Defiance

 PC
User Score
6.6

Mixed or average reviews- based on 661 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 353 out of 661
  2. Mixed: 123 out of 661
  3. Negative: 185 out of 661
Buy Now
Buy on

Review this game

  1. Your Score
    0 out of 10
    Rate this:
    • 10
    • 9
    • 8
    • 7
    • 6
    • 5
    • 4
    • 3
    • 2
    • 1
    • 0
    • 0
  1. Submit
  2. Check Spelling
view
per page
  1. Captiosus
    Jul 14, 2013
    4
    During development, Trion Worlds displayed gameplay trailers that showed a graphically rich and dynamic world with all kinds of alien flora, dynamic weather, and great cooperative gameplay. I was quite happy to be chosen to play in beta but what I found was disconcerting. The game was littered with bugs, contained a very sparse UI that was clearly designed for the console rather than PC,During development, Trion Worlds displayed gameplay trailers that showed a graphically rich and dynamic world with all kinds of alien flora, dynamic weather, and great cooperative gameplay. I was quite happy to be chosen to play in beta but what I found was disconcerting. The game was littered with bugs, contained a very sparse UI that was clearly designed for the console rather than PC, offered bare bones graphics, and a dearth of content. When the game went to retail, there was no way I could justify buying it even though Trion Worlds kept assuring us that everything was coming "soon".

    Fast forward to 11 July 2013 when Steam launched their Summer Sale and initially put Defiance on sale for 66% off. I purchased the game figuring Trion had three months of time under their belt with the game so, hopefully, they had addressed some of the issues. Unfortunately that is not the case.

    First, the bugs. Most of the bugs still exist. Most of the bugs you will encounter will be mild annoyance bugs, such as your vehicle randomly disappearing while you're still on it, or your character getting stuck in an animation. But there are also the game breaking bugs which prevent you from being able to finish quests (e.g. NPC or item not spawning, textures with necessary interactive items disappearing) and bugs that will prevent you from doing challenges (e.g. 'invincible' mobs who don't die during a timed "Rampage" mission that requires all mobs to be killed). Bugs still occur FREQUENTLY.

    Second, the UI and controls. Clearly ported to PC as an afterthought, the UI and control scheme still hasn't changed since beta. Vehicles control is some of the worst I've ever experienced when using keyboard/mouse, and on foot controls feel clunky and counterintuitive. Plug in a game controller, however, and it plays like a completely different game. I found some statements by Trion Worlds claiming they were "working on" the UI but so far they've done nothing. And since the UI is responsible for driving social interactions, the piss poor chat and social UI structures continue to make this a largely solo game where the only time you interact with other people is during Arkfall (world coop) events.

    Third, graphics. Forget the old trailers. I can play this game on ultra with the only FPS hiccups occurring during major Arkfall events which tend to pull in two dozen (or more) players in one limited space, yet the graphics look as though they are from circa 2007 Xbox 360 games. Poor textures, medium polygon counts, static lighting and shadows, terrible draw distance, and BARE MINIMUM graphics options available to the user. The world itself is typical post-apocalyptic fare, brown and gray, bland and uninspired.

    Finally, the lack of content. Let's get this out of the way right now: Quests fall into one of three categories; Fetch, Click, or Rescue/Protect. Every quest you do from the beginning to the end will be one of those three or a combination thereof. There aren't even any "kill X number of people" quests, which is probably for the best since enemies in the game can ALSO be broken down into exactly two types: Humanoids and Hellbugs. Although they've added episode based quests (the TV show tie-ins), after about 10 hours, you'll realize that you're doing the exact same thing and that the only thing you have to look forward to is doing the exact same thing.

    "But Cap," you'll say, "ALL MMOs have repetition." To which I will respond that you are absolutely correct. However, unlike most MMOs, Defiance really offers you little challenge and little hook to break the monotony. For example, in classic MMOs where you earn X amount of XP and learn new skill "Y", getting a new skill offsets the monotony of doing the same thing you've already done by giving you something new to add. In other words, if you play a mage and you get a blizzard spell, you don't care that you're marching off to kill another 50 humanoids because now you get to use this awesome new blizzard. You don't get that break from monotony in Defiance because what you do in your first hour and what you do in your 200th hour is the same: point and shoot. There's no need for strategy or theorycrafting and your EGO AI companion holds your hand from start to finish. Loot and passive skills can only carry a game so far.

    Anyone who tells you the story carries the game is lying because after the first cutscene you're left to fend for yourself. You're sent off to the shooting gallery with very little info and the most story you get is from hidden audio logs. Even if you watch the show, often times what you do in game makes little sense. PvP is, by Trion's admission, full of hacks/cheats that they have yet to address. So what COULD HAVE been fun is marred by poor design leading to rampant cheating.

