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Lost Planet 2 Multiplayer Demo Impressions
Jason Trent, Associate Writer
April 6, 2010
Lost Planet 2 releases on May 11, 2010, and as someone who enjoyed the first game, I pre-ordered the sequel without too much thought. As a bonus for pre-ordering the game, I received a code to play the multiplayer demo for a little bit of pre-release fun. The point of a demo is to make those curious about a game, or already excited for a game, eager to drop the cash to pick up the full retail version of the title. To do this, it's in a developer's best interest to offer a pretty good sampling of what to expect during your time spent in their world. Unfortunately, multiplayer, at least the multiplayer that doesn't include co-operative campaign play, was a pretty boring and oftentimes frustrating experience. Is this demo worth spending your time on?
The appeal of Lost Planet isn't really the player vs player aspect of things. I played the multiplayer in the first game a bit, and although there were some fun moments, overall I found that my experience didn't really hold up to other third person shooters. The real fun was found in the game's campaign. The sheer size of the environments and enemies was stunning then, and is still very enjoyable today. When I first saw clips of Lost Planet 2, I was left with very similar impressions as I had with the first game. As it's a sequel, that makes sense and all. We generally don't expect to find a completely new experience within a sequel. Instead, we look for refinement. That's what I expected to find in Lost Planet 2, and as far as the first co-op demo was concerned, it seems to have succeeded. Sadly, I can't really say the same for the multi-player demo.
The demo includes two game types. The first is standard deathmatch fare, and the second, a king-of-the-hill style mode where your goal is to capture and hole beacons, so there isn't anything too unique to speak of. One of the biggest mechanics in the Lost Planet series is the grappling hook. Using this handy tool, you can aim to a building or edge above you, launch the hook, then be pulled to your destination. This is something that other games have since adopted and that seem to use better. The first problem is that the range of your grappling hook seems very short. You can't really use it to get very far or very high from your current location. Having been playing Just Cause 2, it's a very jarring difference that seems to make something that could really be cool and fun, kind of useless. The second problem is that the grappling hook is overly selective as to what you can and cannot grapple to. Time after time I'd try to attach myself to a piece of scenery like the ground or a rock, and no matter how close I was, nothing happened. This could have been used as a way to dodge attacks (there is no quick way to dodge other than your grappling hook), but it isn't used to its potential. It's comes off clumsy and not well thought out.
The issues with the grappling hook is just one of the many trending problems with movement in the game. So you have yourself a way that, in theory, should make getting from location to location quick and painless, but doesn't. Because this doesn't work the way it should, you'll discover that you'll need to climb ladders and gratings to reach platforms above the ground. I suppose this wouldn't be too bad if climbing was a quick and effortless affair, but it's painfully slow, and the vast majority of times I'd try to climb several stories to get to the next level of a building or platform, I'd be killed before getting very far. It's terribly irritating, and discourages players from exploring the maps as they need to.
One thing that really seemed to come in handy was the option to quick turn. Using the bumpers (or L1 and R1 on the PlayStation 3), you can make quick 90 degree turns in either direction to locate your targets. It's something that I'd really like to see done in more third person shooters. One of the biggest issues with this genre is that when being attacked from behind, it can take way too long to turn around. That's not a problem in Lost Planet 2. You can turn as fast as your reflexes will allow.
Maybe if Capcom had released their demos for this game in the opposite order, I would have been a little more forgiving. Wouldn't it have made more sense to start with the weaker demo, then release the better demo? I guess it didn't to Capcom. If you're interested in trying Lost Planet 2, you might want to skip this one, and focus on the cooperative demo released last year. I'm sure the campaign is going to be great, and I'm very excited to experience it in cooperation with a friend, but deathmatch and king-of-the-hill don't really use the series' strengths. Pass on this one.
