DUST 514: Another One Bites the ...?

Dust 514 from Icelandic developer, CCP Games is touted to be the future of MMOG because it is indirectly linked to the other MMOG, EVE Online. Not that I care, but that link could spell doom for Dust sooner than it settles.

Dust was suppose to be a game changer of sorts but even after it was launched, it became apparent that it is nothing more than cheap freemium masquerading as a MMOG.

Having played the mercenary events, I couldn't help but think how that would affect the Dust world as it was touted so by the incredible team behind EVE Online. This game was released online to PSN members in May, 2013. Powered by Unreal Engine, the graphics are surprisingly average, and if if kicking the dust was ever a protocol, then this feather weigh development should be at best forgotten.

Too Complex, Too Simple

Here is my beef on it. The damn game is just too complex to get to grips with and just too simple a shooter to qualify it as a deal breaker. Sure it is free to play but more importantly, it is Pay to Win.

First there are four in-game currencies, three of which are earned in-game while the fourth, Aurum, must be purchased on the PSN network. Each are disguised to mask the fact that you need it for a an upgrade. The skill point is an in-game currency as you can't upgrade stuff without it.

As a first person shooter, I am not sure what to make of it. It is not a bad game but then again, not entirely a good one either. The whole concept is based upon the old Capture the Flag scenario where you and your buddies go about capturing nodes or points in the game and hold them for as long as possible. Each Node represents a Weapon of Mass Destruction, where you mother-ship (MCC) gets pounded should the WMD nodes ever fall in the wrong hands.

The game play is simple enough but the massive detail where you need to get into for upgrades is boringly complex. You have to spend hours earning points to upgrade your skill level. This means playing the game over and over in the Academy. You can ante up those skill points and head on to the Mercenary events. The gameplay is the same except that you group yourselves into squads of 32 people.

The Academy events are lonely affairs. Online players can jump in at any time and take a side. Sometimes you won't find a soul online willing to play with you. Yes, you earn lots of points here for playing here but this is not where the real action is. The Mercenary and Corp Events is where you should be.

The is where the EVE Online linked-in comes into play. Whenever the folks at EVE decide to invade or attack a planet, they hire the DUST players to decide its fate. So most of the time, if there is no invasion planned for the day, the Event roster is empty! You can spend an eternity waiting for something to happen and sometimes, it just doesn't happen.

For the instant play Academy events, there is always a battle going on where you can just jump in. Problem is, these are ongoing events so any number of people can hop into the action. Academy events are training grounds for you to earn points to redeem for weapon and vehicle upgrades and skills. You get to familiarize yourself with the tools of war and cash in those points to boost your skill level.

In a freemium model, everything has a life span. So if you bought a spiffy Drop ship with your hard earned points, and end up crashing it, then you lose that ship forever and have to buy a new one. You need more money in the kitty and that said it is never a good thing.

The same applies to your armour, weapons and whatever you care to spend your skill points on. Get killed and everything resets. You have to buy a new suit because each time you die, a new 'clone' of yourself is spawned. But this does not mean that the dead guy you killed can be robbed off all his gear. This isn't the case. The upgrades self destruct along with him.

Controls Suck Big Time

Online Latency is one big factor to bad controls but my broadband latency was 30ms but the controls still sucked. Sprinting seems like jogging while walking is more like strolling. The weapons you have with you are limited and ammo can only be found at Supply Dumps. Melee is hopeless, so don't bother rushing up to an enemy to give them the chop. There is no crawling down to level ground and this means you become easy target.

One of the things I hate about these games is that everyone does the Kangaroo hop just to avoid getting hit. So it is not really realistic to expect a kill except in the case where these folks are piloting a tank or a flying vehicle where your Swarm Missiles can lock on.

Sadly, I didn't find the game play any more enriching than say the other MMOPG, which means if you didn't have body armour and kick ass weapons upgrades, chances are you'd be cannon fodder for more elite players. In other words, you're the extra who gets greased in an action movie. Sucks doesn't it?

Drop Suit Loadouts

You can custom your load out in any of the drop suits so this really depends on you. Weapons by far are the most difficult to equip as you may not have the points required to redeem those upgrades and end up using puny sized weapons with very little stopping power.

Each drop suit can also be equipped with shields and armour. Not bad but not great. Those with higher skill points can of course have more sturdy armour which gets very frustrating. Try shooting some expert and you'd see that his armour will hold up to your puny bullets. You could try lobbing a grenade at them but they move so fast, it's like trying to spit gum at a passing Ferrari.


Why Dust is a Let Down

 At the present moment, about 30K players get online during none peak but I can't even find a game outside of Academy training that does the gameplay any justice.

Your puny weapons are no match for those who have upped their armour or shields so there is little reason to expect a quick kill if you are playing outside the Academy. Within the Academy, you are pitch with zero skilled morons like yourself, so those with a higher skill rating and better armour can easily drop in to slaughter the lot of you just to earn more skill points.

Dust to Dust

There are interesting moments, where you get to overwhelm your opponent by sheer tactical wit and luck but those times are very rare indeed. As with many MMOG, your best bet at winning is to team up with other godless killers to ensure your win. Playing with complete strangers is more comedic and is ill advised. But the whole problem with this game is that the playing levels from the very beginning is not engaging enough to excite players to make them  part with their money.

There isn't enough variety in the game to keep you going even though the play area is large enough for you to fly drop ships and take the scenic route should you ever with to drive on land. The Night and Day environments are nice distractions but in the end, my only fear is that I would get bored waiting for a battle to happen. And that seems to happen all the time when I am online. Enough Said.

Lastly, there is nothing pioneering about this sort of gameplay. I would have appreciated some kind of tactical training where Academy levels are places you train to shoot and bomb robotic enemies to get a feel on what it is like in controlling your online altered ego. But instead, you have an extremely boring take on an online game. There is no chance of you meeting a like minded player who might form a team since everyone is assigned a side to fight for. There is also no waiting room where you can associate with one another. This only happens in the Mercenary events so you only get to associate with more experienced players. In all, Dust just doesn't go far enough to appease the appetite for MMOPG just by going Freemium, it offers nothing new in terms of gameplay and challenges you by having you wrestle with the gamepad controls. Sad to say I won't be playing this any more.

Dust 514 @ Sony PSN

Rating 

Categories: DUST, Freemium, MMOG, MMOPG, PSN