XDefiant launched to positivity and constructive criticism from players, but no release is without flaws. The r/XDefiant Subreddit has had plenty of comments regarding some of the mechanics, but one of them certainly needs to be addressed by the developers.
User creepy-uncle-chad posted a meme on the r/XDefiant subreddit that poked fun at something many players are taking issue with. They titled the post “Most of my deaths in this Game,” accompanied by a gif from the movie Wanted, where a character curves a bullet around a corner to hit their target.
While the meme was an exaggeration, there’s plenty of truth behind it. By far the biggest complaint for XDefiant players has been the hit registration. It makes killing enemies ducking into cover easier, but it’s frustrating when you’re under fire.
The replies follow the same thinking, with players calling out XDefiant’s hit registration and desync issues. It feels like it takes an entire magazine to get a kill, whereas you’re killed in seemingly two shots. These issues make the game experience frustrating for players, especially those who aren’t as skilled.
This post is not the only one that has been expressing this sentiment. The Subreddit has multiple posts where players say that the hit registration is terrible, alongside having issues with desync on the servers. Players feel it’s rare to make it through a gunfight and be able to continue into another one.
User Connnooorrr made a post titled “I want to love this game, but it’s starting to get tiring…” where they discuss how much they love the game but highlight some of its flaws. After 22 hours of gameplay, they felt that XDefiant has what it takes to be great, but falls short due to the hit registration and desync issues. Luckily, their post was constructive and suggested fixing the problem before players grow too frustrated.
To make matters worse, there’s a specific class of weapons that leads to the most complaints from the community – snipers. The issues with hit registration feel like they’re scaled up when there’s a sniper aimed at you compared to when it’s an SMG or assault rifle. Not only are the snipers powerful, but they don’t have a good counter.
When you’re in a gunfight with a sniper, you can usually rely on hitting them to throw their aim off. The complaint in XDefiant is that not only can the sniper kill you in a single shot, but they have very slight flinch when they take damage. This means that even while under fire or at close range, snipers can remain ADSed and one-shot enemies.
Combining the issues of hit registration and desync with snipers being too powerful makes for an experience that many players aren’t enjoying. There are plenty of posts by players who are having a great time, but overall, nobody can ignore the truth. If the XDefiant aims to succeed in this landscape, it needs some reworking sooner rather than later.
