Section 8

Section 8 is a fairly traditional FPS, featuring a couple of interesting points (the launch phase and device management). The story mode is too short, only eight missions, while the online multiplayer mode seems to be fun, with forty players and eighteen maps. Definitely not the best FPS around.

Section 8 is a fun game and immediate. Do not expect anything more. If we want to chase enemies and shoot carelessly is an excellent title for a few hours. Then the boredom and repetitiveness will force us to abandon this title.

Ultra-generic. [Dec 2009, p.99]

Lots of tactical freedom. [Christmas 2009, p.89]

Slick sci-fi palettes, strong sound design and stable performance pull you into Section 8. Sub-orbital drops, zippy character movement and effortless mission tracking make navigation dynamic and fun. A scarcely adequate campaign means life for S8 proceeds online, where teamplay is rewarding, the loadout system is fairly nuanced, and both 360 and PC enjoy detailed multiplayer portals.

If TimeGate Studios had a desire (time, money, talent), here’s what it could have done to turn Section 8 into a proper game: expand its story, make a single-player campaign a la Tribes: Vengeance instead of a humdrum tutorial, improve visuals, introduce additional gameplay modes, add vehicles and destructible objects. Unfortunately, the final game is just an empty shell.

Section 8 tries to combine with some success many of the best elements of popular multiplayer shooters and boosts the package with rocket-powered action. Unfortunately not many players have found the game. [Nov 2010]

This game is almost strictly a multiplayer experience. As such, you're not getting a whole lot of value for your money. That said, the competitive online play will be worth the price of admission for many.

Section 8 is capable of scintillating multiplayer drama, and it is impeccably solid throughout. I've had some maginficent tooth-and-nail matches, which is all I can really ask for. For all the offbeat design decisions and mechanistic foibles, I've been enjoying the hell out of it.

If you're willing to put in some time to learn the game's systems and are eager to work as part of a team, then it's easy to have a good time with this one.

All the little things that game incorporates into combat, like the drop ship spawning, the customizable load outs, the base control with automated defenses, and the various modules, keep Section 8 from being a bland multiplayer shooter, and help it stand out against the pack of Halo's and Call of Duty's that currently populate the system.

There are some neat aspects of Section 8 and some good ideas that keep the game from getting too straightforward. But it feels like half of a game.

With a few more weapon types and vehicles that actually worked, Section 8 could have been a lot more exciting. As it is, this is a satisfying take on the genre that makes up in fun what it lacks in innovation.

Section 8 delivers a good multiplayer online action game, but it's just an average game. The lack of a good single player campaign, the unbalanced weapon system, and the bad use of the jetpack are its main flaws. Overall, at least, it's interesting and fun to play.

Pretty innovative and very interesting in its multiplayer side. Just for hardcore fans of first person shooters.

The lack of a proper single-player experience (it's an extended multiplayer tutorial and nothing else) and the poor graphics will prevent Section 8 from achieving huge success and high review scores, but the core multiplayer gameplay should ensure a healthy and loyal following for a while at least.

The nice backend clan support is wasted since the game just isn’t much fun to play. The shooting lacks the high-intensity lethality of Counter-Strike, the lightning-paced speed of Tribes, and the great cooperative mechanics of Battlefield. You won’t spit this hamburger out, but you probably won’t tell your friends about it, either. [Oct 2009, p.92]

All in all this is a great game with solid gameplay, beautiful worlds, tons of customization, and an excellent multiplayer component.

Whilst Section 8 may not be revolutionary, it’s a refreshing take on the genre.

Has a scarce story mode and an interesting multiplayer, but uneven results in global.

It is good game, not a great game; fortunately the sum of its parts don't equal the end product. If you can get by the remedial graphics and sound, you could have some hardcore gaming in store.

It may be called like a hard disk defrag program, but it's a fast multi-player shooter The single player campaign can't keep up with the fast multi-player battles, but it's just there to prepare you for the real battles with real people.

Unfortunately, I suspect that the initial impressions of Section 8 will not be positive for many due to the slightly odd setup system, fairly complex character customization system and bland single player campaign. This is fair to a certain extent as all of these are valid issues but once you become accustomed to the game it really does offer an awful lot of value.

Satisfying combat and interesting mission structure saves this from the yawns of a thousand identikit space marines. [Nov 2009, p.102]

In the end though, barring the tactical possibilities offered by the suit modules and the burn-in spawn, Section 8 isn’t all that different from other similar titles. It’s true that the DCMs make every match an interesting one, but the fact that you depend on your teammates more than usual will be the reason you’ll either fall in love with it, or ignore it completely. It all comes down to what you like most.

A fun objective-focused shooter with a good premise and ideas, but less satisfying core combat. [Issue#25, p.46]

We just hope that Timegate manages to get more time and liberty for their next multiplayer project, as the campaign present on Section 8 is just terrible.

And so the problem, it's an online game without much of an online community. Section 8 might be a rather unimaginative game, it may very well borrow many of it's ideas from more established franchises but it's not without it's own merits.

The only aspect of Section 8 that truly stands out is how you spawn into the map, leaving the rest of the gameplay to reside in more of the tried-and-true territory established by previous games in the genre.