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Global Agenda Review: Revisiting Dome City - Edit
8.2
| Pros |
 Fantastic PvP Incredible value Paying players have little advantage over free players Unique game play |
| Cons |
 Limited PVE options. More trolls than De'Arnise hold in Baldur's Gate 2 Poor crafting Progression is painfully slow on free accounts |
In the months since MMORPG.com last reviewed Global Agenda, developer Hi-Rez Studio's science fiction themed massively multiplayer online third person shooter, a myriad of much anticipated content updates and patches have forever changed the face of this bold if not venerable gaming title. As many who have had the chance to experience what Global Agenda has to offer already know all too well, attempting to neatly place the game into any genera which already exists is about as effective as trying to find that jungle zone you hear so much about in Global Agenda's version of the global chat channel, aptly named City Chat. New players should get this side splitter about 30 seconds after entering a public chat channel. It could even be argued that the title of MMO is somewhat misleading as very little core game play is genuinely played on the massively multiplayer scale. With a little imagination Dome City, the player hub where most economic, social and crafting based game play occurs, could even be looked at as little more than the most interactive multiplayer lobby ever conceived. With that being said, no review on Global Agenda would be complete without reiterating the notion that, when taken for what it is, Global Agenda is an entertaining game in its own right which possesses that illusive uniqueness which has been absent in MMO gaming of late.
Value 9/10
Returning veterans of Global Agenda will notice several new additions to the game as soon as they log in. First and foremost, they will most likely no longer have to surrender their credit card information prior to entering the game world. Yes, in the months since release, Global Agenda has entered the questionable world of free-to-play. In perhaps the most sweeping change to GA, Hi-Rez Studio has not only nixed the subscription based model, but they have also ceased charging for the game itself. Implemented in their place are several alternatives to sustain the game’s profitability. The available payment models can best be explained on 3 levels, Free account, Elite account and applying a booster to your account. Free accounts enjoy much of the same privileges as the paying members of the community do. They are free to level multiple characters with no class or level restrictions; they are even free to own much of the same equipment and weaponry as the majority of the paying population. Most importantly, a free player can, in most cases, compete just as competitively as a paying level 50. Aside from free players not being able use the auction house in Dome City. What is the down side one may ask? Well, the sun just might go supernova prior to a free player reaching max level. In an ingenious plot to milk us of everything they can, Hi-Rez determined that our own impatience was the most effective route to our wallets. It worked… It worked very well.
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If you play Global Agenda, yet are lazy and hate to wait, then you most likely already own the Elite Agent Package. The Elite Agent package is a one-time purchase which permanently doubles all of your experience, token, currency and item gain on all of your characters. Purchasing the Elite agent package will also reduce your chat restrictions, which in all honesty does not mean much as even after handing the company my money their chat filter still closely resembles the average Nazi. Purchasing the Elite package not only benefits the real world economy, it just might save the in game market as well. Currently only Elite accounts have access to such integral systems as the Auction house and in-game mail. What this ultimately boils down to is a system in which free players cannot conduct any form of trade. In short if you are not elite, you are 100% self-sufficient.
The final 2 methods of reducing your bank account via Global Agenda are the purchasing of Agenda Points and the application of a booster to your account. Agenda Points are Hi-Rez Studio's realization of Farmville cash with one integral difference. In lieu of applying your Agenda Points towards the acquisition of rainbow sheep, bubble gum trees and candy cane fences – you apply said points towards the purchase of machine guns, bombs, rocket launchers and viral agents. In a more perfect world gamers would most likely use these implements of war to cleanse the internet of aforementioned rainbow sheep, bubble gum trees and candy cane fences. MMO purists will at least be pleased to know that almost every item purchasable through the spending of Agenda Points may also be procured with all your cold hard freely earned tokens and cash. Finally we come to the account booster. Boosters are simple. Just as the Elite Agent package doubled your experience, token, credit and loot gain, the booster will double them once again. Boosters can be purchased in varying durations of 10, 30 and 90 days in length.
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Now that we know the various methods of shedding your wallets blood, what is the prognosis? To put it simply, Global Agenda is absolutely brimming with satisfaction for the price. A one-time purchase that will cost you less than a used copy of Duke Nukem Forever is all that is required of you to fully enjoy every facet of a strikingly multifaceted game. And even then it's not required if don't mind your levels arriving once a fortnight.