    In sum, I do not recommend this game, even at a super sale price. Frankly, I can't see Trion keeping the servers up for another year at the game's current rate.    … Expand
  2. Syn_again
    Apr 9, 2013
    4
    Defiance feels rushed in a sense that the content is just not there yet. The Game design is shallow with a very weak story. For these kinds of games you need a compelling story to carry you through the adventure and keep you invested. The world of Defiance is barely explained or interesting to the player. Maybe the show will help with this but based on episode 1 it does not seem to be tooDefiance feels rushed in a sense that the content is just not there yet. The Game design is shallow with a very weak story. For these kinds of games you need a compelling story to carry you through the adventure and keep you invested. The world of Defiance is barely explained or interesting to the player. Maybe the show will help with this but based on episode 1 it does not seem to be too likely. the game and show are going to run separate courses with minimal tie in. That does not sound good for an MMO already weak in a background.

    The world is big. Lots of room to roam and play. There are event areas for Arkfalls (alien invasions) or simple shoot and defend side missions. It is a bit funny to see 25 enemies come out of one small truck but oh well. There is little the actual terrain offers you other than providing the opportunity to just run around.

    Vehicles are nice and fun. Having Guild races and running enemies over was fun and funny.

    The game mechanics are good. As a shooter the game is fun and there is a wide range of weapons to have fun with. Unfortunately the enemy (and ally) AI is horrible. They only do just a couple of things and then become predictable throughout the game. Mutants, Aliens, Humans all do the same thing (with different attack variations). This becomes quite boring after awhile. Some of the missions help try to hide these flaws but your attention can get inadvertently pulled back to them when you listen to the voice acting or force yourself to try and get back into the theme of the story.

    Technically the game is sound. A good engine running on a solid network that provides the same structure for RIFT. There are no problems with account management or logging in etc.

    It was clearly hard for Trion to understand what to give players for an non-Fantasy MMO. This game is really just a standard mediocre FPS game that you can opt to play with others. The MMO component to this is just not there. If/when Trion gets around to adding the functionality to make the game and game world better, this might be worth revisiting in the future but not for $60.

    There is going to have to be a hefty bit of rework for this game to stay around and the show will not carry it since it will have its own problems. The bigger issue here is Trion is limited on what they can do because this game stretches to consoles. Having what is needed on PC to make a strong game will not work for console so it may all depend on how many units will be sold for each to see how Trion will try and save this product.    … Expand
  3. boydimages
    Apr 12, 2013
    4
    I was impressed with the tie in with the series, and I had fun playing, for about an hour or two. My girlfriend played as well. First off, this game is in no way worth 60 bucks, whatsoever! I played on a console, and considered getting it for my PC. With so many superior F2P games out there, my current favorite is Planetside2. There are no EPIC battles, and no real sense of scale. ItI was impressed with the tie in with the series, and I had fun playing, for about an hour or two. My girlfriend played as well. First off, this game is in no way worth 60 bucks, whatsoever! I played on a console, and considered getting it for my PC. With so many superior F2P games out there, my current favorite is Planetside2. There are no EPIC battles, and no real sense of scale. It absolutely doesn't have that "WOW" factor.… Expand
  4. The_Ommadawn
    Apr 3, 2013
    4
    I pre-ordered after watching some videos online. I wondered why there were no reviews beforehand and now I know why. It's total poo and offers nothing new. I LOVED Rift and had confidence in the Dev, but this is a mess of a game. The AI is a joke, the landscapes are boring (little variety), the gear and looting is confusing, entering/exiting vehicles is hit and miss, the controls (PC)I pre-ordered after watching some videos online. I wondered why there were no reviews beforehand and now I know why. It's total poo and offers nothing new. I LOVED Rift and had confidence in the Dev, but this is a mess of a game. The AI is a joke, the landscapes are boring (little variety), the gear and looting is confusing, entering/exiting vehicles is hit and miss, the controls (PC) are awful, the avatars all look identical, etc. I'm not drawn towards this game at all. I played for a few hours and became bored quickly. The RPG element is clearly not there. It's a generic MMO shooter with little else on offer. I wish I could roll back my life a day and buy Bioshock Infinite instead. Shame on you Trion.… Expand
  5. psychomuse
    Apr 8, 2013
    4
    A little bit country, a little bit rock 'n roll: Defiance tries a lot to be a little bit MMORPG and a little bit MMOFPS at the same time. To be fair (and somewhat forgiving), it's not that bad. It's just not that good. But with all the other MMO fish in the sea, I'm looking for something that is creatively fresh and fun.

