I need a developer from Ubisoft Montreal to sit down with me and explain to me how it is possible that For Honor is still alive after a launch full of setbacks and a life over eight years almost forgotten. And I say “almost” because it has a daily average of 2,000-3,000 players on Steam, according to SteamDB. We must add PlayStation and Xbox.
In the absence of more figures at hand, my only conclusion is that For Honor It has a very loyal community united by the glue of crossplay. Not to mention that Ubisoft has been releasing updates almost weekly, at least monthly, for almost a decade. The cast of fighters has increased, among other content, and has had several crossovers. The current one is with Destiny 2.
The collaboration of Ubisoft and Bungie has been the perfect excuse to reinstall For Honorthis time on my PS5. Although I had my doubts during its launch in 2016, I ended up purchasing it in physical format. I played for quite a few hours, abandoned it, and in 2017 I came back to buy the Gladiator. It didn’t take me too long to abandon it again… until today.
Long live For Honor!
I didn’t expect to come back For Honor. I would never have said that 2024 would return me to its battlefields. The truth is that Destiny 2 It has almost all the merit. Nor will I deny that I was curious to know how the game had evolved after seven years. And it is certainly very changed!
My first impression after seven years has not been exactly good: matchmaking takes 5-6 minutes to play The Light of the Guardians (PVE) mode Destiny 2 and the Halloween event, and then another 3-4 minutes to load the map. My annoyance (tempered by understanding) disappeared as soon as the game began.
The Light of the Guardians map recreates the iconic Devrim Kay Church in the European Dead Zone (EMZ). Its two side streets make it perfect for a map of For Honor. The map is made up of three streets: two lateral ones with flags and a central one with another flag that runs through the church. At the center of the latter is a Baron inspired by Fikrul, the Zealot. Each entrance to the building is guarded by several groups of Forsaken.
The mode is simple: two teams (PVP or PVE) compete for control of the three flags. Taking and holding these areas scores points, as does killing opponents. However, there is a variant: damaging the Baron scores points. This is a common enemy of both teams and attacks everyone equally. The more damage, the more points. Now, the Baron hits very hard and withstands everything they throw at him.
I don’t know what happens if the Baron dies during the game. I have tried to communicate with other players in several PVP rounds to organize a truce and kill our common enemy, but it has been impossible. The truth is that I have gotten quite, very frustrated. As George Gordon Byron said, “I only go out to renew the need to be alone.” Well, I’m only going back to PVP to renew my desire to play only PVE.
Beyond that, For Honor It’s still really cool after eight years. I have always believed that it is a great video game, but it has a premise that does not end up conquering most players. His combat style is very technical, strategic and mastering it requires high doses of skill and practice. In fact, it is one of the few Ubisoft games that has a truly competent AI.
The physics, animations and sound are great sections. The characters really feel heavy, the animations when moving and performing executions are some of the best I’ve seen in Ubisoft games, and you can hear armor plates and other metallic elements when walking and running. And there is nothing to be ashamed of on a graphic level. To Caesar what is Caesar’s.
Return to For Honor during the crossover with Destiny 2 It has been a success. It has been a very fun two or three hours. The event itself is not a panacea, but the game has certainly aged more than well. The truth was, is and will be a very underrated gem from Ubisoft. It has aspects that could be improved, obviously, but not as many as other more current and applauded games. I don’t think I’ll dedicate many more hours to it, but now I understand a little better why it continues to cause so much trouble.
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