At a two-day review event in perpetually sunny Hollywood, California, Respawn Entertainment managed to rope their Producer away from his latest creation just long enough to talk all things Titanfall 2. So just another day for him, then! Read through our full interview below and you might just learn a thing or two about the processes involved with creating a highly-anticipated sequel.
PlayStation LifeStyle: You announced that all maps and modes would be free post-launch. So does that mean weapons, Titans, etc., will be paid DLC?
Drew McCoy, Producer: Anything that affects game balance, anything functional, is free. Maps, modes, weapons, anything like that is free. We learned an obvious lesson, but it’s extremely apparent on the last [Titanfall], that when you sell things like maps, you segregate the playerbase in a very unhealthy way. Even though it’s obviously going to leave money on the table, when you buy them, it’s much better for the health of the game and the community to not charge for them.
PSLS: Speaking of the previous game, what lessons did you learn from that which you have applied here?
Drew: Oh my God, for multiplayer, specifically, trying to expose ways to get better. The first game was extremely skill-based, but a lot of people felt it was shallow, because we didn’t do a good job of having you feel like you could get better at it. So we tried really hard in many ways to [let people say] “oh, I can keep going on this weapon,” or ability or Titan, and keep getting better at it.
PSLS: How long would you say it takes to unlock everything for even a single weapon?
Drew: It’s not too bad, actually. We don’t want the game to feel like a grind. If you focus on one thing, it’s not going to take you forever. The fun part about Titanfall is that so much of what’s in it changes the way you play so dramatically. You get a very different experience when you start to play with other stuff. We want people to try and explore other weapons, abilities of Titan, taste all the “flavors of ice cream” that we’ve made. You go to [Baskin Robbins], we want them all to be things that people find delicious.
PSLS: And they are delicious! How long would it take to get to player level 50?
Drew: It depends. We’ve done some playtests internally, we ascribe to the philosophy that it shouldn’t take you forever. I think, the last time I did it, it was maybe a day’s worth, 24 hours of playtime, 24-30 hours. Obviously, if you’re not very good, it’ll take you longer. If you try to min-max it, you can do it much quicker. But then you get the regenerations, different challenges, and try and get all the cosmetics and unlocks. There’s plenty there to keep you occupied for a long time.
PSLS: Angel City has been announced as the first DLC map this coming December. What sort of time table do you guys have for other DLC?
Drew: I don’t think we’ve talked about it yet. With multiplayer games now, you kind of have to constantly have a drip-feed of things. You can’t wait five months and do a big drop, so we are planning on fairly regular [releases]. We’ll keep people engaged.
PSLS: What would you say you guys have to compete with other games, like Battlefield 1 and Infinite Warfare this holiday in terms of retaining your player base?
Drew: I feel like Titanfall offers ways for you to play the game [that are] different than any other game, which gives you the opportunity to master things in more ways than one. Case in point, the first game I’m watching, Titanfall players who’ve stuck with the game, they’re doing things that I couldn’t have even dreamt of! But you go watch players of other games, who’ve been out for two or three years, and they’re doing the same things. Maybe they’re chasing a carrot, and making a bar fill up, and leveling up more, but the actual mechanics of their experience, they’re not doing anything different. So I think that’s where our strength lies, it’s a game that lets you play in a bajillion different ways.
PSLS: Switching gears a little bit to single-player. How happy are you with the final product?
Drew: I think it’s great! When we started on it, I didn’t know if it was going to be possible to translate Titanfall mechanics into a single-player game. It’s a game that wants you to feel like you are in control, more than first-person shooters give you control. We fought against it for a while, while prototyping stuff. But the end result is, I think, a really compelling story that’s not too complicated, with just an awesome array of mechanics on display. You’re doing something different on every level, and it’s really fun to play! I think the guys did an amazing job with it.
PSLS: One thing we did notice was the absence of the grappling hook in single-player. Is that a case of not finding a way to use it in a way that made sense?
Drew: The problem with the grappling hook is that, as great as it is, it would have broken everything! We tried.
PSLS: How satisfied are you with Titanfall 2’s release date? Was EA the decision maker with that, or did you guys have a say in that?
Drew: I actually don’t know where the decision came from. I just know it was locked in a long time ago and there was no changing it. I’m not really worried about it. We tried not to [worry] really…When you care about what other games are doing, when they’re releasing [, you worry]. At the end of the day, we’re releasing a game that we’re happy with, and we enjoy playing, that we’re proud of. As long as we’re doing that, I think we’re gonna find an audience. It doesn’t really matter when it comes out. A good game gets noticed.
PSLS: Do you have any projections sales-wise?
Drew: I wouldn’t know. That’s above me!
PSLS: Any plans for single-player DLC?
Drew: Not currently that I’m aware of. DLC’s always the type of thing that is really hard to make in a vacuum. You have to listen to your fanbase.