    I think Trion (whom I greatly respect for the well-done Rift) is    A little bit country, a little bit rock 'n roll: Defiance tries a lot to be a little bit MMORPG and a little bit MMOFPS at the same time. To be fair (and somewhat forgiving), it's not that bad. It's just not that good. But with all the other MMO fish in the sea, I'm looking for something that is creatively fresh and fun.

    I think Trion (whom I greatly respect for the well-done Rift) is trying too hard to be too many things for too many people. Again, I respect the attempt but I rue the outcome. This is not the next MMORPG and it is not the next MMOFPS- it's a mediocre attempt at both. If it were F2P... maybe. For $60, no way.    … Expand
  6. Ansatsu83
    Sep 7, 2013
    4
    This game, is a sub par, third person shooter, tv spinoff. This having been said let me go into detail about why it is sub par. First of all, let me start with pve. The storyline failed to grasp me. The combat is facing multiple of the same enemies, you have the normal variant and the elite variant. Running around, mowing down, hundreds of enemies in a row is satisfying, at first, then itThis game, is a sub par, third person shooter, tv spinoff. This having been said let me go into detail about why it is sub par. First of all, let me start with pve. The storyline failed to grasp me. The combat is facing multiple of the same enemies, you have the normal variant and the elite variant. Running around, mowing down, hundreds of enemies in a row is satisfying, at first, then it loses its appeal. It took me around 4 hours to get bored of pve and try pvp... It was a mistake to try pvp, let me tell you right now, ill give an explanation in a moment. The pve is similar to hellgate london with slightly better game mechanics and a larger world not separated into separate instances. This is the best way to describe the game. it has features hellgate london could have used... It falls short on everything else...

    pvp, the combat mechanics have zero stamina for sprinting/rolling/etc. No cooldown on vehicles, no bunny hop prevention. The pvp in the game, is a complete mess. It is beyond broken, everyone uses stealth to sneak up on someone, its all about who uses stealth first, who can jump around and hit other bunny hoppers faster. Usually weapons with elemental effects are used. There is zero fairness in pvp and the mechanics are just broken for it.

    I think I would rather play hellgate london. Buy this game, only if you are curious or absolutely adore the tv series.

    Graphics 8, sound 5, music 6, controls 5... Controls gets rated down due to the lack of pvp balance and prevention of bunny hopping, rolling 800 times in a row to avoid fire, etc. There should have been stamina...

    I am going to go play hellgate london as this game makes hellgate london look absolutely brilliant. On a side note, Trion Worlds has made very sub par games for their entire existence, great concepts but the execution is just god awful. They are almost on par with the developing skills of timegate studios... in other words, they are terrible developers...    … Expand
  7. Marcbackman
    Apr 10, 2013
    4
    Not worth your time or money. Utterly lifeless world with zero social interaction for someone not playing with friends, and there is no feeling of personality that you should get in a good video game world. You've seen everything in this game before, but only done better in other games (mix Rift and Borderlands together and port it to consoles and you get the picture). The game shouldNot worth your time or money. Utterly lifeless world with zero social interaction for someone not playing with friends, and there is no feeling of personality that you should get in a good video game world. You've seen everything in this game before, but only done better in other games (mix Rift and Borderlands together and port it to consoles and you get the picture). The game should be on sale for something much more appropriate, I feel as though my $60 was wasted on this one.… Expand
  8. vulcanraven27
    Apr 6, 2013
    4
    The UI in this game is the biggest problem. If they were to fix the UI and have real weapon progression/character progression they would probably have a hit on their hands. There are no levels in this game, just an EGO rating. If you log in as a new character and pvp against someone who has played 100 hours you basically are equal strength. Their excuse is that if they had actualThe UI in this game is the biggest problem. If they were to fix the UI and have real weapon progression/character progression they would probably have a hit on their hands. There are no levels in this game, just an EGO rating. If you log in as a new character and pvp against someone who has played 100 hours you basically are equal strength. Their excuse is that if they had actual levels they would have to separate us in pvp and pve, not a good excuse, every other MMo does it. I don't want a game that does not reward progression. Don't buy this game if you think its an MMO because it is not.… Expand
  9. Numtini
    Jun 24, 2014
    4
    Simply put, it's not very good. The world is interesting in many ways, but it suffers from repetitive gameplay. The largest problem is the developers. It felt like they checked out shortly after launch and as the population dwindled, never returned.
  10. TheAmazingYeah
    Apr 10, 2013
    4
    I agree with the low-end of the spectrum. The (early) pilot episode of the show was fantastic and I think it will be a worthy successor to Eureka, Warehouse, and Alphas. However, the game just gives up on the story after you chase down Random Bald Scientist #1. It plays more like co-op Planetside 2 with a Borderlands leveling system and I was hoping that this would be the MMOS that soldI agree with the low-end of the spectrum. The (early) pilot episode of the show was fantastic and I think it will be a worthy successor to Eureka, Warehouse, and Alphas. However, the game just gives up on the story after you chase down Random Bald Scientist #1. It plays more like co-op Planetside 2 with a Borderlands leveling system and I was hoping that this would be the MMOS that sold me. Unfortunately the plethora of launch bugs, the poor graphical execution even by console standards, and the complete lack of story after the first chapter weigh me down.… Expand
  11. ShadowDDD
    Apr 11, 2013
    4
    I bought three copies of this game for my friend, brother, and I and we were disappointed.

