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Later this month Respawn Entertainment will roll out the first DLC expansion for their multiplayer shooter Titanfall called Expedition. It promises to add three new maps to the fold, each building off the base game's central concept of technology fused with nature.
Having already detailed two of the Expedition DLC's maps, Runoff and War Games, it was time for Respawn Entertainment to spill the beans on the final map, called Swampland. Swampland is easily one of the more unique offerings in the entirety of Titanfall's map selection, and it all started with a very simple idea.
As Level Designer Chris Dionne explains in a blog on Titanfall's official site, the early ideas for Swampland were conceived back in 2011. Someone on the development team said, "Make an MP level in a swamp," and so the team got to work on it.
However, Swampland's early iterations never quite came together in time to make Titanfall's March release, and was nothing more than a flat level with a yellowy fog and some tall redwoods.
Post-launch, however, the devs at Respawn were able to approach Swampland with a new perspective. Now that Titanfall's key nuts and bolts (i.e. its Pilot and Titan gameplay) were finalized, Dionne and his team found new life for Swampland, and the DLC map began to take shape.
Swampland's main selling point is its dense tree cover, which allows for Pilots to race across trunks and gives Titans plenty of cover from intense firefights. There are still man-made buildings peppered throughout the map, but Swampland seems to be more natural than most of Titanfall's other multiplayer arenas. It also boasts the flying alien creatures seen in a few of the game's other maps.
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As far as changes of scenery go, it's easy to see Swampland as the standout map in the Expedition DLC package. Both Runoff and War Games have their own appeals, but this map seems particular unique when compared to the rest of the game's offerings.
That being said, it's unclear how many Titanfall players will pay the $10 price tag for only 3 maps, no matter how unique they may be. As we highlighted in our Titanfall review, the game is surprisingly light on content, but not in terms of its map selection. Either way, new maps are on the way soon.
What do you think of the Swampland map for Titanfall? What types of locations would you like to see in future DLC?
Titanfall's Expedition DLC releases in May 2014 for the PC and Xbox One.
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Follow Anthony on Twitter @ANTaormina