Channel your inner warrior

Focusing more on the multiplayer mode, For Honor brings old warrior clans to life

Hack-and-slash games have always been popular. And, Dark Souls takes the cake as it’s so punishing, However, Ubisoft’s For Honor aims to topple the former. 

Supporting both singleplayer and multiplayer modes, the game is set in fictional version of the medieval period. There are three playable factions: The Legion, The Chosen and The Warborn. These represent knights, samurai and Vikings, respectively. 

The singleplayer campaign revolves around Apollyon, a warlord who wants to ensure a never-ending conflict ensues among the three factions. The campaign, however, is not thrilling and acts as more of an introduction for the characters. It almost seems as if Ubisoft wants you to focus on the multiplayer mode instead. 

It has linear gameplay, be it singleplayer or multiplayer. Once you choose a faction, you’d have to fight the other two. The singleplayer helps you get the hang of combat and is more of a tutorial. Each faction is divided into four different classes: Vanguard, Assassin, Heavies and Hybrids. 

For Honor has a combat system called the “Art of Battle”. This makes the player enter a duelling mode. You can choose where to position your weapons as to attack the opponent. On-screen hints let you in on the opponent’s weakness and if you choose the correct position, you can block his attacks. The system also lets players decide the strength of each attack. 

The multiplayer mode is highly popular. There are five modes in multiplayer: Dominion, Brawl, Skirmish, Duel and Elimination. Dominion is four-vs-four mode wherein multiple zones in a battlefield need to be captured, while the Brawl mode is a two-vs-two fight that one wins after eliminating the opponent team. Skirmish and Elimination are both four-vs-four modes. But the most popular is the Duel mode. It is, as the name suggests, a one-on-one match where you have to successfully kill your opponent. 

For Honor also has something called the Faction War that lets players across all platforms participate. After each multiplayer match, players are  awarded “War Assets” based on their performance. These “Assets” can be used to defend or attack a territory. These territories are updated every six hours. So you can fight for your faction and make sure it controls most of the map. In return, you can get better quality equipment. 

Overall, For Honor is quite enjoyable. It has its share of kinks when it comes to online matchmaking, but hopefully Ubisoft will iron these out.