    First problem is getting this game to install on your pc. It will start downloading then it will stop with several "error" message causing you to re-download it over and over. Once you have final download it then the patch wouldn't start up. Second, this game has a lot of bugs. You'll lost weapons    I bought three copies of this game for my friend, brother, and I and we were disappointed.

    First problem is getting this game to install on your pc. It will start downloading then it will stop with several "error" message causing you to re-download it over and over. Once you have final download it then the patch wouldn't start up. Second, this game has a lot of bugs. You'll lost weapons when you are trying to modding it, you might get the items you have buy with your game currency, some mission wouldn't start up causing you start and abort it to get it to work, and sometime I have to redo a mission because it didn't record my completion Third, it hard to chat with other players in this game. The chat window is on another window. If you open up your chat screen it will block your screen. Fourth, there several missions that you have play it solo. Fifth, every time you start a mission or travel away from your group members you will have to change "phase", which cause other group member to change phase as well. Six, the enemies AI is joke. You can simply walk behind them and shot them. Seventh, the missions are boring. Protect this area, kill this guy, run to point B... same old thing. Lastly, there's the lack of personalization. Everyone look the same. Same outfits and weapons.

    Do I think this game is bad? No, I think this game just need a lot of work. The story is OK for a typical sci-fi game. Hope the TV show is more enjoyable than this game.    … Expand
  12. Xerrospk
    Apr 12, 2013
    4
    Its a fun game but filled with weird bugs and a terrible launcher that just spoils the atmosphere of this game It has an engaging storyline but the launcher is just a mess downloading to at least 90% at some points before a dreaded ''X'' appears and it says launcher error .This has been occurring to all my friends too .Angry Joe ,the famous kickass reviewer has the same problem as IIts a fun game but filled with weird bugs and a terrible launcher that just spoils the atmosphere of this game It has an engaging storyline but the launcher is just a mess downloading to at least 90% at some points before a dreaded ''X'' appears and it says launcher error .This has been occurring to all my friends too .Angry Joe ,the famous kickass reviewer has the same problem as I do Please fix the launcher… Expand
  13. FrostyGreenacre
    Apr 19, 2013
    4
    This game sadly shoots itself in the foot.

    There are many good things in the gameplay of Defiance, and there are moments that have indeed been fun. However, each one of those is equaled or marred by some badly designed game mechanic or bug that either destroys player immersion or should have just outright been fixed during development. Pros. the shooting and dodging mechanics seem    This game sadly shoots itself in the foot.

    There are many good things in the gameplay of Defiance, and there are moments that have indeed been fun. However, each one of those is equaled or marred by some badly designed game mechanic or bug that either destroys player immersion or should have just outright been fixed during development.

    Pros. the shooting and dodging mechanics seem pretty well made, servers have very little lag, there's plenty to do across the world and you can have a lot of fun rushing to an objective in your vehicle with 20 other users down a deserted highway. This core element of the gameplay could make up for the following misgivings if the bugs were fixed, however the issues stay ever visible whilst the good gameplay is plagued with visual glitches. One thing I did like, however was that players didn't need to be in a team to do a mission together, if three players shared the same goal it didn't matter who took down an enemy or activated the 3 objectives, all three players got the quest with no queueing.

    Cons: very sketchy tutorial. very little is explained in the tutorial. the tutorial also takes place in a "danger zone" and whilst reading the descriptions of the 3 paragraph mission dialogues you can be attacked, damaged and presumably killed without being able to defend yourself. There is no tutorial on how to perform social interactions, in fact, I've seen the MMO in no way encourage social interaction between players whatsoever. The storyline is only so-so, however this is true with many MMO games where you'll find yourself either skipping past the majority of quest dialogue or spending more time reading than fighting.

