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LoadoutLoadout is a third person, online, multi-player only shooter that is so over the top it doesn't even attempt to justify its madness with a storyline. Instead you are given three highly customizable characters to pick from, a weapon crafting system so extensive that it is almost a game in itself and then let loose to wreak havoc on your fellow players. The best part of it all is that the game is completely free to play.
Usually when I hear the words "Free to Play" the first thing that springs to mind is "Pay to Win" but thankfully this is not the case with Loadout. While you can purchase in-game currency in the form of "Spacebux" using real cash, it is only used to purchase cosmetic items for your characters. The problem is that these items are just so darn funny you might be tempted to drop a few dollars in order to make your character look as wacky as the other players you encounter. The gameplay in Loadout is team based only which isn't really my favorite genre but after playing Loadout I was immediately hooked. Team sizes are kept small and respawns are fast so each match is a hectic blur of bullets, blood and mayhem. To ease you into the action there is a surprisingly fun co-op mode where you and a few other human players can take on some bots to learn the ropes. Once you have mastered the basics you can jump in at the deep end and take on other players for a real challenge. The five game modes on offer include Blitz which is a fast paced battle for control points, Death Snatch where you not only have to kill your opponent but also pick up the Blutonium vials they drop to score before one of their team mates snatches it first and denies you the point and Jackhammer which is capture the flag but with a powerful melee weapon instead of a flag. There is also Annihilation which combines the gameplay of Jackhammer, Blitz and Death Snatch but one of my favorite modes is Extraction which involves rotating collectors on each team running around gathering Blutonium and depositing it in bins for points. All five modes offer a lot of fun and had me hooked for hours. In fact, if Edge of Reality didn't run into some server problems due to the overwhelming demand to play the game I might not even have had time to do this review! The most important aspect of an online shooter is obviously the guns and Loadout delivers in spades. Through the "Weaponcraft" system you can fully customize your arsenal and everything from the name to the payload is up to you. The individual components such as the stock, scope, barrel, trigger and magazine determines what type of weapon it is and also what the class of your character is. If you want to play as a medic simply select a loadout that includes a weapon that heals other players or focus on accuracy and range if you want to be a sniper. It is a brilliant system with the potential for some serious weaponry and none of the crafting aspects are locked off behind a paywall. This doesn't mean that upgrading and customizing your weapon is free but instead of Spacebux you use "Blutes" which is the currency earned simply from playing in matches. Each modification affects the damage, range, rate of fire, reload time, clip size, stability and other factors which makes crafting the perfect weapon a lot of fun. The individual components of your weapon also levels up through use which encourages you to make full use of your arsenal. Of course, it is also possible to screw up and build a weapon that is semi worthless so take your creation to the gun range first to ensure it is as powerful as you expect. The cartoonish visuals with the wacky characters are obviously going to draw comparisons with Team Fortress 2 but Edge of Reality has taken things to a whole new level. Loadout is a game that relishes in being outrageous so it is not uncommon to see players running around with blood spurting everywhere or so full of holes that you can see right through them. The graphics are very colorful but it is the brilliant animations that steal the show. The taunts are hilarious and range from Gangnam style dancing to tea-bagging so there is something for everyone, providing you are willing to pay for the honor. Cosmetics include hats, shirts, pants, belts and hair styles so while three characters might not sound like much you can completely alter their appearance using your Spacebux. The characters are all caricatures with Axl looking like a cross between Rambo and Machete while T-Bone is basically Mr T. The less said about Helga the better though. While the game contains gore, profanity and even some nudity you can disable these from the options menu and just focus on the action. As I've mentioned before, the pace of the game is very fast but thankfully the controls are up to the task. You can play with a controller but the good old keyboard and mouse combo still works the best. Apart from running around like cheetahs with their tails on fire, characters can also jump and perform rolls. You can even pull of advance moves like ramp jumps and power rolls with some practice. The audio is pretty good with weapons that sound like they pack a punch and all the usual screaming and shouting you would expect from an online shooter. Some of the sound clips that play when you perform a taunt are also horribly catchy so expect to have a few lodge themselves in your head after extended play sessions. As a free to play title there really isn't much that I can fault about Loadout and this is coming from a person that usually avoids the genre and hasn't touched Team Fortress 2 in ages. What I would like to see is a few more arenas as the ones that are on offer now are good but I can see myself becoming tired of them after a while. I did encounter a few matches where players were oblivious to the objectives and just ran around shooting everything that moves but I guess that is to be expected for the launch period of a Free to Play title. There were also some launch hiccups due to the demand for the game but the developers impressed me with how quickly they worked to set up new servers. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with Loadout and can heartily recommend it to players that crave some online shooter action. The game is extremely addictive and certainly makes quite an impression with it's over the top style. If the developers can keep adding to what is a very solid foundation I foresee a bright future for Loadout. The game is Free to Play so don't take my word for it and jump right in to experience the mayhem for yourself. Just do yourself a favor and avert your eyes when you see someone playing as Helga preparing perform her "Sumo Twerk" taunt!
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System Requirements
TAGS: Weaponcrafting, Free To Play, Customization, Axl, T-Bone, Helga
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