I’ve mustered all the will I had and pulled myself away from the awesomeness that is Modern Warfare 2 for some quick impressions on another highly anticipated (at least for me) FPS.
I thoroughly enjoyed the first Bad Company. DICE has become one of my new favorite developers. Since then, I’ve been playing Battlefield 1943 to fill the gap between games. So is Bad Company 2 as epic as one would think? Read on to see….
From the get go, the title screen and menu presentation are improved from the last. Getting into multiplayer was quite easy. The only available mode to play in the BETA is Gold Rush. A mode in which one team defends two crates of gold, while the attackers try and set charges or damage the boxes enough to destroy them. There are three sets of two gold boxes, and each time one set is destroyed, the defenders fall back to the next base while the attackers move forward until either the attacker’s reserve of lives is depleted, or all the defender’s gold boxes are destroyed.
Maps are much more spread out and big compared to the closer quarters of CoD. You’ll sometimes traverse a wide stretch of land to get to where you want to go, but luckliy you are aided by some spiffy vehicles from a tank, to a jeep, and now even a ATV. Having vehicles really adds a new layer of depth that I’ve enjoyed in the BF series.
BC2 is a class based FPS. Instead of unlocking guns and perks in CoD to make a custom class, you unlock certain guns and accessories in predefined classes. This may sound limiting, but there is a certain balance as well. Though there is no full customization, it still allows for personal choice within a class. Thankfully the choices within each class have been greatly expanded from the first. There are even hints that perks and the like may be added to the game ala CoD4. Classes range from your typical sniper, to assault, and medic. Each specializing in a certain area (the medic with the new defibrillator, able to revive a fallen teammate, is quite sweet).
The core gameplay is very much intact from the first. Everything feels smooth and aiming your weapon handles well. A new addition that may sound small is pretty cool. When you shoot an enemy, a small mist of spurting blood surrounds them. Although this is plain cool from a “OMG BLOOD” standpoint, it makes it very easy see if you’ve hit your opponent. So I dig. The feel and speed of the guns feels good and very satisfying when you peg a guy in the head. And for snipers, your bullets have real trajectory, so no more aiming straight at the enemy from five miles away for a head shot. You’ve got to properly lead the enemy and compensate for the fall of your bullet over a great distance.
Of course one of the defining gameplay elements from the first Bad Company was the destructive environments. No longer could enemies hide behind a fence or in a building with no fear of an outside attack. The environment would take real damage as bullets, tank shells, and grenades made impact. By the end of a level, the entire landscape was decimated to rubble. Bad Company 2 promise to capitalize on this to an even greater degree allowing you to eradicate buildings to their very foundation. Trust me, running away from a tank into a building is almost certainly a ticket to death mountain. This key element constantly changes gameplay on a recurring basis. Some gold boxes that were well protected within a building ten minutes ago may now be fully exposed to an outside attack thanks to the destructive environment.
Another gameplay element that has been capitalized on is team gameplay. Though a focus in the first game, it is even more so in the sequel. This is not Halo 3 by any means. You can’t just go in and be a one man wrecking crew. It will take the combined efforts of many classes to properly defend or attack. Speaking of team gameplay, the ability to spawn on specific teammates has been added. This just makes sense and is a welcome addition.
One aspect not present in the Beta is the single player campaign, which IMO, was one of the strong selling point of BC. I look forward to seeing how changes implemented in the multiplayer will be integrated into the single player.
The BETA is only available for the PS3, for reasons unknown to me, so 360 owners are out of luck. For those of you who own a PS3, here’s a link to sign up for the BETA. It’s pretty simple, if you’re not already a member of FilePlanet, create an account, sign up, and a code will be e-mailed to you. Redeem it in the PSN store, and you’re good to go.
And if anyone wants to add me to their friends list, I’d be more than happy to get in a few games of multiplayer. My PSN ID is: JedahDoma
After spending a few hours playing with my bud Erik, I can safely say this will be another FPS to add to my list. March of 2010 can’t come soon enough. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have to get back to some Modern Warfare 2.
– Jedah Doma