    bugs: this is where the game experience is truly ruined for me. the best game in the world can fail if it's just unplayable (diablo 3, simcity etc.) we can often look past game mechanics we don't agree with so long as they're running as they supposed to. However with my first 4 hours of playing Defiance I encountered: random invisible structures in the wilderness that would stop you driving or running (note, you could go around these small items, they are not barriers, just textureless objects) the game also bugs out when you stand on some of the bridges in the first city area you play in. standing on them with the camera at a certain angle with make all 3D models disappear. to make things worse this includes NPC enemies. You can be getting shot whilst not being able to see your character, the area you're stood on or the enemies who are shooting. particularly frustrating when your mission objective is on that bridge. Some of the terrain has been added into the landscape awkwardly as well, leaving gaps between the landscape and the items themselves so you can see that they aren't solid, very bad for game immersion. I've also been driving down a highway when I saw a "random encounter" quest where enemies were kidknapping some innocent NPCs, except all of the cars added into the encounter were floated a good 7ft above the road...

    overall I'd say that this game WOULD be fun if if worked properly. Heck, even outright addictive. However there are many problems that need to be addressed before it's properly playable. unfortunately for me they already have my money now, so I can only motivate them to fix these by letting everybody else know about the issues before they get your money too.    … Expand
  14. BearSharkWeek
    May 5, 2013
    4
    When I first played this game in beta I thought it was pretty fun. I also expected that there would be more content released with the full version. I was wrong. This game is lacking. There are essentially only 3 enemies to fight. The environment is pretty but gets boring very quickly. Questing is very tedious and redundant. There is no world immersion. It feels like a watered down co-opWhen I first played this game in beta I thought it was pretty fun. I also expected that there would be more content released with the full version. I was wrong. This game is lacking. There are essentially only 3 enemies to fight. The environment is pretty but gets boring very quickly. Questing is very tedious and redundant. There is no world immersion. It feels like a watered down co-op version of borderlands. I am really disappointed in Trion for releasing this mess. It's extremely linear and way too simple. There are only a few co-op maps to play as well. Honestly it feels like the game is missing 3/4 of content. If Trion thinks they can release a ton more content in DLCs and have me pay for it they must be insane.… Expand
  15. TGAMCallahan
    Aug 4, 2013
    4
    However interesting the cameos and tie-ins from the TV series might be, there's one thing that simply cannot be denied about Defiance. It's boring. Your character is a borderline deaf-mute with no impact on the proceedings. The gameplay is 'acceptable,' but nothing else. The environments are decent, but lackluster in variety. The interactions with other characters is bland and meaningless.However interesting the cameos and tie-ins from the TV series might be, there's one thing that simply cannot be denied about Defiance. It's boring. Your character is a borderline deaf-mute with no impact on the proceedings. The gameplay is 'acceptable,' but nothing else. The environments are decent, but lackluster in variety. The interactions with other characters is bland and meaningless. The skill trees are dull, and leave much to be desired.

    I would not recommend this game to anyone, personally, but it is pretty, for what it's worth, and it does have a story to tell. It's just not really a story worth sitting through hours of boring quests, and brutal grinding to hear told in a stilted, off-the-cuff manner.

    4.1/10, overall negative. Better off watching the syfy/space series.    … Expand
  16. MWSoapMactavish
    Nov 16, 2015
    4
    Defiance at the beginning will be interesting, but over the time the lack of content and due to generic and dull quests will start getting to be tedious over the time, I had a great time playing Defiance with a friend of mine, but within a month we started to realize that we were doing the same thing over and over again, another negative point of this game, is DLC Weapons, although you canDefiance at the beginning will be interesting, but over the time the lack of content and due to generic and dull quests will start getting to be tedious over the time, I had a great time playing Defiance with a friend of mine, but within a month we started to realize that we were doing the same thing over and over again, another negative point of this game, is DLC Weapons, although you can obtain them as random loot, you can't use them unless you have the respective DLC, and there are some overpowered DLC weapons like the Castithian Blade, the AI is pretty bad and sometimes will have major bugs that will ruin the experience, the PvP is plagued by lag and Castithian Blade users, and the tutorial explains from little to nothing, the UI is pretty bad, players assets doesn't even load alright, as most players appears to me with a common appearance or shape, also visual glitches are very common to find in Defiance, and the Inventory is very limited in storing space unless you buy more, the servers are very bad as mostly I have to retry five or seven times to be able to play, I don't really recommend this unless you have plenty of time, patience and the temperament to play this.… Expand
  17. Hudson
    Apr 5, 2013
    3
    tiny game world and lack of content, extremely repetitive gameplay, utter lack of meaningful progression, easily glitched ranked missions, painfully bad UI. You can do all this game does in other titles for free or way less money. Hell even Firefly which is in beta has more content than this game. Bloggers will hype it to push an agenda but this game is awful for 60 dollars.
  18. RecoveryRx
    Apr 11, 2013
    3
    The game is fairly fun in gameplay, but it sure lacks in content. The world map is small, the weapon upgrades feel pointless as all weapons have basically the same stats minus maybe a few miniscule bonuses here and there, and you'll be fighting the same boring monsters over and over. Arkfalls are more boring versions of rifts and there is very little variety of these. UI is god awfulThe game is fairly fun in gameplay, but it sure lacks in content. The world map is small, the weapon upgrades feel pointless as all weapons have basically the same stats minus maybe a few miniscule bonuses here and there, and you'll be fighting the same boring monsters over and over. Arkfalls are more boring versions of rifts and there is very little variety of these. UI is god awful as is chat it feels like a single player game. Overall it's a pretty big disappointment for me, but taken at small doses it can be fun. Plus it's a one time purchase so that's good.… Expand
  19. meru
    Aug 14, 2013
    3
    TLDR: Play FireFall instead, the game is not going to get better, as many of the developers were let go after the game was published.

