Preview: ‘XDefiant’ blends ‘Call of Duty’ action with elements of ‘Overwatch’

For a long time, Activision has dominated the online shooter space with “Call of Duty.” It’s consistently among the top-selling games, and it’s synonymous with a certain style of combat. Players run around enclosed arenas, fragging each other, trying to win a match and improve their KDR.

With “Call of Duty” sucking so much oxygen in the genre, is there room for another fast-paced military shooter? Ubisoft think so and it’s taking a different tack for the project by creating a high-quality, free-to-play first-person shooter.

“XDefiant” has the run-and-gun feel of comparable shooters. Movement feels responsive and clean without being too complex. The guns have a distinct feel and roles. AR-15-style rifles dominate at medium ranges while shotguns are great up close and in narrow hallways. But the element that separates Ubisoft’s upcoming online shooter from others is its Faction system.

It’s not as complicated as it sounds. Factions are actually just another way of describing archetypes, or roles in a shooter. “XDefiant” brings characters from other Ubisoft titles and has them interact in this universe. The initial teams are the following:

• Liberated — The resistance fighters from “Far Cry 6” make the whole team better using BioVida. They essentially have a heal.
• Phantoms — The special ops forces from “Tom Clancy’s Ghost Recon” are the tankiest of the factions.
• Echelon — The spies and secret agents from “Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell” have a cloak and excel at stealth. They keep enemies off balance.
• Cleaners — The sanitation workers-turned-gang from “Tom Clancy’s The Division” specialize area denial and accomplish their aims with fire.
• “DedSec” – The hacktivist group from “Watch Dogs” use their computer expertise to scramble the heads-up display of their enemies and turn off special abilities.

Any of the Factions can use the 24 weapons available at launch and these weapons have 40 available attachments. On top of that, each Faction has two abilities and an ultimate that takes a while to generate but has the ability to flip a skirmish.

AN “OVERWATCH” FEEL
The faction element and 6v6 teamplay give the game a bit of an “Overwatch” feel, but the game is still embedded with the deep customization one would see in “Call of Duty.” It’s an interesting combination. In the upcoming Closed Beta, four of the factions are available. DedSec is locked.

“XDefiant” features 14 maps at the start. They’re taken from different parts of Ubisoft’s universe. Players can duke it out in places such as Echelon HQ from “Splinter Cell” or the Nudleplex from “Watch Dogs.” Times Square has players venturing through New York in a post-apocalyptic “Dollar Flu” hellscape.

FIVE DIFFERENT MODES
The five modes available are Hot Shot, Domination, Occupy, Escort and Zone Control. Hot Shot is similar to “Call of Duty’s” Kill Confirmed except the Hot Shot is the person who collects the most bounties that are dropped when a player dies. The one who has the most is the Hot Shot and shows up on the radar of everyone on screen. They have their stats boosted, but at the same time, they’re a target. Teams have to defend the Hot Shot or attack the player.

Occupy and Domination focus on holding territory while Escort has players protecting a four-legged drone through a map. Speaking of which, the levels are either arena-style or linear. Some modes are geared toward one or the other.

EXPLORING FAMILIAR PLACES
I spent time in Echelon HQ, which is an arena-style map. It’s essentially a rectangle with three lanes and plenty of hallways and blind corners for ambushes. I mostly played Hot Shot on that map. When it came to Times Square, I played Domination where one team was the attacker and the other was the defender. We fought over two control points, and once the attacker won it, they could move on to the next.

Nudle and Showtime are both wide open and distinctly an arena. They have more chaos as the size of the maps are bigger. We played Hot Shot on both maps and the mode just multiplied the chaos.

SOME FREE-TO-PLAY DETAILS
For a Closed Beta, “XDefiant” had a surprising amount of polish. The gunplay and movement were smooth. Players could switch Factions while respawning and pick the role most needed. I gravitated toward Libertad because I could heal myself after being hurt, and that helped out when I was outgunned in a firefight.