Titanfall 2 is free to play this weekend on Steam
See what you mech of it.
If you're the kind of person that lists big stompy robots, feisty FPS action, and parkour as three of their favourite things, then you've almost certainly already played Respawn Entertainment's Apex Legends pre-cursor, Titanfall 2. But if you somehow haven't, then you can do that very thing for free this weekend on Steam.
Titanfall 2 released back in 2016 to much acclaim (its commercial reception was less favourable, perhaps due to publisher EA famously dubious decision to wedge its release between Battlefield 1 and Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare), with ample praise piled on the first-person shooter's sterling blend of the aforementioned robots, guns, and zippy traversal.
It's biggest surprise, however, came in the form of a brisk but immensely entertaining single-player campaign. "Like the best Mario games," enthused Eurogamer's Essential review, "Titanfall 2 picks a trick, themes an entire level around it, and then drops it the second it threatens to become overfamiliar. And just like Mario, it's all backed up by those rock-solid fundamentals that mean when you are just in firefights, or are asked to navigate a chasm using wall-running, everything feels nigh-on flawless."
And its multiplayer - unsurprisingly given the strength of its predecessor - is no slouch either, with Eurogamer calling it a "best-in-class" experience. "It's truly unlike anything else you can feel in a competitive shooter," wrote contributor Jon Denton, "and Respawn has only amped up that rush. No other shooter feels this compelling. No other shooter fires me up like Titanfall 2."
All of which is to say that Titanfall 2 is good and you should check it out during its free weekend if you haven't already - something you can do right now until 6pm on Monday, 3rd May.
Titanfall 2 has been having something of a resurgence, following EA's decision to start selling the game again on Steam. It's not all been smooth sailing, mind - Respawn only recently pledged to tackle the DDOS attacks that have plaguing the online portion for years - but that didn't stop Titanfall 2 from reaching its highest ever peak player count on Steam last week.
Titanfall 2's free weekend has been perfectly timed, of course; next week's launch of Apex Legends' newest season will bring the two universe-sharing games closer together than ever before, with new hero Valkyrie the daughter of Titanfall 2 antagonist Viper - laying out a lore trail that might lead a few curious souls to discover those big stompy robot of old.