PSLS: What would you say is the best way for fans to give feedback?
Drew: We are voracious readers of Twitter, and Reddit. We have our own forums. Pretty much, if you talk about it, we’ll be hearing it.
PSLS: How has reception been with Networks into and after the beta?
Drew: It was actually really interesting. We had a lot of data coming out of the tech test about Networks, and they were a huge success, in my opinion. The goal of Networks is to give people a way to play the game in a more social way. Our theory is, you’re going to end up playing the game more. You’re going to have more fun, you’re going to want to come back to it. The data showed that people who joined other networks were more engaged with the game. They played more matches, they played longer, the came back for more days. It wasn’t just by a small percentage; it was like 800% or something increase in their engagement with the game if they were in anything other than the default Network. It was really good. We had some bugs with it, which we knew, because it was a really early pre-alpha build, but it does some really cool stuff to help people play the game and find like-minded players. One of the things I like about it, is that it hopefully gives people a reason to engage with the game, not necessarily straight from a player’s perspective, but as someone who runs a Network. So, a website, or a streamer on Twitch or something will have a reason to send messages, engaging with their audience even if they’re not playing the game, like “Hey, we’re going to be doing this on Thursday night, Titanfall Thursdays,” and the message goes out and everyone sees it, and even if they’re not active in that Network right now, as long as they’re a member of it, they’ll see it in their inbox. It gives you yet another platform to be speaking to your user base.
PSLS: Have you sat down through the whole single-player in one go?
Drew: Oh, dozens of times.
PSLS: What would you say is something you hope people take away from the campaign?
Drew: I just hope people can appreciate the amount of just, fun that we’re trying to let them have. It’s easy to kind of fall back into old habits in games, where you just kind of walk through, shoot guys, see the next piece of content…But if you really play with it, this game lets you have fun. Jump around, run on walls, you know, have fun with the AI, play on a harder difficulty, give yourself a challenge. It’s still a fun game for me to play through because of that ability. This is not a game where we’ve preordained your path down a hallway and explosions go off. This is a game for you to play with. It’s a toy!
PSLS: What’s your favorite loadout in multiplayer?
Drew: Well this weekend, I’ve been playing a lot! I’ve been using the Volt a decent amount (it’s an SMG). I’m all about going fast, so I use stim on my Pilot. I also like to roll with the arc grenade, since it slows down my enemies. So I’ll see ‘em, chuck an arc grenade, stim, go for a kill and blast them. For Titans, it’s gotta be Northstar. Northstar is awesome!
PSLS: What’s next for you?
Drew: Patches and DLC! No rest for the weary!
We would like to thank Respawn Entertainment and Drew McCoy for taking time out of their busy schedules to speak with PlayStation LifeStyle. Titanfall 2 is out now for the PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Windows. Check out our review!
Titanfall 2 info dump
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Titanfall 2 - Everything You Need to Know
Wheels up, rock and roll!
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What is Titanfall 2?
It’s a visceral, futuristic shooter and the sequel to the 2014 breakout. Titanfall 2 is on course to deploy across PS4, Xbox One and PC and, for the first time in the series, comes packing a fully-fledged single-player campaign. Speaking of which…
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A Fully-Fledged Campaign
It is, without question, one of the major selling points going into the sequel's release. Having paid close attention to feedback from the original Titanfall, Respawn's sophomore effort will come packing a fully-fledged single-player mode. It was also a "pretty easy" decision to make, according to the dev.
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Jack Cooper and BT-7274
Though it may not be as catchy as, say, R2-D2, BT-7274 is the name of your towering ally in the Titanfall 2 story mode. And you're both in for quite the journey.
“When an investigation of a research facility on the IMC controlled planet of Typhon goes wrong, Jack and BT are thrown off course and behind enemy lines. With Lastimosa killed in action, there is no other option but for the two to link up and work together to finish the mission BT and Lastimosa started, whether Jack is ready for it or not.”
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An Entire Universe to Be Explored
The possibilities don't end there, however, with the studio teasing that there is an entire universe to be explored.
"We don’t have necessarily a trilogy in mind. You always hope when you create something that it’s embraced and that people will love it for generations to come…I hope we do more of it. We probably plan to do more–as you know, we have the mobile games as well. I would like to see the universe live on. I think it’s very expandable. I think there’s a lot we can do with it. There’s a lot of great ideas floating around here [at Respawn] that I would love to see come to life."
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Titan Guide
Meet the Titans of Respawn's sequel: Tone, Ronin, Legion, Northstar, Scorch and Ion.
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Pilot Boosts & Executions
Curious as to how the Pilot boosts and executions function in Titanfall 2? We've got you covered, along with an overview of the Titan progression system, too.
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In-Game Arsenal & Equipment
If you're looking to delve into the small print of Titanfall 2, you'll find all the pertinent information regarding the shooter's arsenal and equipment right here.
