We've said it before and we'll say it again - 'Titanfall 2' is up there as the best first-person shooter released on consoles in the past decade.
Released back in 2016, 'Titanfall 2' was somewhat eclipsed by 'Battlefield I' on its release, but kept a loyal player base which kept its multiplayer going for the past three years. The game was announced as part of December's PS Plus, and if you've been looking for an excuse to either play it for the first time or just to get back into it, now's your chance.
Far and away, the thing that people talk about in 'Titanfall 2' is its single-player campaign. What it does so well, however, is that it doesn't necessarily require you to have played the first one. You can pick up the basic gist of the story - future, giant mechs called Titans, evil corporation trying to mine planets, they've got some kind of superweapon - within the first mission.
Where it develops into something truly special is the bond you develop with your Titan, named BT-7274. It's telling that the writers of the game tried to hark back to the likes of 'Lethal Weapon' for the dynamic, and it works. When your Titan is off running around and you're following along side him, the partnership feels real. Likewise, the thumbs up gesture he gives throughout evokes the likes of 'Top Gun' - not to mention that BT-7274 refers to you as "Pilot" throughout the game.
Aside from borrowing liberally from '80s action movies - even one of the enemy Titan pilots is called Richter, and speaks like Arnold Schwarzenegger - what 'Titanfall 2' does so well is really capture the frenetic energy of first-person shooters without sacrificing gameplay or challenge. The same goes for the multiplayer, which has a fantastically balanced matchmaking system in place so you're never going to be outranked too badly in a game.
'Titanfall 2' is available for free on PS Plus from tomorrow, December 1st, until December 31st.
