[SgtSnarf]

Planetside was far ahead of its time in terms of massive game play and a near perfect blend of FPS and RTS elements. Despite having poor marketing and advertisement, it thrived on word of mouth and the first three months of the game were probably some of the most fun I've ever had in a game, period.

The main features of Planetside that set it apart from the other FPS games out there, and made it infinitely playable, were:

1. Massive Scope

This wasn't 5v5 or 10v10 or 20v20, which was about the most you'd ever find in any other kind of FPS online game, it was 200v200. It was entire squadrons of air support, heavy tank columns, specialized tactical units, defensive support teams, and every step in between. It was unlike anything you'd ever experienced before or would experience again.

2. Perfect Balance of FPS and RTS

Unlike traditional FPS games, where you might have use of a few vehicles and weapons, Planetside had several options for a variety of game play to suit nearly any type of player.

> Want to be on the front lines, blasting away enemies up close and personal? No problem.

> Want to skirt about the edges of the battlefield, infiltrating bases, relaying intelligence and sabotaging the enemy defenses? No problem.

> Want to dedicate efforts to managing and driving support vehicles aimed at supporting the fighting force, healing your fellow soldiers, ensuring a steady support infrastructure for the battle? No problem.

No game to date has done as good a job as Planetside in making room for nearly every type of player and blending aspects of both FPS and RTS elements to make it entertaining and fun, no matter what role you decided to pick up. The bases might be static, but every attack was different. The points of attack, the flow of the battle, the outfits involved, all required different defensive techniques and preparation, and the battles were some of the most epic moments I remember having in my 25 years of gaming.

3. Outfit and Faction Integration

One of the biggest things missing from today's online FPS games, such as Battlefield and Call of Duty is the persistent game world. When I log into one of those games, I get randomly matched up with 10-20 other players from who knows where. Even when you're able to have guilds vs. guilds PvP on the same map, it's limited to 10 or 20 people. There's a distinct lack of roles, and a lack of feeling that this map matters for anything.

Planetside's persistent game world and outfits made the game more exciting. You might play for 12 hours, locked in a massive three-way fight over a single continent and finally give way to sleep, only to login the next morning and discover that the battle is still raging. You get to see the same people, both from your side and from the enemy outfits, on the battlefield, learn to appreciate their tactics or their game play. When you see that certain name pop up killing people downstairs in your tower, you know his 5 other good friends are likely close by and shit is about to hit the fan.

So, why did Planetside Fail?

1. Lack of marketing/advertisement

People had no idea how awesome this game was or could be, and by the time word was out -- the bad changes were in.

2. BFR's

BFR's and many of the changes completely disrupted the balanced harmony of the previous game. Yes, there were months that Magmowers or JackHammers or Lashers or Chain Guns were flavors of the month and overpowered, but it largely only impacted encounters. BFR's dominated base fights and destroyed the delicate and near-perfect balance of support/attack vehicles and combat abilities the initial game had created.

3. Caves

Feeling that people needed a change of scenery, the developers made a critical error in bleeding the already small player base by diluting them into even more area. When concentrated big battles are your niche, spreading people out between Caves and Battle Islands is probably one of the worst decisions they ever made.

4. Consolidated Cert-Packages

One of the best moments of the game for me was specializing in a particular skill set and being wanted and needed by someone. Being good at a particular skill set, with just enough left over to obtain a vehicle or two allowed you to feel special and necessary on the battlefield. People would be looking for you specifically, and that magic dissipated when they started creating 5-cert point "packages" that gave you 5 different vehicle slots or multiple abilities.

I realize that some people wanted to be able to do everything, but being completely self-sufficient took away a lot of the really nice dependencies that helped make the game so awesome.

5. Game Performance Issues

I never understood how the game began so awesome, capable of handling 200 vs. 200 fights raging all over the continent and then, suddenly, I had a hard time flying around the Sanctuary by myself without lagging. And this was on a better machine than when I'd started the game.

Poor frame rates, lag, and other technical issues really killed the game experience for me and made it difficult to enjoy it in the way I had before. It wasn't that it stopped being fun, but compared to what you knew it -could- be, the limited game just ceased to sparkle quite as brightly.

Anyhow, those are my observations. I got this game on Day 1 and played the holy living crap out of it for months. I loved it then, and I love the idea of it now. If it could return today with simply a few graphical updates and all of the original pieces, I'd be pleased as punch.

-SgtSnarf (3rd CR5 on Emerald)