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Tips and Tricks
Thanks to helpful YouTuber TacticalBrit, we've also got a handy video guide to help you get started in Titanfall 2.
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EA Targeting Big Splash
Despite launching so close to Battlefield 1, Electronic Arts is bullish in its sale projection of Titanfall 2, claiming the shooter sequel can break past 10 million units.
"We’ve told people that typically a Battlefield title does about 15 million in a year. Our guidance is slightly under that. And we hope that that excitement builds and it will clearly go through that number. But for right now, it’s slightly under that number. And Titanfall did a little more than 7 million units last time. It was early in the cycle and one of the few titles out there. We think it’ll do more than that, but it’s probably closer to 10 million than it is to 15 million as built into our guidance. So closer to 9 million to 10 million on Titanfall and just under 15 million on Battlefield 1."
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Dual Tech Tests
Two months ago, Respawn hosted two separate tech tests for Titanfall 2 designed to both stress the multiplayer servers and gather feedback on modes, Titans and balancing. Our resident shooter expert Alex gave his two cents on the two-tier beta, though it wasn't without its faults.
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Maps Designed for Chaining Wall Runs
PSLS had the chance to speak to Respawn’s Art Director Joel Emslie and Chief Operating Officer Dusty Welch at TGS, where the latter touched base on the sequel's map design.
"I think first, people haven’t seen this, but we offer a wide variety of maps that accommodate different play styles. Some of them are very heavily focused in chaining wall runs together and playing that way. You’ll see those pretty soon. Maps we showed in the tech test were shown for different purposes — for testing out different gameplay elements."
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Attrition Mode Confirmed
Looks like Respawn is ready to bring back a fan-favorite mode in time for Titanfall 2. In the same interview with Emslie and Welch, the pair essentially confirmed that Attrition will be included will chatting to PSLS.
"Interesting question. I would answer this way: The tech test was a very small subset of the game. We’re fans of playing (the original) Titanfall and all of its game modes, and just think people will have to wait to see what we provide next. Is that enough of a hint? But we’re all ears. I know the right people. I know the right guy. I know a guy and I think he’s listening."
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Online Level Cap
Respawn has confirmed that, at the time of launch, online levels will be capped at 50 for Pilots.
"Pilot max level is 50. Max gen for Pilots is 10 at launch, and will likely increase as time goes on. Max gen for everything else is unlimited."
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All DLC Maps and Weapons Free
While we fully expect Respawn to roll out paid DLC in the form of cosmetic items, fans can take solace in the fact that all post-launch maps and weapons will be available at no extra cost.
"We’ll definitely be supporting Titanfall 2 post-launch, and I can confirm all maps and modes we deliver post-launch will be free. We’ll be talking more about post-launch plans closer to release so stay tuned for more info."
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First DLC Map is Angel City
Angel City has been confirmed as the first DLC map for Titanfall 2. Remember, those who pre-order the shooter will be able to access the arena three days early.
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Respawn Chats to PSLS
During an EA preview event, PSLS had the opportunity to quiz Respawn about all things Titanfall 2. Buried in that interview are tidbits relating to new game modes, Titans and why the studio is eager to extend a warm welcome to PS4 players.
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Multiplayer Preview
In the days leading up to our full review, our own Paulmichael Contreras dabbled with the multiplayer portion of TF2, writing that:
"With a healthy list of unlockable weapons, accessories, gadgets, abilities, and three customization slots for both your pilot and Titan, there is always a carrot dangling in front of you, and it will take easily a lot of hours to unlock absolutely everything that the game has to offer."
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Why We’re Excited
Still on the fence? Earlier this year, we listed down six reasons why we're excited for the arrival of Titanfall 2 on PS4.
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Vanguard Collector's Edition
The Vanguard Collector's Edition is one of two premium packages launching for Titanfall 2, and it even includes a 1:1 replica helmet. The second, the Marauder package, features a “highly detailed” bust of Jack Cooper, the shooter’s protagonist.
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No Titanfall 1 on PS4
You’d be forgiven for thinking that, two years after its debut on PC and Xbox platforms, Respawn would bring the original Titanfall over to PlayStation 4 as a neat primer for the oncoming sequel. Turns out that’s not the case, after studio head Vince Zampella told fans: “Don’t count on it.”
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PS4 Pro Support Confirmed
When the PS4 Pro touches down on November 10, Respawn will release a Titanfall 2 patch so that the shooter sequel supports Sony's mid-gen upgrade.
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Day-One Update
In what is surely one of the smallest day-one updates of the year, Respawn boss Vince Zampella has confirmed that the inaugural Titanfall 2 patch will weigh in at just 88MB.
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Our Final Verdict
Our final verdict is in and PSLS has not only given Titanfall 2 a stellar 9/10, but also the coveted Editor's Choice award too.