Battlefield Bad Company 2
No modern FPS can stand up to be counted without being compared to the juggernaut that is Modern Warfare 2. Whilst it may be hard – near impossible some might say – to knock MW2 off it’s perch as the best selling FPS, with the blandness of the relatively short single player campaign, making a better FPS might not be such a stretch.
Certainly not for the team behind Battlefield Bad Company 2, the sequel to 2008’s Battlefield Bad Company, a game that has only been in my possession for two days, but a game that has already got my considering that I might put MW2 away and forget about it. Â
Before I go any further I will just say that this is only the first part of my review. I will be adding to this review, and maybe even taking away from it, after I’ve completed the single player campaign and dipped my toes in the online game play. But for now at least, BBC2 seems to be the game that I wanted MW2 to be. An entertaining game whose story-line flows nicely and is easy to follow. Sure, you’re still out to save good old America from some nasty little terrorists, but (at least at this stage of the game) the developers, DICE, haven’t decided to spice things us with a full scale invasion of America, something that Infinity Ward seemed to think would make their game more dramatic and somehow emotional, forgetting that most of the world doesn’t live in America and doesn’t give a rats about the Whitehouse.
Of course, I’m assuming BBC2 isn’t going to go that way – for the present it’s happy to be played played out in the jungles, snow capped mountains and sandy deserts of South America.
Back to the game. Being a Bad Company virgin, I don’t know what transpired in the first game, so everything is new to me. The game starts off in World War 2, with you being part of a covert team that is going in to a Japanese base to extract a scientist who wants to defect. It’s an interesting start to the game, especially as no one is going to pick up BBC2 wanting to fight with WWII era guns. Fortunately it’s only the opening mission and you soon get to play in the present, with all the marvels of modern weaponry. But it is a mission that gets referenced to later in the story, and I’m guessing an integral part if the overall story.
Essentially a new super weapon has been created that if used on the United States would lead the way for an invasion from Russia. Hopefully that’s just the motivation and not the end game as far as BBC2 goes! This weapon is in the hands of a known terrorist who always seems to be one step ahead of you, hence your team having to chase him all over South America.
Whilst not as crisp looking as MW2, BBC2 looks fantastic, and what it may lack in some details it more than makes up for with a destructible environment, though to be honest, a fully destructive gaming environment would have been better, as at some points in the game, you’re looking ahead and thinking to yourself, that roof over there is going to be trouble, but when you fire a grenade at it you discover that it’s indestructible, and turns out to be a machine gun nest for the enemy. This is not only frustrating, but also yanks you back out of your immersive state in the game play to the realisation that yes, you’re playing a game.
It’s a minor gripe, but one that is significant enough in a game famed for it’s destructible environments.
The rest of the game plays pretty much like the original Modern Warfare, with plenty of action to keep you on your toes, variety so you don’t get bored, and some good old fashioned fun. The variety includes the standard firing a machine gun from a helicopter to clear all the RPGs so it can land and you can continue with your mission, to having to give sniper cover as your team sneaks into a village. But they’ve also included some of their own originality, with one level seeing you left behind, separated from your team by a blizzard, and having to make you way down the mountain without freezing to death.
All together it makes for a strong and engrossing experience, one that you’ll want to complete and then head online for some multiplayer action.
For now I’m going to give BBC2 four out of five, but I will be back to leave my impressions on the rest of the game as well as the online component.
Reviewed on: XBox 360
Available on: XBox 360, PS3, PC
Reviewed by:
No modern FPS can stand up to be counted without being compared to the juggernaut that is Modern Warfare 2. Whilst it may be hard – near impossible some might say – to knock MW2 off it’s perch as the best selling FPS, with the blandness of the relatively short single player campaign, making a better FPS might not be such a stretch. Certainly not for the team behind Battlefield Bad Company 2, the sequel to 2008’s Battlefield Bad Company, a game that has only been in my possession for two days, but a game that has already got my considering that I might put MW2 away and forget about it. Â Before I go any further I will just say that this is only the first part of my review. I will be adding to this review, and maybe even taking away from it, after I’ve completed the single player campaign and dipped my toes in the online game play. But for now at least, BBC2 seems to be the game that I wanted MW2 to be. An entertaining game whose story-line flows nicely and is easy to follow. Sure, you’re still out to save good old America from some nasty little terrorists, but (at least at this stage of the game) the developers, DICE, haven’t decided to spice things us with a full scale invasion of America, something that Infinity Ward seemed to think would make their game more dramatic and somehow emotional, forgetting that most of the world doesn’t live in America and doesn’t give a rats about the Whitehouse. Of course, I’m assuming BBC2 isn’t going to go that way – for the present it’s happy to be played played out in the jungles, snow capped mountains and sandy deserts of South America. Back to the game. Being a Bad Company virgin, I don’t know what transpired in the first game, so everything is new to me. The game starts off in World War 2, with you being part of a covert team that is going in to a Japanese base to extract a scientist who wants to defect. It’s an interesting start to the game, especially as no one is going to pick up BBC2 wanting to fight with WWII era guns. Fortunately it’s only the opening mission and you soon get to play in the present, with all the marvels of modern weaponry. But it is a mission that gets referenced to later in the story, and I’m guessing an integral part if the overall story. Essentially a new super weapon has been created that if used on the United States would lead the way for an invasion from Russia. Hopefully that’s just the motivation and not the end game as far as BBC2 goes! This weapon is in the hands of a known terrorist who always seems to be one step ahead of you, hence your team having to chase him all over South America. Whilst not as crisp looking as MW2, BBC2 looks fantastic, and what it may lack in some details it more than makes up for with a destructible environment, though to be honest, a fully destructive gaming environment would have been better, as at some points in the game, you’re looking ahead and thinking to yourself, that roof over there is going to be trouble, but when you fire a grenade at it you discover that it’s indestructible, and turns out to be a machine gun nest for the enemy. This is not only frustrating, but also yanks you back out of your immersive state in the game play to the realisation that yes, you’re playing a game. It’s a minor gripe, but one that is significant enough in a game famed for it’s destructible environments. The rest of the game plays pretty much like the original Modern Warfare, with plenty of action to keep you on your toes, variety so you don’t get bored, and some good old fashioned fun. The variety includes the standard firing a machine gun from a helicopter to clear all the RPGs so it can land and you can continue with your mission, to having to give sniper cover as your team sneaks into a village. But they’ve also included some of their own originality, with one level seeing you left behind, separated from your team by a blizzard, and having to make you way down the mountain without freezing to death. All together it makes for a strong and engrossing experience, one that you’ll want to complete and then head online for some multiplayer action. For now I’m going to give BBC2 four out of five, but I will be back to leave my impressions on the rest of the game as well as the online component.
Reviewed by: