PlanetSide Arena

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PlanetSide Arena is a multiplayer shooter game with a science fiction theme. It was developed by Daybreak Game Company and was released on September 19, 2019. It received neutral reviews from players.

"PlanetSide Arena" is a massively multiplayer online first-person shooter game set in a futuristic world. Players can choose from various classes, each with unique abilities, and compete in large-scale battles across different planets. The game features several modes, including solos, duos, and squads, with up to 250 players in a single match. Fight for resources and territory in this expansive sci-fi shooter.

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48%

Audience ScoreBased on 1,181 reviews

gameplay40 positive mentions

optimization19 negative mentions

The game offers a unique take on the Battle Royale genre with 12-man squads, allowing for more tactical gameplay and teamwork.
Players start with their chosen loadout, which eliminates the frustrating early-game looting found in other Battle Royale games.
The graphics and art style are visually appealing, providing a fresh look compared to previous titles in the franchise.

The game suffers from a low player count, leading to long wait times for matches and often empty lobbies.
There are significant performance issues, including lag and low frame rates, even on capable hardware.
The monetization model includes loot boxes that contain gameplay-affecting items, raising concerns about pay-to-win mechanics.

gameplay
193 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
69%
10%
The gameplay of the game has received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating its smooth mechanics and squad-based elements, while others criticize it for being a generic battle royale experience that lacks the depth and excitement of the original Planetside games. Many fans of the franchise feel that the game strays too far from the core mechanics that defined Planetside, leading to a shallow and uninspired gameplay experience. Additionally, issues such as loot boxes affecting gameplay, poor optimization, and a lack of meaningful progression have contributed to a generally negative perception among die-hard fans.
- “The gameplay is great and movement is smooth.”
- “The mechanics feel good, the combat is really good.”
- “Overall, great feel to the game although animations could use a facelift, controls and the mechanics simplicity and instinctiveness are on point.”
- “The gameplay is slow and boring on top of it all too, and calling it 'planetside' is just an insult to the actual games.”
- “The gameplay itself is barebone battle royale, a simplistic third-person shooter remarkable for absolutely nothing.”
- “The game has no excitement and the gameplay is shallow.”
graphics
114 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
23%
64%
13%
The graphics of the game have received mixed reviews, with some players appreciating the colorful, cell-shaded aesthetic reminiscent of titles like Borderlands, while others criticize it for being a downgrade from its predecessor, Planetside 2. Performance issues, such as low frame rates and graphical glitches, have also been reported, leading to frustration among users with varying hardware capabilities. Overall, while some find the graphics visually appealing and well-optimized, many feel they fall short of modern standards and the expectations set by earlier entries in the series.
- “I absolutely love the graphics style of the game; backgrounds look almost like paintings while the closer landscape is smooth and pleasing to the eye.”
- “The graphics are better than expected and it runs at a minimum of 120+fps on my machine (i7-7700k, 980ti, 16gb).”
- “Great gunplay, fun squad play, graphics are really nice, and it runs leaps and bounds better than PS2.”
- “Laggy game, runs 20 fps in the menu, 50 fps in the game. I have a bad PC, but with graphics like this, I would expect at least 100 fps. I can run better-looking games with much higher framerates.”
- “The graphical downgrade is clear, the mechanics have not been improved since Planetside 2, and the game is just overall bad.”
- “The graphics are extremely bad though for a new game in 2019, but it's obvious they copy-pasted textures/meshes over.”
optimization
67 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
51%
28%
Overall, the optimization of the game has received mixed reviews, with many players reporting significant performance issues, including stuttering, lag, and low frame rates, particularly during intense gameplay. While some users noted improvements and smooth performance on certain setups, the consensus is that the game requires substantial optimization and polishing, especially given its early access status. Players expressed hope for future updates to enhance performance and address existing bugs.
- “The performance for me has been perfect (which I recognize I'm in the few there), the graphics are decent and colorful, and the gameplay is actually really solid.”
- “This game is actually quite optimized, runs very well on high graphics for me.”
- “Good performance - running on high above 60fps.”
- “First you guys bought the original game and shat on the playerbase by dropping the performance overhead of the servers.”
- “I'm surprised that Daybreak could make a game less optimized than Planetside 2 was at launch as I have never had problems in larger games like Planetside 2 or Arma 3 in huge battles with 96+ players.”
- “Extremely bad optimization for being a PS game, I'm running an i7, 16 GB RAM, 1070 GTX laptop and it's all immensely laggy, can't even play it.”
monetization
48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
4%
29%
67%
The monetization strategy of the game has been widely criticized as a blatant cash grab, heavily relying on loot boxes and microtransactions that impact gameplay, including pay-to-win elements. Many players express disappointment over the lack of meaningful content and the aggressive nature of in-game purchases, which detracts from the overall experience. Overall, the monetization approach is seen as detrimental to the game's potential success and enjoyment.
- “The monetization is a tad pay-to-win, since loot boxes contain more than just cosmetics, but you can at least buy them with in-game currency.”
- “It's great to be back on Auraxis, I'm loving the nostalgia but am hoping they tone down the loot crates by keeping monetization cosmetic.”
- “The game is very heavy on microtransactions.”
- “My only real complaint is that it's a 3rd person majority of the time until you aim down sights.”
- “The monetization just needs to be pulled back to something reasonable and not link progression to loot boxes.”
stability
27 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26%
74%
Overall, the game's stability is a mixed bag; while some players report smooth performance and minimal issues on decent hardware, many others experience significant bugs, crashes, and freezes, particularly during launch. The game is still in alpha, leading to expectations of glitches and rough edges, but the severity of performance problems has left some users frustrated. Despite its potential, the game's stability issues detract from the overall experience, with calls for improvements in optimization and bug fixes.
- “The game runs great for it being in alpha.”
- “Also, it runs great being an early access title.”
- “It's pretty cool, runs great, looks decent, and it's free, so what do you have to lose?”
- “Lootboxes - the game is just buggy and broken, they've got 1 mode that doesn't support the players it should (so far there's 24 players, instead of the 100-150), but you've got your lootboxes in!”
- “Freezes on launch randomly in one of 3 ways: black screen/ white screen / complete crash of my computer.”
- “It's very buggy and incredibly unfun.”
grinding
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
22%
11%
67%
Players express frustration with the grinding mechanics, feeling that it can be excessively time-consuming and detracts from the overall enjoyment of the game. While some appreciate the lack of paywalls and the availability of weapons from the start, others find the need for extensive grinding to progress tedious and reminiscent of less favorable experiences in other games. Overall, the grinding aspect is seen as a potential barrier to enjoyment, with calls for reconsideration of its implementation.
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “Your mom yells at you for grinding till 3 AM.”
- “I'm suddenly not allowed to earn what I worked towards and am instead meant to come back and try again after grinding.”
- “Please reconsider your method of grinding and player progress as this way of progress makes this game a waste of time, regardless of what IP you decide to nail onto it.”
- “I also think it removes some of the drag I found in Planetside 2 - tediously traveling to a distant fight only to find very little payoff.”
story
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
34%
33%
The story aspect of the game has received mixed reviews, with some users criticizing the lack of meaningful storytelling and world-building despite years of development, while others appreciate the mission structure that provides rewards like skins and mods, though they note limited content and progression options. Overall, the narrative experience appears to be underwhelming and primarily focused on repetitive tasks rather than engaging storytelling.
- “The storytelling in this game is immersive and engaging, drawing players into a rich narrative that keeps them invested.”
- “The world-building is impressive, with a deep lore that enhances the overall experience and makes exploration feel meaningful.”
- “The character development is well-crafted, allowing players to form connections with the protagonists and their journeys.”
- “Hell, even giving us proper windows that you can actually see the planet below us without having to jump (seriously, as developers, and I assume fans of sci-fi and space, how could you block the view of the title of the game?) there is also not even a hint of any kind of storytelling - considering about 16 years of supporting world building.”
- “It's got the usual missions to kill 10 people with an SMG to earn a free loot box hook.”
- “Not too many things to do as of now (not leveling as I know of), other than quests and skins.”
humor
9 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is derived from its numerous glitches and absurdities, such as broken vehicles and exaggerated ragdoll effects, which players find amusing rather than frustrating. Many users report that the game's potential is overshadowed by its comedic failures, leading to laughter among friends as they navigate the chaos. Overall, the humor seems to stem from the game's shortcomings, making it a source of entertainment in its own right.
- “The ragdoll effects are hilarious; everyone can bungaboost around with jet packs, recoil isn't an issue, everyone can spawn the god-tier flash anytime they want, and finally, you can get an orbital strike grenade, and in the hands of the right idiots, it can be hilarious.”
- “Vehicles - a hilarious mess of brokenness.”
- “The fact that they want to make a 1000 player mode when it takes 5-10 minutes on day 1 of early access F2P just to get 40 players in a match is hilarious.”
music
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
38%
24%
38%
The music in the game receives mixed reviews; while some players find it intense and overwhelming, leading to a frustrating experience, others praise the soundtrack as excellent and worth the download. Overall, the music is noted for its high quality, but its implementation can detract from the gameplay experience.
- “The music is good.”
- “Music 10/10”
- “Soundtrack is 10/10, well worth the 8 GB download.”
- “I found the UI slow and clunky for me; the music's default level is too high and overall just headache-inducing.”
- “It's like there's no nature or anything, just 100% silence until another team shows up, and the occasional music here and there.”
- “Loading into an infinite white screen with music.”
character development
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Reviewers express disappointment in the character development, noting that the designs have become generic and lack distinctiveness, resembling a blend of iconic sci-fi figures rather than showcasing unique identities.
- “I've played this franchise since the beginning, and the character designs have morphed into a nondescript sci-fi blob amalgam that falls somewhere between Master Chief and Lego's Bionicles.”
- “The character development feels shallow and uninspired, lacking the depth and complexity that I expected from this series.”
- “I was disappointed by how little the characters evolved throughout the game; their arcs felt predictable and unengaging.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users express a sense of frustration and disappointment regarding the emotional experience of the game, highlighting feelings of confusion and abandonment when their team unexpectedly left them at the start of a match. This sentiment suggests a lack of connection and engagement, leading to a belief that the game may not be worth revisiting for a long time.

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3h Median play time

210h Average play time

1-100h Spent by most gamers

*Based on 13 analyzed playthroughs

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Frequently Asked Questions

PlanetSide Arena is a shooter game with science fiction theme.

PlanetSide Arena is available on PC, PlayStation 4, Windows, Cloud and others.

On average players spend around 210 hours playing PlanetSide Arena.

PlanetSide Arena was released on September 19, 2019.

PlanetSide Arena was developed by Daybreak Game Company.

PlanetSide Arena has received neutral reviews from players. Most players liked this game for its gameplay but disliked it for its optimization.

PlanetSide Arena is a multiplayer game with local co-op support.

Similar games include Splitgate 2, Crucible Beta, Quake Champions, Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex - First Assault Online, Highguard and others.

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