Innovation 8/10
Aside from Global Agenda being the Che Guevara of the F2P revolution, the most noticeable addition to accost returning players would have to be the implementation of the Sonoran Desert. To put it simply, the Sonoran Desert is the massively component in the Massively Multiplayer Online Game, Global Agenda. Sonoran is the persistent free roaming open world component which was ominously absent from previous adaptations. In reality it simply boils down to little more than an extended tutorial. Though the quests are relatively fun and the third person shooter mechanics give solo quest grinding a fresh feel, for the first time in memorable history, I found myself complaining of how short the grind was and how there were too few zones to grind through.
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Though the zone admittedly leaves you desiring more, the absence of continuity may be both a gift and a curse. Solo PVE game play has, for years, been a relatively untapped commodity in the massively multiplayer online shooter realm. As such, the experience feels fresh. Extended periods of open world questing could very well serve to sour the adventure. The twitch based target and attack system provides opportunities for unique PVE experiences as well, such as having to use cover to avoid sniper fire as the player moves through a valley. Just as in Global Agenda's instanced PVE, named Special Operations, the twitch cover and shooting mechanics feel smooth and weapons react as one would expect them too. Open world combat has the potential for swift merciless action with the outcome often hinging on little more than a few well-placed bullets and the clever application of various supporting equipment.
Aesthetics 8/10
Upon departing Dome City players are met with the visage of the Sonoran Desert. The zone, based off the vast Sonoran Desert of south western Mexico and America, is a land maimed by craggy fissures rent through the sand and stone long ago. Deep reds and vague shades of yellow often soothe the eye in a harmonious contrast which feels both authentic yet fanciful. The visuals themselves are believable if not impressive when considering the relatively low system requirements for maximum quality. For all its virtues though, there are palpable sores to the otherwise pleasant visual experience. In a game capable of such robust and detailed particle effects one would think the Desert of Sonoran would be the ideal candidate for a little dust in the wind, anything to make the world feel less stagnant and more reactive.
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Even though the visuals play a key role in the overall experience, Sonoran has the potential to offer multitudes more than simple eye candy. The quest lines on hand offer a coherent, though mediocre narrative at best. There is an overarching story which follows the character's journey to cure one’s self of an almost magical degenerative disease. Summarily, the narrative is not what draws one to Sonoran. Though the experience may be short, it does have much to offer as both a relatively unique experience and a starting point for future open world zones with in GA.
Head to page 2 to read about Game Play, Social Aspects/Community, Polish, Longevity and Robert's final thoughts.
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I loved this game.
Looks like it's working now.
It's good to read, that Global Agenda got a better review this time. But i wonder, if the re-reviewer even played the game.
The sonoran desert for example isn't the "the massively component" in Global Agenda. The sonoran desert is like the dome itself instanced with a maximum of 50 players.
Also he forgot to write, that you don't get items from winning a pvp-mission or pve boss-fight. You have to buy about 95% of your items from the few tokens you get. Thats a BIG problem for those, who don't even want to spend their money on elite-status.
However the game is fun and unlike most other mmos even for casual gamers. You can start the game ,play a few missions and then leave without the fear that you won't be able to play with your friends, because their chars are 10 lvl above yours.
This is great to read that it has imrpoved maybe in the near future it will become one of the best F2p options even more
Very fun game.
Only thing I would add is that the community was always horrendous terrible baddddddddddddd, like the worst I've ever seen to be honest, hehe.
But on the plus side you can ignore the local/global chat entirely and have a very fun time without it :) I may have to return sometime soon when I am a bit more bored of WoT.
I loved Global Agenda while I was in the desert, with my freinds. Once that was done... well it was pretty done for me. We did PvP for a while, but the lack of a decent community to talk to, and the closed mindedness of said community, really lost that game for me.
Still it was phenominal, and I intend to return one day, just not today.
"More trolls than De'Arnise hold in Baldur's Gate 2"
lol that place was tough! bravo for referencing the best game ever made.
I tried instanced agenda wasnt a bad game.
Global Agenda is a great game. I would even pay a monthly subscription just for the PvP/AvA portion of this game. Graphics are great and gameplay is very smooth. If you are not into PvP, this game MAY not be for you... however, I wasn't into PvP until I played this game and now it's all I want to do.
