Gen_Warbuff

Let me start off by letting you know that I am a HUGE fan of the Battlefield series, and I absolutely LOVE BF2. Now, I can say something I have wanted to say for a very long time…. They have finally brought the Battlefield goodness to the console market!

For those that may have never played any of the BF games before, if you have a 360, now is a good time to try it out. All of the thrilling multiplayer madness is here in Battlefield Bad Company. Oh, and they included a excellent single player campaign to go along with it!

I will start with the single player stuff….


Story: 7
As in most war game single player stories, you start off as "the new guy" and are quickly thrown into the heat of battle. To me the story was decent, it's no MGS 4, or HL2 or anything, but it does the job and sets you up for some good fun. Basically you are part of a small squad that somehow manages to become that typical rouge squad that takes orders from nobody. In the end, you are on the search for gold that the bad guys have, this allows for the game to include some exploration that is normally not found in war FPS games. Not only can you search for the gold bars, but you can also search for new weapons. Finding all, or some of these items give you achievement pts.

Oh almost forgot, the use of brilliant sarcastic humor in conversations between the squad members is funny and probably extremely typical on how guys would be in a situation like this.


Game play: 8

Just like other FPS, the controls are pretty simple, the typical left, right, forward, back stuff applies. Using the weapons is fun and satisfying, they feel right, almost as if you can feel their weight. The only thing I found is that sometimes switching between weapons, or special items got to be a little cumbersome when in the middle of fire fights, which is often, not only in the single player game, but also online. I also found that even though you were able to find many different type of weapons, you could only carry one at a time along with one special item, I would have liked to carry 2 or 3 I guess.

I also would have like to see some kind of cover system, I know that pretty much everything in the game is destructible, but it still would have felt better to be able to look up or around things at times, even if it would be blown to little bits.

Along with the many different weapons you can find around the battlefield are a few different special items. Things like laser designators, artillery strike call ins and repair tools. Again, you could only carry one special item at a time so you kind of had to be careful on what you picked based on your mission at hand.

Speaking of missions, there are 7 ( I think) Acts all together, that consist of probably 4-5 missions each, ranging from simple attack missions, to escort missions, to flying missions. I felt there was a good variety here and it kept the game interesting.

You also get a chance to drive vehicles. Jeeps, tanks, APCs and helicopters are here in the single player and online. There are also stationary weapons spread around the maps that help counter these vehicles. Over all they did a good job of making the game balanced, at no time does it feel like you are out gunned.

One big negative here is your AI teammates. They are pretty much useless, so much so that it's best to pretend that they are not even there. The good new is, they can't die, so the game does not stop if one gets hit with a RPG or something. Because they are so useless, it seems that you may have a target over your head, and EVERY enemy will see you coming, no matter what. This makes the game very challenging at times.


Graphics: 8.5

People say that this game looks "grainy", they are right, but somehow to me it makes it feel more like a battlefield, as if there is tons of dust & dirt in the air. Vehicles look great, and so do all the explosions going on. They did a GREAT job with the "fog of war" where burning buildings, exploding walls, or flying debris can block your vision. So good in fact, I think it's the best I have seen in a long long time.


Audio: 9

Not sure what to say here expect " OMG… IN COMING!" gun fire, explosions and indirect artillery fire really lends to a complete audio experience and can help lend to the confusion of battle. Even online, where the maps are BIG you can see, and hear firefights in the distance, they don't all sound like they are right next to you.


Online: 9

To me, this is where the true meaning of the Battlefield names shines. Take all of the fun stuff from the single player and throw it into multiplayer, and you have Battlefield Bad Company at it's best.

Currently, there is only one game mode where the attacking team must push their way forward through enemy bases blowing up their gold crates as you go along. Each starting enemy base has two crates to attack, once they are destroyed the enemy base is moved back further, and the attacker then gets to spawn in at the base they just captured. The maps are BIG, but at the same time they are designed in a way that lets you get right back into the fight if you die, it's just not hard to find a fight if you are looking for one. Yes, if you are on the attacking team, and have taken over 3 bases, you will have a hike if you decide to spawn in back at your first base.

There is a good ranking system, points based, pretty much the standard these days. And like other games, the more you rank up, the more points you get to use towards unlockable weapons. There are 5 weapon packs to choose from, that can be customized with different unlocked weapons and items. Got a pesky tank bring death from a distance, use the laser guided bomb that can be used while playing as Recon. Got a group of baddies hold up in a house, or on top of a hill, use the artillery strike that can be used while playing support. The tools are all there, you just have to figure out which one will work best for the situation.


Dice also gives you access to you online stats via the BFBC web site, you can track EVERYTHING here, trophies, unlocks, ratios, achievements…… everything.


At the end of the day, this is a decent single player game, and an extremely fun, polished multiplayer experience! It may not appeal to every COD4 player out there, but it sure does bring home the fun! Based on my rankings, I give this a 8.5 outta 10 (had to give an extra .2 for FUN!)