General Feedback and Game Direction

Hey Crowbar Collective Team,

I’ve been with you guys since the first play test, and I have to say the gameplay is overall improving from each iteration. So great job focusing on the gameplay and noticeably improving it.

——- Here’s some bugs I found during the test:
-Airport Map will sometimes soft-lock progression due to doors locking when there should be a way out. I’m sure you’re aware of this anyway since I’ve seen other reports.

-Picking up weapons from enemies can sometimes result in a -1 ammo count. Of course the weapon wont fire but it’s obviously not supposed to be in the negative.

-One mission had the extraction point event empty, no enemies spawned and we just sat there. It was on Oil Rig, and it was one of the merc killing special maps near the end of the campaign.

-When you die and return to a mission, your Glock (Starter Pistol) will be in your inventory a second time, though you can’t get rid of it or sell it. I believe this is only if you go into the mission with a glock and then die. Doesn’t seem to happen with other handguns.

—— Now here’s some gameplay and direction feedback:

Game still feels torn between what it wants to be
The game itself is great, but it should really have character it’s proud of. It wants to be stealth, but doesn’t have the elements to support it. It wants to be action, but has strange items like the pepper ball gun and the taser which don’t fit at all.
Truly, what are the non-lethal weapons in the game for? I mean you’re not a police force, and you aren’t graded on how many mercs you might kill. They are insanely powerful and give you a ton of money when used, why wouldn’t you use non-lethal weapons? They have no downside at all! And in the case of morality or saving lives, they don’t fit the narrative or theme of the game.
The same goes for the tools, most of which are completely irrelevant to the game itself. The lock pick? The door cam? What is even the point of anything stealth related, since most enemies don’t have any kind of AI actions to properly react to stealth in the game anyway. Do you get more points for stealth kills? No. What is the point of stealth? Who are you hiding from? What is the risk/danger of being caught?

I believe this game should be a fun “break-in-and-kick-ass" kind of game where you move quickly clearing out the threats from the map and finishing the objective.

Enemies need uniformity

The enemies all look like they are from different factions. I think the enemies should be gangs who all operate similarly. For instances the Berserker looks like he could be from a gang of drug fiends, where all of them dress in wild EDM looking clothing and have a variety of guns and actions they perform. The Soldier looks like he comes from a private military organization, and should be with a group of military types who all have higher levels of training and better weapons. See the picture I’m trying to paint? I understand this would require more work from your team as far as enemy models go, but it would be so much cooler to have to face random factions as you progress through your campaign, each with their own different actions and AI that the player has to adapt to.

Those are the two main feedback points I thought might help. I have worked for 2K Games in the past and have tested many of their titles. Of course, the feedback is simply that, feedback. If none of what I said fits the vision of your game, I am by no means attempting to take away from that. I just want this game to succeed and develop into something great!

Take care and enjoy the rest of your development time. :)