Surely gamers still remember the months of April three years ago, when VNG announced it would release Crossfire Mobile in Vietnam under the name Crossfire Legends. Previously, the CF Mobile version had made a significant impact in the Chinese market as this game perfectly recreated all the essence of Crossfire PC, affectionately known as Đột Kích, which was very well-received by Vietnamese gamers.
Indeed, Crossfire Legends inherited all the quintessence from the PC version, from gameplay, character systems, weapons… but improved in graphics to shine brightly on mobile while still exuding “the spirit” of Đột Kích. That is why, three years ago, Crossfire Legends received enthusiastic support from gamers. But… now, this game has gradually faded into obscurity, even though it is still operational in Vietnam. Why has it come to this?
Hacks
Crossfire Legends fell into oblivion due to many reasons. But perhaps the biggest reason is that this game was heavily plagued by hacks. Right from its early days, hacking phenomena emerged, although not in large numbers, it alarmed a situation that would create a nightmare for players later on. And indeed, there was a time when VNG was helpless against hacks in Crossfire Legends. Hacking was rampant to the extent that account locking became ineffective because creating a new account in this product was incredibly easy.
Especially on the Android platform, where all anti-hack defense systems became ineffective. Hacks like no recoil, transforming players into wheels, headshot hacks… all appeared in Crossfire Legends. Hackers were so brazen that they livestreamed in the product’s groups, set up YouTube channels to promote and sell hack software to other players.
Imbalance
Unable to eliminate hacking, VNG faced a fierce backlash when releasing “TMP Thiên Sứ”, officially known as Dual Steyr TMP-Angel, a gun that created a horrifying nightmare on the battlefield, not unlike hacks. With a rapid fire rate, high accuracy, and two firing modes combined with being light and less recoil, players could easily take down enemies with just a “slide”.
This gun sparked heated debates in communities because of its imbalance. Some opposed it, while others supported it, but regardless, the Dual Steyr TMP-Angel faced stigmatization from the majority of gamers. Unfortunately, despite creating an immense imbalance, VNG failed to release any updates to rectify this, something that had been thoroughly addressed in the Chinese version.
Inability to Update
This is seen as the last straw for the majority of Crossfire Legends gamers. For nearly two years, this game has not received a single update. Promises were made but then it “disappeared”, dedicated players gradually left due to too many bugs. No updates mean no weapon balancing, no new game modes, and no addition of new guns from the Chinese version…
Until VNG announced the 3.0 update, which was only for the Android platform. Thus, at this time, gamers on both iOS and Android would be divided into different servers, “each to their own home”. This created a vicious cycle bringing players back to the two aforementioned reasons. iOS users had to live with the imbalanced guns, while Android gamers could encounter hacks. And then, a series of events for accumulating recharge and VIP gun spins were launched on both servers, with rounds filled with guns at a high price.
Thus, from a game that received a lot of expectations, Crossfire Legends has gradually faded into obscurity. Of course, there are still many loyal gamers of this title who toil day and night for their passion. However, there are also many veteran players who have left Crossfire Legends because they could not accept this game. From the peak of fame, Crossfire Legends has become one of the biggest disappointments in the Vietnamese mobile gaming scene to date.