, but that's also fundamental to competition. Winners take the glory that losers don't get. People enjoy winning more than hard work. So do groups of people: sports teams, governments, LLCs, etc. Gamers often abuse the matchmaking systems to get this result themselves. They make "smurf" accounts in the competitive games they like, underrated for their skill level either from being new accounts or by intentional losing, because it let's them bully less skilled players and avoid being bullied themselves.