XDefiant offers solid gameplay but faces matchmaking issues on launch

Ubisoft’s XDefiant is now out and millions were lined up yesterday to play the game, only to find server and matchmaking issues. The game was released as free to play with multiple servers across the globe, meaning a lot of players were waiting in line.

Some players were lucky enough to find a match as the game seemed to be randomly giving players a lobby while booting others with the ‘unable to find a match’ screen. About an hour into the release, the developers gave an update on the situation, saying they were looking into these issues.

Update: We are seeing progress on the matchmaking servers. We will continue to monitor the situation and keep you updated.

— XDefiant (@PlayXDefiant) May 21, 2024

This was not the only issue players reported, as many complained that their battle pass purchase was not reflecting in store, or they were not advanced 20 ranks as promised. Over time these issues started calming down and while not completely fixed, players are now able to find matches.

Gameplay remains fun despite the hitch

Apart from the server issue, the players who got into the game have responded positively, for the most part. During our play though, in the few matches we got, there were no gameplay-related issues on an RTX 3060ti with R5 5600X.

A few players have complained about some balance issues, which may give developers further improvement before the first season launches, but for the most part, the gameplay is as solid as it can be.

As for the classes, players can choose which one they want to play before the match starts. If a team wants to play the same class in casual, they can. Loadout can also be changed after each death. It will be interesting to see if there are limits to operator class in ranked mode.

Abilities for all classes have charge and usage time, while everyone received one utility, a flash bang or a grenade. With a good team, players can create some nasty team compositions in competitive games. As of now, there are five classes available.

Four of them are unlocked by default while the DedSec requires challenge completion to unlock, alternatively, players can unlock the class using in-game premium currency called XCoins.