Verdun is a first person shooter that is set during the campaign of the Western front in Europe during the First World War. Verdun is a multiplayer only game that has a generally low population in the game. Generally there are 180 people playing at any one time. Although on the weekends there is more people playing. But, it doesn’t have more than 250 on the game generally speaking.
Whilst this game has a small player base I think that Verdun is still a fun game. Although, whilst it seems bad that this game does have a small player base. On the other hand in a sense it is a good thing. The first good thing is that there are fewer idiots which play on the game. Secondly there is a focus on actually playing the game co operatively in order to succeed. Content wise there is a decent selection of maps to play on with 4 different game modes to play upon.
Firstly you have Frontlines mode in which you defend a trench from enemy players/attack an enemy trench. This is the most played upon game style and most games with active players play on this mode. Secondly you have Attrition which is basically a team death match mode with limited respawns for each team. This mode is ok, it does what it says on the tin but hardly anyone plays on this mode. One thing I do like about this mode is that you get to choose a primary and secondary weapon, and customise it with attachments creating your own loadout.
Thirdly there is a rifle based death match mode which is a deathmatch mode where everyone has a bolt action rifle. Lastly there is squad defense in which upto 4 players are in a squad of their choosing. Then the squad must defend themselves from waves of ai enemies until they fail to do so/quit the game.
I like how there is individual units and factions of soldiers that fought in the battlefield of verdun. Each with their own purposes such as scouts,machine gunners and more. With each unit/squad member having intended play styles and unique items to use based upon their classes. There is even being given what equipment they had at a specific year of the war depending how far you get in game. On frontlines mode this is ingrained even more as the game also provides 3 different loadout options. Each loadout is designed with a different purpose.
Take the fusilier class as an example of this. The first loadout that you have is a lebel which is a bolt action rifle. This rifle has an 8 round magazine, a bayonet you also get a grenade too. This loadout is good for general purpose use. However, outside of this the only real advantage of this loadout is the grenade if you’re attacking. The second loadout is a Fusil RSC which is a 5 round semi automatic rifle with a bayonet. The best part of this loadout is the rifle as it has a superior fire rate to the other rifles. Consequently you get nothing else with this loadout.
The last loadout is a lebel that has been fitted with a scope. This loadout is the best for long range scouting/picking off targets from a distance. Outside of long range combat this loadout is poor and has little use. Since the other loadouts give you an edge during close/mid range combat.
Unlike other games of this genre this is a realism based game. This means that it is slightly more realistic than other games in the genre. One of the many mechanics of realism that directly affects players is the effect of weapon ranges and bullet gravity is now a factor when firing weapons. In this game teamwork plays a bigger part such as you can’t complete objectives without other players. But Verdun isn’t as realistic as other games.
However, with regards to the game mechanics that tries to make the game realistic. I don’t like how you are only allowed to use the equipment you are given when you spawn. This is limiting for many reasons. Mainly because you can’t pick up weapons/ammo from the ground even if the weapon is chambered in the same ammo type. But this is a problem with some classes that have no back up weapon.
One primary example being the sniper which only has 100 rounds to fire. After the sniper has no ammo the sniper is then a sitting duck. Since the sniper doesn’t have any means to find more ammo. Neither is there another weapon for them to use. Whilst you can argue that a melee option on their rifle is available for them to use. It is pointless for a sniper to act like a raider style class when your roles purpose is to take out targets from a distance.
Each game of Verdun varies over time based upon who/what server you’re playing on. Some games are longer than others based on the goals set. Such as one side running out of tickets to respawn. Alternatively, the game ends if time runs out or if one side takes every objective. Lengthwise each game can last for up to 35 minutes. But if you aim on obtaining every single achievement it will take you a long time. Mainly because, there is plenty of grinding involved. Particularly to get some of the xp based achievements. To add to this there is the difficulty of finding people who regularly play the game. Since, in order to complete some of the multiplayer achievements, you need to play with the same people for a decent length of time.
Generally I wouldn’t recommend this game purely due to the fact that it has a limited player base. Furthermore the game provides little in the method of playing with AI. But, if this game is on sale then it may be worth looking at, especially if you have friends to play alongside.
