Though
Warpath offers a single-player game, it is meant primarily as an online experience rather than a single-player one. So, if you’re not an online gamer or don’t have a Live account, you should probably stop reading now.
The game’s initial setup places three opposing factions on a planet, each battling for control. The Ohm want to strip the resource-rich planet for everything they can, while the Kovos seek to protect the planet, which they see as a holy land. This leaves the Coalition stuck in the middle as they just want to settle down and make the planet home. Of course, you won’t get any of this background information in-game seeing as how there isn’t much of a story to take you through the single-player game. Instead, you select hexes from a map and compete in a number of match types. So, while it makes for good practice, it doesn’t offer a worthwhile experience.
One of the game’s key flaws is that very little effort is made to distinguish one faction from another. The only real difference is their appearance and weapons – but even here, most weapons have comparable counterparts. So, while a weapon may handle a little differently, I never felt like one group was better at one aspect while weak in another. What I did like was the weapon upgrade system, which allows you to upgrade your weapon on the fly after collecting upgrades on the battlefield. During battles, you also have access to three vehicles, though their presence doesn’t add much to the game and frankly, the use of vehicles has been implemented better in other games.
On the multiplayer side, Warpath offers four match types with support for up to 16 players. Only one of the match types, Frontline Assault, really tries to break away from the standard FPS multiplayer offerings. The premise behind Frontline Assault is to capture your opponent’s base while keeping your own safe. With a well-coordinated group, this can be a fun experience. Unfortunately, most games quickly became a case of too many chiefs and not enough Indians - assuming you can find a big enough game to participate in. Capture the Flag and Deathmatches round out the multiplayer modes.
