If I want to say which of the many new tours in 2023 is my favorite, it must be "Operation Delta". As a player who was fortunate enough to participate in last year's offline tasting, I will never forget the high level of completion and high-quality content displayed in the first test.
Not long ago, "Operation Delta" officially announced that it will start a large-scale PC test called "Codename: Zero" on March 7. In the warm-up stage before the start of the test, the three related *** officially released by the first to be released on station B have all exceeded one million, of which the actual demonstration of the new mode "comprehensive battlefield" is as high as 3.08 million**. It's enough to see how high the expectations of players are for the new content of Operation Delta.
This time, Gyro Jun was also honored to be invited to the "Delta Action" offline pop-up trial event on March 2 to experience it. With less than 5 months to go since the first beta, I can't help but wonder if the enthusiasm for Operation Delta is still there. In such a short period of time, can Linlang Sky bring us new surprises? With this doubt, I came to the event.
Trial Meeting: FPS Player Exchange Meeting
Even though it's early spring, the outside temperature in Shanghai is still a little unbearably low, but that hasn't dampened the enthusiasm of the players. There was a long queue outside the stadium, and people were joining the queue one after another.
The trial is basically divided into four parts: a "dangerous operation" trial from 10:30 to 6 a.m., a new mode experience of "Total Battlefield" will be opened after 6 o'clock, and the R&D team will share the development content in the live sharing session, and finally the highly anticipated exhibition match will be the end of the event.
Because I arrived early, I went to the queue early to mingle with the players to hear what everyone was talking about. After observation, there are players here who are "reminiscing about their youth" for the Delta IP, and there are also many FPS players who have not played the Delta series of games to find resonance in chatting with other games, and there are many pan-users who are attracted by the high quality of the game recording. For example, the boy standing in front of me, he told me that because he had a strong interest in the game after watching the actual record at station B, he wanted to come and play.
Are players satisfied with the experience of this offline trial? Judging by the reaction from the scene, the answer may be yes. Because the atmosphere of communication in the stadium is also very strong, everyone is immersed in the fun of the game.
One of the "big brothers" looked very excited after the game, and when I asked out of curiosity, he said, "It's good that I let my teammates stand in the back, otherwise this wave will be wiped out." He said that he hadn't played FPS games for a long time, and players like him who had to bow their heads to the years couldn't compare to young people in terms of operation, so he couldn't play many popular fast-paced FPS now. But when playing "Dangerous Operations" today, the other two players on the team basically had to follow his command, which made him feel very fulfilled.
In addition to the fun brought by the game, there was also a surprise at the end of the event. Chen He, the owner of Tianba Club and a well-known artist, suddenly appeared at the trial meeting and participated in the official live broadcast confrontation. As a public figure who is often active in the game industry, Chen He is also a veteran game enthusiast. At the game scene, Chen He actively communicated and cooperated with his teammates, showing superb game skills, and the in-game interview also said that the game was really good, presenting a wonderful duel for the audience.
With the end of the event, many players still gathered at the scene, and they could feel that "Operation Delta" had sown a seed of anticipation in the hearts of players.
Where does the fun come from for the new and old gameplay of classic IPs?
For a classic IP with a history of more than 20 years, it goes without saying that "Delta" has the influence of the originator of the category, but it can make players of all audiences so enthusiastic, how can Linlang Tiantian reproduce the fun of this classic IP with today's industry standards? I think I already have the answer after attending today's event.
First of all, Operation Delta was the first to introduce the market's "leading game" - Dangerous Ops mode, which cleverly captures the preferences of today's players. This mode combines the popular evacuation gameplay with the Delta IP, allowing players to explore and obtain resources in the large map, and think about the layout from various aspects such as fighting AI bosses, players, and participating in map missions. While considering the setting that is more in line with the habits of the general public, the team also ensured the hardcore gameplay, and increased the game strategy by introducing the "operator" system.
It can be said that on the basis of the original IP, "Dangerous Action" has optimized and innovated the playing points that have always been favored by FPS players, retaining the characteristics of IP "realistic military" and "multiplayer competition on the battlefield", while allowing players to fully experience diverse content such as exploration, confrontation, and game in one mode, and full of novelty.
And in this test, codename: zero, the team has further enriched the playability of "dangerous operation". A new map, Dam Zero, has been introduced, and even though it is the same mode, the map design focus has changed to bring players a new experience. In addition, this time the game also added the classic elements of the original "swamp crocodile", and launched as many as 16 new guns, and opened the ** modification system, providing more than 60 kinds of accessories at one time, the operator lineup has not been left behind, and a new character "Weilong" has been launched. The amount of new content is enough for players to further experience the charm of "dangerous operation".