    What a great concept behind Defiance: A Science Fiction game and a TV show which evolve together and influence each other. But what a horrible, horrible implementation. It was fun to play at times, and if the game gets ever finished, I am sure it will be    TLDR: Play FireFall instead, the game is not going to get better, as many of the developers were let go after the game was published.

    What a great concept behind Defiance: A Science Fiction game and a TV show which evolve together and influence each other. But what a horrible, horrible implementation. It was fun to play at times, and if the game gets ever finished, I am sure it will be fun to play.

    Four months after release, it plays like an early beta. In the first minutes, you cannot follow the instructions, as your tutorial actions are constantly interrupted by NPCs. Already the first few missions are bugged, so that you may have to quit and restart in order to do them. Chat is bugged (in the sense of not being able to communicate at all) for the PC version, so that you cannot even ask other players for advice about the bugs; I found the advice to relog finally on the forums. The game has open world missions, but gets confused when two players work on the same mission, so that you cannot finish them.

    The good points: You can try the game for free for three days, but within this time frame you need to download the client, and the downloader has major problems. The price for the game was lowered to 10 bucks in some places, and no subscription is required, so it might be worth buying, if you believe that the developers will ever finish the game. Which is unlikely, as a lot of the developers were let go in May 2013.

    By coincidence I discovered a second Science Fiction MMO shooter called FireFall at the same time, which is in open beta starting August 2013. FireFall plays almost the same as Defiance, with the difference being that it is actually fun, and mostly a finished product.    … Expand
  20. kirkkh
    Feb 13, 2014
    3
    It's lazy and repetitive. The game dies immediately (never picks back up). Players are all identical. --It feels like a facebook game. Barely playable. Any positive review here must be a developer. I don't know how someone could recommend something so tedious and gray. Just play co-op Borderlands instead.
  21. SighMN
    Apr 11, 2013
    3
    I just feel kind of neutral about this game. I think some of the ideas behind it could be exciting. A really good Borderlands MMORPG would be wonderful, but unfortunately the more you play Defiance the more you realise it has many many flaws. The first problem really is that the game was designed for consoles and PCs at the same time. It looks like because of the limitations ofI just feel kind of neutral about this game. I think some of the ideas behind it could be exciting. A really good Borderlands MMORPG would be wonderful, but unfortunately the more you play Defiance the more you realise it has many many flaws. The first problem really is that the game was designed for consoles and PCs at the same time. It looks like because of the limitations of consoles, the PC version got the short end of the stick. The PC version has really really unintuitive menus that are extremely clunky which are much more suited for a console system. The UI is so bad, that it does really diminish any fun the game has to offer. There is limited inventory space, which means you have to constantly go into the UI menu to breakdown items you get. This would normally be easy with a mouse interface, Instead its 4-5 clicks in a window that is full screen. I can't say the number of times I've died because I wanted to pick up a gun, but in the process of breaking down an item, mobs spawned and killed me without warning. The UI also provides other problems in that quickly identifying which guns are better than others is really hard when you first start. This is combined with the really awkward way they implemented moding weapons.

    The Ego "Perks" system is a horribly aborted and badly implemented talent system. The two main problems are:

    1) All the "talents" have to be placed in perk spots, but you often have too few spots to place all the talents you invested ego points into. Its like putting points into a talent tree, but then only having the ability to select 3 of those talents to use, even though you may have placed points into 8 talents. The ego perks
    2) The perks are horribly uninteresting, and to top it off any perks you can't unlock at the moment are locked and their descriptions hidden so you have no idea what perks you want to head towards.

    The quests and storyline are really poorly done. The quests are extremely repetitive, and do nothing to advance the story. It takes hours of gameplay to come across the first interesting storyline, and its spoiled by really awful cutscenes and voice acting. In a world that seems as interesting as this and has a tie-in television series, I'm shocked they couldn't have developed a gripping storyline with requisite quests from the start.

