S4 League

An underrated online arena third-person-shooting game

S4 League was created by Pentavision and published by Aeria Games, AsiaSoft, and Neowiz Games. It was initially released in 2007, but it has had a few updates since then. It works on Microsoft Windows and PlayStation Portable, and is a fast-paced, online third-person shooter that has eight character types, each with their own unique skills and arsenals. You can upgrade the weapons to maximize the damage you cause and their effects. All of this creates a deep experience along with a lot of variety and strategic options for players. Gameplay modes are rather team-focused, which rewards players for thinking of others before themselves.

A Good Arena Shooting Game

Your character runs around an arena to eliminate people who are not on your team. Do this and you win the game, it is as simple as that. It has a fair amount of uniqueness and style, which is what higher level games should have. There are a lot of weapons, maps and playing styles, and the anime effects are oddly engaging. Some people think that the game is dominated by hackers, but it is actually paying players that are predominant.

The game is easy on people’s hardware, which does mean you have to take a step down when it comes to graphics, but the anime style of game environment means it isn’t that noticeable. It is not trying to go for gritty realism like the Call Of Duty games; it is going for flashy fast-paced action, and the game delivers.

If you do not mind the lag, the bugs, and losing to paying players, then there is a lot of replayability within this game. You just have to learn how to tolerate a few issues if you want to get the most out of this game.

It Has Been Undone By Its Problems

Reviewers have torn into it to the point where people simply do not search out the game. One of the biggest complaints is the game’s lag, which is mainly due to server issues. Some reviewers have played for a while and then decided they cannot stand the lag and have posted bad reviews as a result.

Other reviewers have complained about bugs and have said the game needs serious reworking (which it doesn’t). Another problem that caused a lot of ripples involves switching servers, at which point a lot of players lost their rank. It takes a long time to level up on the game, and fans of the game were horrified to see they had lost their game data and level rank when the company switched servers on them. This alone created a massive amount of negative press for the game.

Some reviewers took a quick look at the gameplay on YouTube and decided that it is a rip off of Team Fortress and that people should avoid it. Finally, the game has a pay-to-win shop that enables money-paying players to dominate the game, and this is one of the fairest criticisms because it makes the game an unfair playing field for all.

Pros

• Fast-paced and exciting
• Has a unique style
• A fun gameplay experience
• Plenty of weapons and style variety
• Lots of maps to play with

Cons

• Lag and bug issues
• Server issues
• Game is dominated by paying players