I've been playing the MAG beta since the beta first opened in August.... and I find myself totally addicted to this game. MAG is BIG. By BIG I mean there can be 256 players on a battlefield all at the same time, but Zipper has managed to create a sense of intimacy in these large scale battles by dividing gamers down into 8 person squads led by a squad leader. The squad leader can coordinate with the Platoon Leader (in charge of 4 squads) and the Platoon Leaders can coordinate with the OIC.

During the course of the beta there have been a fair number of changes. These changes will likely continue right up to the game's release, so I won't discuss specifics, but rather generalities that apply to the game. The Zipper devs have been amazingly responsive to the community. They communicate with the beta testers regularly and I expect that this community support will continue even after the official game release. The main point I will discuss is whether Zipper has succeeded in creating a game that is "accessible" and will it appeal to both the hardcore gamer who plays a game 24/7 as well as the more casual weekend gamer. The short answer is "yes".



"Everyone has better stuff than me!" This is what weekend gamers often fear most... that they will enter a game and be outclassed by other gamers with more health, better weapons, better "stuff". Yes, that is probably true to some extent with MAG, but even with the base level equipment gamers can deal damage and when equipped with their repair gun and a smoke grenade, they can be accumulating valuable points doing support work. With each rank acquired, people get a new point they can spend on a "skill" - the skills consist of perks, better weapons, support equipment, etc. No player can buy everything as the rank cap is smaller than the number of items you can acquire so players tend to "specialize" and go up a skill tree that increases skills in a specific area like support, sniping, assault. Yes, there are perks like "extra health" but this is a mere 20 point boost to the 100 point health rating and this choice means giving up other skill choices. The loadout design also restricts what can be used at any one point. You can have up to 5 loadouts that are restricted by a monetary cap assigned to each item... so each loadout means making further choices. The loadouts can be changed when spawning, so you can switch from an offensive loadout to a defensive loadout but having a slightly better gun with a 4X sight means giving up grenades or armour. It's all about choice... but new people are not as restricted as it may intially seem. The base loadouts are solid, flexible... and ranking up means being able to simply make more choices. Most importantly, this is a team game and it works as a team game. Lower ranked players can easily mix with higher ranks and still be very effective.
For the more hardcore gamer, they have a variety of options to try out and with enough points they can also "respec" or respecialize and re-assign all of their point values to try other perks, weapons, support tools that they didn't choose the first time. Each time you respecialize, the points cost increases... again, making those choices important.

"The game seems so complex!" Yes, the game is complex with a lot of things going on at once, but even with the training section of the game not being available for the beta, it doesn't take long before people realize that the blinking thing is their FRAGO objective (fragmentary order) assigned by their squad leader... and that if they do anything good near that blinking object they get double points. The additional ability to press the select button and bring up the overhead map also helps in getting an overall picture of the various objectives and how they interact in either defending or attacking. The squad mechanic is also essential and it's easy enough to just follow along with your squad and help with whatever they seem to be doing. The game also offers different modes with increasing complexity. Most players will be directed to training, then to a TDM type game before they participate in the larger more complex game modes.
For the more advanced player there are leadership options of being squad leader, then platoon leader and eventually OIC. With strong map knowledge, strategies become much more important and there are many different strategies that can be employed and communicated among the leaders. Leaders in the game also have access to various tactical strikes that can impact greatly on the gameplay.

"... but I just want to have fun with a few friends"... the game makes it easy to just jump into a game by yourself where you are assigned to a squad, group up with a few buddies and jump into a game, or even form a full squad of 8 and get into a game. For casual gamers the squad dynamics work well and you'll always feel "part of the team" even if you don't know anyone else. This is a game where the team dynamics not only work, but work exceptionally well. People actually talk in this game, they strategize, they coordinate. It offers the wonderful comraderie usually only found in clan games to most everyone.

For weekend warriors the game is easy to jump in and play. Not having rank isn't really an issue because there is so much to do in this game and you can place well on your squad just doing support such as repairing or medic, or putting your initial skill points into a slightly better scope for the initial guns provided. By following the FRAGO set by your squad leader, you will almost always have the support of others on your squad as you charge into battle, sneak around using smoke for cover, or snipe near the objective helping to clear the way for your squad mates and calling out enemy positions. For the hardcore 24/7 gamer the game offers leadership options and always provides a strategy challenge depending on the map, whether you are attacking or defending, your loadout choices, your squad mates and also of course the opposing team.

The biggest difference between this game and other shooter games is that KDR (kill/death ratio) really doesn't matter much in this game. You will die a lot, and you'll also be revived if you have good medics on your team. You'll get points for reviving people, for repairing key structures or for destroying enemy structures, and yes, also for killing people. At the end of the round generally only the the "top squad" and overall MVP's for the platoon are shown... though you can tab over and see how you placed on your squad or can wait for the data to update and see how you placed overall. Most people don't bother waiting... they don't care as much how they placed as whether their team won.



Fast FAQs about MAG.

Can you see all 256 players at once and can you run around the entire map?
Yes, though generally you'll want to stay and support your squad as you'll get more points this way (the map is not "split" into various sections, though there are some physical barriers in place that serve to help keep the game from becoming too chaotic and to direct the flow of gameplay, though you can cross to other areas of the map if you do some exploring.)

Is MAG free to play (I heard there was a monthly fee?)
Mag is just like any other game... buy it and play online for free. There are no fees to play.

Are there vehicles in MAG?
Yes, there are various vehicles depending on the modes you play. There are smaller jeeps with mounted MG's available to the defense team, and several squads on offense will get access to a heavy APC type vehicle that acts as a mobile spawn for the squad. Once outer defenses are demolished, the offense gets either a parachute drop spawn or comes in on a helicopter. The helicopter lands and has defensive guns that can be used by players, but the vehicle itself cannot be flown. Most of the battle is ground based, but vehicles do play a strategic role.

Can I join more than one PMC?
At this time, no, you are restricted to one of the 3 factions. You do however have the option at any time to start all over again as a level 1 in any PMC/faction.

What are the game modes?
Training mode.
Suppression mode - 64 players from the same PMC.
Sabotage - 64 players from 2 PMC's in a more simplistic game mode of attack/defend with a more limited number of objectives.
Acquisition - 128 players from 2 PMC's in a more complex game mode of trying to steal a vehicle and take it to an extraction point.
Domination - 256 players in the most complex game mode that is more of a capture and hold type game.

All in all, is MAG accessible? Yes, it is. It's basically a co-op game against real people rather than enemy A.I. and it encourages that co-op feeling on the squad. People use their mics, they talk. This game seems to attract a wonderful community of people who WANT to work together. Varying levels of players can all game together on the same squad and all can feel that they are contributing. This is truly a TEAM based game that almost anyone can play!


UPDATE: The Mag Blog is giving away more beta keys... get them here:
http://blog.mag.com/blog/2009/11/mag-beta-key-giveaway/

NOTE: I asked for and received permission from SCEA to write about my experiences in the MAG beta so am not breaking the NDA with this blog. MAG is a PS3 Exclusive and will be rated T for Teen.