    The combat is generally fun. Unlike some shooters, there is a sense of reward if you aim more carefully, and most mobs don't feel like bullet sponges. Ammo for the most part is readily available via ammo crates, and mobs drop usually an ample supply of ammo. I haven't PVPed so I can't combat on balance in that domain, but just in questing it is clear that some types of guns are generally useless.

    Unfortunately this game does seem to suffer from server side performance issues during arkfalls, and I notice the combat is much less responsive when there are 10 more people in a close area. I've also encountered a few bugs, where my weapon starts to aim upwards in areas with higher player density. The "arkfalls" are badly done, and give generally uninteresting rewards. They are nowhere near as engaging as other games public quests or even rifts in Rift.

    The graphics of this game like the UI are limited by the fact this is released on consoles as well. But even worse than just graphics, the actual artwork and environments are just plain boring. I'm not sure how they made the San Francisco bay area look so boring. There simply isn't much style or effort gone into making this game look great despite the possible technical limitations of consoles.

    In summary, this game has a pretty good combat system, but I'm really disappointed as it could have been so much more. I'm not sure how Trion misstepped so much considering all the good things they did with Rift, and it makes me wonder whether or not this game was rushed. I think its biggest downfall is the really disappointing storyline, and really generic and uninteresting quests.    … Expand
  22. Enik
    Jul 22, 2013
    3
    You know why there's no demo of Defiance? Because if you do one quest, one arkfall and attach one mod to a gun, you've done EVERYTHING there is to do. Seriously. There's virtually no meaningful character progression, no real crafting, no real social component. It's a pseudo MMO for the Call of Duty dolts. I was bored after an hour.

    I gave it a 3 because the guns are kind of fun and the    You know why there's no demo of Defiance? Because if you do one quest, one arkfall and attach one mod to a gun, you've done EVERYTHING there is to do. Seriously. There's virtually no meaningful character progression, no real crafting, no real social component. It's a pseudo MMO for the Call of Duty dolts. I was bored after an hour.

    I gave it a 3 because the guns are kind of fun and the shooting mechanics are solid. But really, it's not an MMO.    … Expand
  23. Traciatim
    May 28, 2013
    3
    Defiance is generic throw away console trash. Everything about it's design from the terrible control schemes, to lack of graphics customization, right down to the bite sized questing and ADD style action random action points scream console port. If you are looking for a PC shooter MMO, look elsewhere. Save this one for the $9.99 bargain bin.
  24. Xodan
    Apr 6, 2013
    3
    This game is really not interesting at all, I had the chance to watch the game "grow" during early progress. And everytime I restarted it, i had no interest in playing it longer than ~30 minutes. I see almost no immersion in this game, the story is "strange" and stopped interesting me from the start. The effect are good bad the textures and animations are very ugly compared to other recentThis game is really not interesting at all, I had the chance to watch the game "grow" during early progress. And everytime I restarted it, i had no interest in playing it longer than ~30 minutes. I see almost no immersion in this game, the story is "strange" and stopped interesting me from the start. The effect are good bad the textures and animations are very ugly compared to other recent MMO. And one other big negative point is the business strategy: Buy2Play 50€, and announced DLC's after a few month for additional 8-9€ (calculated from the season pass price). So its like a small Buy2Play for a game that is not worth its money at all, in my opinion. Summarized this makes 3/10 for Defiance.… Expand
  25. Lighterfluid
    Apr 2, 2013
    3
    This game may look like a MMO Borderlands, but do not be fooled. Defiance offers very little when it comes to the MMO spectrum. I had so many issues with this game i dont even know where to begin.

    From the start you are treated with some terrible visuals and pretty lame voice acting. Then comes the quests, which are run here do that. The game wasnt engaging or gripping in the least.    This game may look like a MMO Borderlands, but do not be fooled. Defiance offers very little when it comes to the MMO spectrum. I had so many issues with this game i dont even know where to begin.

    From the start you are treated with some terrible visuals and pretty lame voice acting. Then comes the quests, which are run here do that. The game wasnt engaging or gripping in the least.

    If you are looking for a story, then maybe just maybe you might find enjoyment in this game. If your looking for good game play features on the other hand i wouldn't even give this a second look. Truelly a let down.

    Over all just another MMO to brush under the table    … Expand
  26. Hanff
    Apr 3, 2013
    3
    Mediocre-at-best shooter with too many glaring flaws to keep a player engaged. The potential was there, but the execution was halfhearted: terrible voice acting, no real character customization to speak of, controls that are so far from intuitive it's almost a joke, and the same grindy quests over and over. Not to mention the lack of a viable chat system.