However, in order to carry the charm of the IP of "Delta", the reproduction of its classic gameplay is naturally indispensable, which is the focus of this test "all-out battlefield" mode. "Total Battlefield" restores the multiplayer large-scale PvP gameplay of "Delta Special Forces", supports 64v64 100-player confrontation, and allows players to create richer tactical choices by destroying scene elements.
Not only can players experience exciting large-scale gunfights, but they can also control a variety of vehicles including armored vehicles, tanks, ** and ships, covering all three major combat areas of land, sea and air. Greatly improve the variety and fun of battles.
In addition to the gameplay, the "Ember Zone" map of "Total Ops" is also a replica of the popular map cracked 1:1 of "Delta Special Forces: Black Hawk Down". After more than 20 years, this once popular map is re-presented to players with a new look this year, and I believe it will also evoke good memories for countless old players.
While paying tribute to the classics, the official also created an original map "Climbing", using the classic beach landing battle scene to bring players the fun of sea combat.
Compared with "dangerous operations", the atmosphere of "all-out war" is more entertaining than the atmosphere of large-scale battlefield brawl and the combat covering land, sea and air, so that FPS hard-working people can also get fun from it, and the needs of different players are taken into account while reproducing feelings.
In the game, we can also clearly feel the team's pursuit of high quality, and the most intuitive manifestation is the significant improvement in the texture and immersion of the game screen. It is reported that in response to the feedback from the players of the first test, the development team has made special improvements to the game scene, color and other issues.
In less than 5 months, "Operation Delta" has achieved comprehensive progress towards high-quality products in terms of content, gameplay, and art, and has achieved innovative optimization that satisfies players on the basis of classics. This also reveals that it is difficult to achieve such a finished product in a short period of time without a team that is truly deeply involved in FPS and understands the essence of Delta IP.
A real "player" makes a good game
When I first participated in the trial of Operation Delta, I had doubts about the strategic direction of simultaneous development and global distribution without market validation, but where did their confidence come from? At that time, the producer shadow said, ** Yu Linlang Tiantian this team. But at that time, I only knew that this was a team of experienced FPS developers.
It wasn't until today's live sharing session, when the development team went offline to further communicate with players, that I deeply realized that this team is not only technically excellent, but more importantly, they are a group of loyal fans who love FPS and Delta IP, and know how to connect with players, which is the foundation of their confidence.
To give a notable example, during the sharing session, a planner took the stage dressed in a contestant uniform, and his other identity is a former PUBG pro player Fuge. From e-sports master to planner, Fuge shared his own growth process.
Similarly, R&D also introduced the development content of the game content to players, and professionally shared the gameplay of gun modification and the design ideas of operators. First of all, the depth and breadth of gun modification are explained in detail, covering many aspects such as accessory types, attribute systems, parameter adjustments, functional characteristics, etc., providing each player with a high degree of freedom of personalized selection.
Firearm modification instruction.
Later, he showed how to achieve a combination of teamwork and tactical strategy through operator design, which is lacking in other evacuation FPS games on the market. It can be seen that the R&D team is well aware of the pain points of FPS players and responds to them one by one.
The game's master planner also teaches players some practical combat skills. Don't look at it as theoretical knowledge, planning is actually a real skill. In the evening exhibition match, the game planner will face off against the pros. Even in the face of professional players, the planning team did not fall behind and showed a lot of dazzling operations.
Mastermind game comprehension.
At the sharing meeting, the official also released easter eggs that only the old delta er can understand, and the firearm animation was truly restored. Further highlight the team's knowledge of Delta IP. Combined with the reproduction of the classic gameplay of "Total Battlefield", the team not only showed respect for the classics, but also injected their own unique insights and emotions into the IP. In the future, the quality of Operation Delta Operation's "single-player campaign" can at least be expected with confidence.
It can be said that the developers in Linlang Sky are not only developers, but also real gamers. They go deep into the player circle, understand the pain points of FPS players, understand the needs of players, and understand the charm of Delta IP. It is precisely because of this that the game has quickly gained wide recognition and continuous followers. This recognition resonates not only in the positive feedback from players on the game, but also in the team's ability to absorb players' suggestions in a timely and effective manner, forming a virtuous circle of two-way interaction.
This demo is a testament to the quality of the game, and a demonstration of the game's development team's deep understanding and respect for the needs of players. You can feel that they are eager to make Operation Delta the best in the industry and strive to achieve the "best" standard. If we can continue to maintain this enthusiasm and focus, the future of the FPS market may really change.