Meaning, do you think this is the Battlefield game that could make the franchise truly mainstream, and bring in some of the people who only play Madden, Halo, and Modern Warfare? 
 

I feel like it potentially could be. The franchise has managed to gain a decent foothold on consoles between the original Bad Company and 1943, so I think it has a decent following already and has its name out there. Also, with the success of both COD4 and Modern Warfare 2, people will be looking for their next modern day combat fix.

I think that these things combined with what seems to be the high quality of Bad Company 2 could make it the real breakout game for Battlefield. I’m not saying that Battlefield is a small franchise or hasn’t had success, but it’s certainly not a universally recognized or household name with the casual crowd like Call of Duty or Halo.

So, what do you think?

i think it would be the MW2 of the franchise..  isnt BF2 the cod4 of the battlefield series? 
 
anyway, i voted yes

Unless they fix the MP they will just be another FPS MP. It looks great but there are a lot of problems and issues to fix. 

" @Ahmad_Metallic: I mean in terms of making the franchise truly mainstream. Call of Duty and Call of Duty 2 were successful games, but Call of Duty 4 made it mainstream and put it on the level of Halo in terms of making it universally recognizable to casual gamers as well as hardcore. "

it looks great, i think i'll pick it up despite hating the demo for the first.

dunno about that...but all I know is I'm enjoying this one map beta of it a hell of a lot more than MW2.  I've been switching back and forth and every time I play MW2 all that is in my mind is how I'd rather be playing BC2.
 
(this is coming from someone that has played all the major releases of CoD and Battlefield)

Possibly, but there's one fact i can tell for sure : 
 
I care much more about Bad Company 2 than any call of duty game ever.

That's how they advertise it to you. I don't plan on getting it though.

I was initially hyped, but after playing the beta, something feels off. I can't put my finger on it.  
 
Maybe my expectations were too high.

I certainly think it will put it on the map more so than BC 1 did. I'm stoked for the sequel, I love Bad Company. 

I think BF2 did that, but this could also be some sort of COD4 

BF2 could have done that, had they not made those crappy ass console ports.  EA wasnt trying very hard there.  BF2 was the pinnacle of the franchise.  I dont like Bad Company and wish they would move away from it but wont because it sells, i guess?  But I am sure I would be amped up about Battlefield 3 if it brought 64 players to consoles with planes, and maybe gave you swimming gear?

BFBC2 feels slow and floaty. IMO    

i think EA would like it to be, but no

I thought it was mainstream?

No chance.

Both series complement each other quite well, and offer things the other does not, making it feel like a symbiotic relationship.  I play MW for fast and furious arcadey action, and BF for a more realistic game that favors strategy over twitch skills.  Fact is, blowing up the fucking house a team is using to hide in never gets old, and something you still can't do in MW2.

I have no idea what this thread actually means. What is "the Cod4?" What do you mean exactly by that? Until that is clear, I have no idea what this is asking.

I have no idea what this thread actually means. What is "the Cod4?" What do you mean exactly by that? Until that is clear, I have no idea what this is asking.

I think Battlefield 1943 was doing a better job in making BF a more mainstream franchise on consoles, focusing on multiplayer which is BF main strength and making it available though download, unfortunately that game seems to have been abandoned by it's creator despite it doing so well initially.

BF2 really really tried to go mainstream but the stubborn nature of the fanbase shunned the next game en-mass for no good reason, thereby killing any momentum it had. These are the same idiots that played BF2 for 5 years then stopped abruptly when DICE fixed prone spamming. Good riddance.
 
I don't see BC2 following that path because it is also on consoles, and those people aren't exactly the most stubborn and set in their ways. In fact most would jump ship for the next popular game even if it wasn't all that great. BC2 might be that breakthrough title for the BF series, but I kinda want it to stay in second place for a while. Once BF blows up like Halo2/COD4 the developers will lose sight like they all do. 
 
By 'the cod4" he means mass bandwagon game that has everything to do with popularity and nothing to do with quality. Remember Halo2? It was the COD4 for the majority of last generation.

" @Adziboy: That can't happen if it's a PC only game. The COD4 factor and Halo factor are the products of console gaming and that is a big part of it. "

It'll be the everything of FPSs. I can even, call me crazy, see it being as influential as Halo and currently COD4. 
 
Halo introduced Proper Shooters to Consoles. Everyone took that. 
COD4 introduced Progression and Persistence to shooters. Everyone's taking that. 
Bad Company 2 will introduce large scale, intense and authentic War-like experiences to shooters. Everyone WILL take that.

The success of modern warfare was influenced by the battlefield series.

i played the first bad company mostly for the single player. i dabbled into the multiplayer, liked it,  but i found i was drawn more towards modern warfare. from the looks of it it will be quite awesome!

Bad Company 2 will introduce large scale, intense and authentic War-like experiences to shooters.

" COD4 introduced Progression and Persistence to shooters. Everyone's taking that. Bad Company 2 will introduce large scale, intense and authentic War-like experiences to shooters. Everyone WILL take that. "

" I thought it was mainstream? "

Well Halo and COD are bandwagon series. That's a few notches up from simply 'mainstream'. Yes BF is a mainstream series, but it doesn't have the sales numbers of the games that people buy just because their friends all migrate from one game to another and they don't wanna be left behind. I come across more of that online than I come across people playing games because they have fun with them, no matter how not "in" they are.
 
Niche, Mainstream, Bandwagon. In that order, those are the three primary tiers of popularity.
 
No, I don't think BC2 will become the game in the series that turns the franchise into a bandwagon series.

To me BF:BC is better than Call of Duty. All EA has to do is market right and it will get there.

" It'll be the everything of FPSs. I can even, call me crazy, see it being as influential as Halo and currently COD4.  Halo introduced Proper Shooters to Consoles. Everyone took that. COD4 introduced Progression and Persistence to shooters. Everyone's taking that. Bad Company 2 will introduce large scale, intense and authentic War-like experiences to shooters. Everyone WILL take that. "

Hmmm, I should probably go DL this since I have a beta key sitting in notepad on my desktop.