    There are worse ways to kill an    Mediocre-at-best shooter with too many glaring flaws to keep a player engaged. The potential was there, but the execution was halfhearted: terrible voice acting, no real character customization to speak of, controls that are so far from intuitive it's almost a joke, and the same grindy quests over and over. Not to mention the lack of a viable chat system.

    There are worse ways to kill an hour here and there, but not at this price.    … Expand
  27. matrix2050
    Apr 4, 2013
    3
    Mhh It was too good to be true. After 2 Days of playing this Game, i have no more fun. The game menu is horrible. Graphics are good for the Unreal 3 Engine. The game is played through quickly and then? World is too small and it makes me at least no fun.
  28. Silok
    Apr 6, 2013
    3
    Let me start by saying that I took time to create this account just for the review as well as leave my 110 pound woman in bed to write this. This game is awful. Clunky UI. Meh graffix. Go to point A and kill some guys. Now to point B same thing.........over and over. Yes every game has repetitiveness but a good game will "hide" this by intriguing story or awesome game play.
    The grouping    Let me start by saying that I took time to create this account just for the review as well as leave my 110 pound woman in bed to write this. This game is awful. Clunky UI. Meh graffix. Go to point A and kill some guys. Now to point B same thing.........over and over. Yes every game has repetitiveness but a good game will "hide" this by intriguing story or awesome game play.
    The grouping system is horrible. Controls are bad. AI looks like it was programmed by a ten year old on a Speak and Spell. Everything about the game is wonky. Even leaving the game you press L, hold space bar, radial tab to settings, click exit game twice..................

    DO not get roped in to playing this. Yes your first hour is fun because its new but after three days of waiting for the game to get good,,,it just doesnt......................    … Expand
  29. Oceanhawk
    Apr 10, 2013
    3
    Don't let the positive reviews fool you. This game is an early Beta at best. While some elements of the game are fun, they are extremely overshadowed by the bugs and lack of depth. I think eventually the game will be patched to make it playable but right now the issues make it boring and frustrating. Also this is a direct console port game so expect it to look like a game from 1999 not aDon't let the positive reviews fool you. This game is an early Beta at best. While some elements of the game are fun, they are extremely overshadowed by the bugs and lack of depth. I think eventually the game will be patched to make it playable but right now the issues make it boring and frustrating. Also this is a direct console port game so expect it to look like a game from 1999 not a current title.… Expand
  30. mg83
    Apr 21, 2013
    3
    I expected so much more from Trion, but this game is flat out terrible. Bland environments, clunky user interface, laughable AI, boring quests and a completely unimaginative EGO "skill tree." It's sad too because I paid $100 for the special edition, figuring it COULDN'T be that bad. Well it is. There are more bugs with the game, then there are "bugs" in the game. Maybe they'll turn thingsI expected so much more from Trion, but this game is flat out terrible. Bland environments, clunky user interface, laughable AI, boring quests and a completely unimaginative EGO "skill tree." It's sad too because I paid $100 for the special edition, figuring it COULDN'T be that bad. Well it is. There are more bugs with the game, then there are "bugs" in the game. Maybe they'll turn things around? Right now this game wreaks of some F2P crap.

    Weapons and gear disappear or play hide and seek between logins, load outs get screwed up, EGO gets reset, quests are bugged. Poor explanation of gear stats. I wanted this game to be good, I really did. Maybe it gets better in the future. As of right now, don't waste your time until some SERIOUS changes are made. This needs a lot more than "Tuesday downtime" type patches. I'll check the progress periodically so my $100 wasn't in vain.    … Expand
prev
Page:

Awards & Rankings

38
#38 Most Discussed PC Game of 2013
91
#91 Most Shared PC Game of 2013

Critic Reviews

All reviews »
Metascore
64

Mixed or average reviews - based on 40 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 5 out of 40
  2. Mixed: 33 out of 40
  3. Negative: 2 out of 40
  1. Level7.nu
    Sep 10, 2013
    50
    Defiance may be an ambitious project. Linking an online action game with a TV-series is a smart idea but one that here mostly comes of as a mere gimmick. The story is unengaging and the action mediocre and monotonous. Not to say anything about the myriad of bugs that utterly destroys the experience.
    Read full review
  2. PC Master (Greece)
    Jun 5, 2013
    89
    It’s an addictive game that seems to become even better as you play. If it keeps getting the right support and if the tie-in with the TV series proves successful, we might have a game that will keep us occupied for a lengthy amount of time. [May 2013]
  3. PC PowerPlay
    Jun 4, 2013
    60
    If Trion can introduce better quest design, this will be a winner. [June 2013, p.88]
See all critic reviews »