If you take the fast-paced competitive action of a shooter and wrapped up included anime-style robots and weapons, then you'd end up with Exteel. NCsoft's free online game pits players against each other in non-stop PvP (player verses player) action as they pilot giant robots called Mechanaughts. There's no "overworld" or role-playing element to speak of except for a chat lobby, and although some maps support sixteen players, most matches are limited to eight. So, it's not exactly a massively-multiplayer online (MMO) game. Exteel has more in common with the Unreal Tournament games than it does World of Warcraft. Players fight to earn points for robot parts, weapons and repairs, then head back into the arena to fight some more.

Apart from the tutorial and a pathetic practice mode, where dummy drones stand around without attacking, there's no solo experience to speak of. So, anyone getting into Exteel should be fans of player-based competition. Although the "Last Stand" mode tests to see how long a team can hold their control points against non-stop waves of enemies, it's the only one that doesn't pit players against each other. Racking up high kill scores and ranking high in matches earn points used to purchase upgrades. Fighting will also level up the pilot, earning points for extra health, energy, etc.

Although Exteel has a wide variety of guns separated by damage potential, range and firing rate, a lot of the strategy goes out the window once matches start. Maps are generally small, and few have good spots for snipers to perch on, greatly diminishing the usefulness of long-range rifles. The small selection of game modes, which are mainly deathmatch games (with the exception of Last Stand), don't offer any big surprises or creativity. Likewise, the arenas are attractive, nicely animated and multi-tiered, but differ only in appearance, with no environmental hazards or traps to take advantage of.

We didn't have much trouble getting games started, since the lobbies are well populated and a "Quick Match" button automatically puts players into games. Any sense of strategy Exteel tries to promote with all its customization options go out the window once the match starts. For the most part, players simply charge at each other, guns blazing, until their weapons overheat. Then they switch over to swords, which do heavy area strikes, until someone blows up. Gamers can purchase special moves to help mix up the fighting, but they're costly and all have 30-day expirations, requiring players to constantly invest in combat moves. Although the skills are nicely animated and look like they do great damage, there's no way to test one out except through buying it. However, all the fast-paced fun gets undermined by the noticeable lag. Mechanaughts will continue to fire their pistols for a second or two after letting go of the mouse button, making it difficult to time overheating, and sometimes avatars will be unresponsive when trying to escape or raise a shield for defense, which takes away from the lightening pace Exteel demands.

New parts and items are pricey, especially special components that repair Mechanaughts and their equipment while in the hangar, nudging players to spend a few real-world dollars that the game converts into NCcoins - a special secondary currency. However, there aren't many items that take NCcoins, which means there's no escape from combat. Although players can purchase certain items using NCcoins, and buying repair points is much faster than earning them, the currency's usefulness is very limited.

Yet, there's no overlooking the fact that Exteel is free to download and play. Players don't even have to worry about special subscription benefits, because there are no subscriptions, only NCcoin equipment. On the other hand, the game also lacks a few key components, like a friends or clan list. But Exteel doesn't try to promote any kind of long-term commitment. There may be some hardcore Mechanaught enthusiasts out there, but the fast-paced fighting is best served in short doses.

Our Final ScoreOK

What did you think of this game? Post Your Own Review