Point Blank Hit-and-Miss
The second DLC expansion for Battlefield 3 titled "Close Quarters" is something that I know for sure many will love, and many will hate. Turning away from the classic Battlefield formula consisted of large-scale warfare and vehicles, Close Quarters brings the 4 smallest maps in Battlefield history to the table along with 10 new weapons.
The approach of taking things slowly and using tactics gets thrown completely out the window when playing the new maps, with more luck and less skill involved with the abysmal spawning system and ridiculously chaotic and frantic exchanges of bullets and explosives in tight spaces. I'll hand it to DICE, there is absolutely no false advertising here. Close Quarters definitely plays as the title suggests. These small maps have more of a focus on verticality, which means death can come from anywhere, which it does as you die over and over and over again.
Let's be honest here, there is no subtlety whatsoever in this expansion. Close Quarters essentially turns Battlefield into Call of Duty. All-infantry combat, instant action, and a much faster-pace make this seem like a different game at times. Conquest Domination is a variant of the classic flag capturing game mode of Conquest in which all the flags are captured absurdly fast, providing synergy with the tiny maps. If you like quick bursts of action punctuated by lots of cheap deaths and frustration commonly found in Call of Duty's hectic multiplayer, then Close Quarters is most definitely for you. In fact, why are you even playing Battlefield in the first place? Go play Modern Warfare 3 if you enjoy that vein of multiplayer shooter.
In addition to Domination found in Close Quarters, another new game mode known as Gun Master is also introduced, which is almost exactly the same and is a blatant rip-off of a game mode similar to Gun Game found in Counter-Strike and Call of Duty: Black Ops. Instead of a free-for-all, players are split into two teams and all start from the lowest-tiered weapons and work their way up, upgrading to the next tier of weaponry every two kills with the previous weapon. However, despite being a team game, it's an illusion, as the real winner is the first player to clear all the tiers of weapons. It's deeply satisfying and exhilarating to play, with close matches providing a level of intensity and fun that is not found anywhere else in the rest of the Close Quarters expansion. If there is any enjoyment to be found in Close Quarters, it's by playing Gun Master, not Conquest Domination.
In the end, if you like sometimes going on a rampaging killstreak and sometimes staring more at killcams and spawn menus than actually playing, then Close Quarters is a must-buy. Otherwise, you might want to pass on these maps. If you're interested in the weapons, you can always buy it to unlock the weapons as they are quite a nice addition to the already diverse arsenal in Battlefield 3. I'd say playing Gun Master with friends is an absolute blast, but otherwise there is not much other value to be found in Close Quarters.