by Iain Alexander
Battlefield Bad Company 2 is the latest in a line of FPS games on the PS3, joining recent contenders Killzone 2, Modern Warfare 2 and MAG in the battle of the shooters. The first Bad Company game was well received but had some crucial flaws, so when the sequel was announced most gamers were eager to see just what had changed. Is it enough to make Bad Company 2 a classic, or will it become just another FPS?
The mechanics of the single player campaign remain much the same as the original Bad Company. You’re one member in a squad of four, and between you spend your time fighting the good fight against a common enemy to save the USA. Admittedly, not the most unique plot ever used, but it takes a few twists and turns along the way, and is compelling enough to keep you wanting to know what happens next. You start off with a short historical mission which sets the theme of the story, then everything jumps forward in time for the remainder of the game. It’s basically a tutorial level, but the darkness and grimness does a brilliant job of outlining just how important your upcoming mission is. The main beauty of the single player campaign though is in the freedom you have in finding your way from A to B. We’re not talking Fallout 3 levels of freedom, but it’s very rare for you to be forced down a specific route, and this is where your squad helps you out. If you want to run straight down the middle and take out as many people as possible by yourself then your squad will watch your back and pick off enemies that you haven’t spotted. Alternatively you might want to hold back a bit and let the others do the donkey work, or take a different route to your squad and flank enemies who are trying to hide. It’s up to you, and really makes you feel like you can make a valuable contribution to your squad’s progress. There are a few strange moments, like the odd occasion when someone in the squad suddenly teleports a few meters into a new position, or gets hit by a series of rockets and gets straight back up again, but it doesn’t really take anything away from proceedings.
Along the way you utilise a range of weapons, vehicles and equipment to blow seven shades out of anything that gets in your way, be it enemy tanks, helicopters, trees, buildings, anything. That’s right, the well documented destructible environments found in other Battlefield games make a welcome return and totally change the way you play the game. Want to crouch under a window while you reload? Want to hide behind a tree thinking it’ll absorb every bullet and rocket coming your way? Well there’s nothing stopping you, but don’t expect to live for long. One well placed assault will see the building crumble around you (probably killing you in the process) or send the tree in another direction. Hiding isn’t easy, certainly not for any prolonged amount of time. That’s not a bad thing, it keeps things moving at a good pace. Not only that, but given that you can blow things up too (which NEVER gets boring), it means that your lack of hiding ability is also a problem for your enemies. If that distant sniper on the roof is proving a tricky target, just send a rocket into the building and bring the whole lot down. Sorted.
The epic scale of the battle is never lost, and at times feels relentless as you press on facing large amounts of enemies from all directions. There’s very few chances to stop and breathe, and those that you have are nervous moments waiting for another ambush against you, keeping the tension quite high. A series of objectives guides you through each mission, although you also have the secondary challenge of collecting hidden weapons and destroying satellite uplink stations. These aren’t essential, but give you a reason to play through again to find the areas you’ve missed previously.
Graphically the game is fantastic. Backgrounds are razor sharp and go on forever, and the quality stays great as items get closer to the camera, with dirt thrown up when bullets hit the floor, explosions ripping holes into walls and clear facial expressions on your squad and enemies. The sound is remarkable too, with guns, explosions and shouting enemies keeping everything feeling very intense. It’s impossible not to compare it to other games in the genre, and although it’s a close call I’d suggest that in terms of overall presentation Bad Company 2 has the edge over the competition. Yes, it looks and sounds that good.
But let’s be honest, despite the 7 or 8 hours that you’ll get out of the single player mode most people will be spending their time online. Fortunately the online side is just as well delivered, with some brilliant fun to be had. The initial disappointment of only having 4 main online modes passes the moment you land in your first game. You’ll realise how expansive and well designed the maps are, and very quickly discover that being in a squad of four reaps far more rewards than just having somewhere else to spawn when you die.
The limit of 4 players per squad seems a bit of a shame at first, especially when you can only communicate with others in your squad, but look deeper and it proves to be a smart move by Dice. There is a clear emphasis on teamwork, and with a choice of 4 classes available it soon becomes obvious that working together and utilising the various skills available will make you a much more dangerous unit that trying to go it alone. Play things right, and you’ll have a close unit who can carry out tasks such as reviving each other using the medic class, or repairing damaged vehicles using the engineer class. As you’d expect there is a ranking system in place, but to add some variety this works in two different ways. As well as your overall rank which creeps up with every game, you have individual ranks for the four classes, something previous used to great effect in Killzone 2. It gives you something else to think about – do you focus on building up your ability as a specific class, or spread the load and build all 4 of them up slightly more slowly? Well that’s entirely your call, and that’s the beauty of the system. You rank up how you decide to, not how the game forces you to.
In terms of game modes you have the choice of Rush whereby one team has to destroy 2 targets while another defends them, and Conquest which is a zonal domination type game, much in the style of Battlefield 1943. Both modes use a respawn ticket system – once all tickets are used up on one of the teams, it’s game over. Other modes on offer are Squad Deathmatch where 4 squads fight against each other to be the first to 50 kills, and Squad Rush which is a 4 on 4 version of the main Rush mode. It doesn’t sound like much, but it turns out to be plenty. The way the online battles feel and play out you’ll be having such a good time you won’t care that there isn’t more modes, and the fantastic map design makes things even sweeter.
Whether you’re thundering through a town in a tank, blowing things up on a mountain and using the fire to keep warm or picking off enemies from distance with a sniper rifle you’re always having a good time. The single player campaign is well thought out and keeps you hooked right to the end, and the multiplayer will keep you busy for months to come, especially if you’ve got a few mates to form a squad with. It’s impossible not to recommend the game, and it’s entirely likely that this will steal the limelight away from Modern Warfare 2. Lock and load soldier, I’ll see you on the Battlefield.