I would recommend to MMORPG to fix the price they have listed for the game. It is F2P and you can do everything a paying player can do except use the Auction House, which doesn't really do much for you. The game has been for a few months now around $20-25. Additionally, you can easily get a 30% discount from players in-game who have already bought the game, bring the price even lower.
I just couldnt get into it looking forward to tribes though.
More trolls than De'Arnise hold in Baldur's Gate 2
I laughed. Well played.
Ahahah, lovely reference!! Agree with black_isle
Totally agree, Global Agenda is a good game and the F2P model inplace works well, the game does suffer from a lack of content open zone content and an open world RvR system, but it bridges the gap between FPS and MMO and it does this quite well.
I played this game way back when it first came out, bought the game and all. I had a blast with it for awhile, but as I watched certain guilds Monopolize several timezones for the "battleground" type stuff (it's been awhile since I played, forgot what they called it), I came to realize that it would always be that way so I gave that up fast.
However, I continued to play the arena stuff (like defending/attacking silo, etc) and continued to have fun. Then one day they inputed the new patch that changed the whole game. I logged in missing all of the gear/stuff I had worked so very hard for.
They said they reimbursed you a fair amount of what you had in currency. That was far, far, far from the case and so I dropped the game like a bad habit and never touched it again. I've been curious about picking it back up again, but every time I contemplate the idea, I remember that they screwed me over big time. It's a time sink.
I agree, a friend of mine and I played all the quests and it was fun until we got back into dome city. Then it became like a lobby shooter (except while in the lobby waiting for your game to begin you can run around Dome City). It got old after that and we both quit.
Honestly, this sounds like someone who is a free-to-play player. That's cool, but f2p is serverely nerfed; it's basically a glorified demo to whet your appetite and get you to buy the game.
As an Elite Agent ($30 USD--but 30% off codes can be given out by any Elite Agent. Just ask for one in city chat), you get one piece of equipment at the end of each succesful PvE or PvP instance. The PvP equipment is usually uncommon or rare (you have to be level 20 to use rare items) if you are PvPing in the under-level 30 bracket. If you are in the over-level 30 bracket, you will most often get an epic item (which generally requires level 30 to use--some more valuable things, such as end-game jetpacks will require level 40 to use). The end-of-mission loot you get on PvE depends on the difficulty of the PvE instance (there are four "security" levels--medium, high, max, and ultra max). If you have a booster, you will get an additional item per successful instance. You can get items as a free player if you buy a booster, but buying a booster before buying Elite Agent status is putting the cart before the horse.
Lumanil is sorta right in that there are token-only items that can be bought in the respective shops. These are generally very good pieces of equipment that you will want to own, but tokens aren't too hard to come by.
One thing that needs to be made clear is that the game is more skill based than item based. There are some end-game items which are very good (such as Cresent Jetpacks or Triage Waves for the Medic class) that you will want to get. At the same time, not having access to these items up-front doesn't mean you can't win in PvP. The difference between an Inferno Cannon [ddr] for 7,500 tokens and an OC Inferno Cannon [ddd] for 30,000 tokens isn't all that great; what matters is how well you can aim. (The Inferno Cannon is the highest DPS Assault weapon. An OC Inferno Cannon, the highest damage version, does maybe 30-35 more damage per shot than the [ddr] version.)
An example taken from a match I was in about a week or so ago: I'm one of the 15 or so best healing medics in above-30 PvP. I thought it would be fun to troll around in the under-30 bracket, so I made a new character. I outhealed a level 26 medic with my level 12 medic. The level 26 medic had a lot more skill points and better gear than I did, but I had more skill.
Also, you can buy equipment with Agenda Points (real money). But the game isn't pay-to-win. Most of the equipment you can buy with Agenda Points you can buy with tokens. There is one vendor (the Rare Goods Vendor) that has equipment you can buy for Agenda Points but not tokens, but all the equipment you can buy in the Rare Goods store you can get as loot. It may take a long time to loot it, but it is possible. There is no game-breaking equipment you can only buy with real money. The only stuff you can get with Agenda Points and nothing else is meaningless flair.
Why can't there be frequent updates or new news to the game? Everyone already knows they are making money so lets put the money back in the game to increase the popularity of the game! Right?!
Looks great, always read great reviews and I'm finally gettin a rig to play these kinds of games :3 looking forward to enjoying this soon!