Great Multiplayer, Solid Single player.
Battlefield: Bad Company 2 makes its first appearance onto the PC with quite success. BFBC2 is a direct sequel to DICE's popular game Battlefield: Bad Company. DICE advertised Bad Company as having a full-fleshed singleplayer campaign (a new addition to the Battlefield universe) and action packed multiplayer that Battlefield is known for. While the single player received fair reviews, it was the multiplayer that made Bad Company so popular. Now with Battlefield: Bad Company 2, was DICE able to surpass the high benchmark that its previous entry accomplished?
Multiplayer:
Right from the get-go you can tell that multiplayer was the main focus of BFBC2. Most Battlefield games encourage communication with your teammates in order to succeed. But in BFBC2, it is almost a necessity. Game modes such as Squad Death match, Rush, and Squad Rush are perfect examples of how important teamwork is in BFBC2. I am not kidding when I say that most of my successful matches are from being in a solid-squad that communicates. While I feel that BFBC2 does not have as much of an in-depth squad mechanic as BF2 (which was probably intentional); the squad mechanics in BFBC2 feel fleshed out enough where strategy and simplicity can walk hand in hand. Multiplayer has 10 total maps, ranging in size and location. The map will change in size and area depending on which game mode you play... (Rush and Conquest being large maps, and Squad Death match being smaller maps). All of this will sound familiar for Battlefield veterans. As most recent shooters, BFBC2 has an in-depth ranking system. You gain points, move up the ranks, and unlock different abilities for your soldier, weapons, and armor. What makes BFBC2 is that the abilities you gain feel a bit more realistic than most shooters. For instance, if you've been playing with the rifle you will eventually unlock an improved handling characteristic for the rifle class. Other unlocks that seem realistic are: lighter gear for faster mobility, heavier gear for better protection, add-ons to your medical kit, and armor upgrades. While each soldier might not be as diverse as in MW2 (sorry for bringing it up in this review), there is enough to make you carefully plan out your own perfect soldier. One big problem I had with the PC version was with how the multiplayer ran. I am running a powerful set-up and still had to turn the settings to get sub-par performance. Even when I turned the settings all the way down, I would still get sub-par performance. This was fixed by a recent patch that DICE released so now everything is running smooth (I also changed my DX version in the settings.ini folder to 9... I HIGHLY suggest doing that if you have problems... thanks to MrKlorox for suggesting this). Learning how to properly shoot in BFBC2 had a bit of learning curve. Most guns in the game have a lot of kick to them, so just aiming down the sights and spraying would usually end in death. This isn’t a complaint; it is actually something that I found to be pretty realistic. With the exception of some weapons (such as the M60 and M416), unlocking all weapons won’t mean that you will have an advantage over other players. Each weapon has its own unique feel and power, so it is more important to find a favorite and stick with it. For example, I see people who are over level 20 and they are still using the XM8 Prototype as their rifle. Multiplayer is full of adrenaline packed matches and fights that are sure to please many FPS lovers out there. Being down to your last 20 tickets sound off a horn around the whole map and kicks in panic to the losing team. Desperately trying to defend your last M-COMM station as attackers rush is quite the experience. There are a couple of issues that I have with the multiplayer, but those are rare occasions. For example, shotguns can kill you from quite the distance, or you may spawn only to be killed that very second…as if someone was already shooting you. But all in all, BFBC2 is a great and addicting multiplayer that comes very close to matching the experience that I had with Battlefield 2 (The greatest online multiplayer IMO).
Single player:
Single player, as Jeff said in his review, feels a little flat. The story and set-pieces are predictable yet entertaining. It will take you about 6 hours to complete, and after that you probably won’t go back. The characters are funny and I did enjoy the cut scenes that the campaign offered. This is fine, since DICE did not advertise this game based upon its single player. All in all, the single player is fun, predictable, and short.
Graphics/Sound:
BFBC2 utilizes the Frostbite 2.0 engine. The game looks and plays very well. There is more destruction, better animation, and great level design. What BFBC2 needs to commended for is its sound design. From the sound of your rifle firing, to the radio-chatter during the loading screen, BFBC2’s sound design is amazing. Overall this is a very beautiful sounding (and looking) game to add to your collection.
Final Thoughts:
BFBC2 is a must own for anyone who is looking for a deep yet fun multiplayer experience. DICE proves again that they truly are Defining Online Gaming.
