Will this series ever rise again?
I sure fucking hope so. Titanfall was the shit. I ALMOST regrettably owned an Xbox One. I say “almost regrettably” if it weren’t for this one game. The original Titanfall, obviously (that’s what the fucking article is about). Halo 5 hurt me and fans around the world and was about as enjoyable as feeding your arm into a dry blender. Titanfall was honestly the only game on the system I spent significant time with, as it was an Xbox-One exclusive. I don’t know if it was the wall-running, the mech drops, or the chaotic multiplayer that felt like someone took Call of Duty, cracked it out on Monster Energy, and gave it jetpacks – but that game scratched some deep, primal dopamine itch in my ADHD-riddled, caffeine-addled brain. It was one of those rare games where I went full goblin mode: I made it my mission to hit the highest prestige – or whatever they called it, “Generation” or “Tier,” whatever…. I didn’t even care about unlocks or cosmetics or whatever. It was just pure, unfiltered gameplay that shot adrenaline straight into my brainstem. And then… I did it. Max rank. Final tier. The mountain had been climbed. I stood atop it, a victorious, twitchy god… and immediately shut the game off and never looked back. Like a soldier walking off the battlefield in slow motion, explosions behind me, coffee cup still steaming in my hand. It was kind of like in South Park when Stan and Kyle reached 1million points in Guitar Hero and then the game just insults them for their efforts. Where the hell else am I supposed to go from here?
…And then Titanfall 2 showed up years later – finally free from Xbox exclusivity, and wisely making its debut on the far superior PlayStation 4. The bad news? EA made the galaxy-brain decision to send it out like a promising rookie tagged on second base while the big-league shooter jocks were already stepping up to the plate. Battlefield 1 was on deck, swinging for the fences with its World War I hype train. Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare was next in line, still raking in fans with its annual money machine. And just as Titanfall 2 was about to make a run for it, Overwatch – the rich new kid with a Blizzard trust fund and a perfect smile – rolled into town and started hosting the most popular party on the block. Despite being an absolute banger of a game – tight mechanics, a campaign that speedrunners still drool over, and the smoothest mech combat in the business – Titanfall 2 couldn’t have possibly released at a worse fucking time.
In retrospect, Titanfall 2 is a great shooter – easily one of the best from the last console generation. But man… the timing of its release was just brutal. And while it’s undeniably a more polished and complete package than the first game, I still found myself less invested in the online. I don’t know exactly why, but something about the leveling system didn’t hit the same. Maybe it was the way progression felt less immediate or satisfying. I just remember feeling irked in a way that made me miss the original’s more raw, arcade-like grind. The first game was just peak adrenaline, plain and simple. That said, Titanfall 2 is rightfully lauded for its campaign, which, surprisingly, is very fucking good. Like, way better than it had any right to be. That alone makes it worth checking out today. I say “surprisingly” because the original Titanfall made the ballsy choice to ship with no single-player mode at all. Just pure multiplayer mayhem. And while it worked back then, I usually roll my eyes when newer franchises try that stunt. Luckily, Respawn made up for it big time with Titanfall 2’s story mode, and “Effect and Cause” deserves to be immortalized in the FPS hall of fame.
All that being said, I’d still love to see Respawn actually respawn the series and throw their talent behind a proper Titanfall 3. I’m interested. I know plenty of other people are too. There’s a whole silent army of us out here just waiting to jack back into a Titan and ride that mech-fueled high one more time. But let’s be real – they’re probably not gonna bother, because Apex Legends, their shiny battle royale cash cow, is still churning out skins and Twitch clips by the truckload. And yeah, sure… Apex is fine. It’s tight, it’s polished, it’s got ping systems and fast movement and all the buzzwords. But come on – it’s not Titanfall! It’s like Respawn took the steak, threw it out, and served us the sizzle. No wall-running, no Titans, no wild campaign twists – just a drip-feed of seasonal content and a big ol’ live service leash. Let’s be honest with ourselves here: Apex is the Diet Titanfall you told yourself you liked. It’s got the same bones, but none of the soul. I’ve seen some wild things happen in this industry that I’d NEVER have predicted would come to be; but here we are getting a fucking Croc Remaster that literally NOBODY asked for. So, that being said… anything is possible in the gaming world.
Give us a third game, Respawn. Give us the mech ballet back. The people are ready. Do it. Do it NOW!
Standby for Titanfall 3… pretty plz,
Mikhail
Verdict:
Titanfall: 9/10
Titanfall 2: 9/10