Battlefield: Bad Company

More info »

Battlefield: Bad Company

Preview

Battlefield crosses the line into new territory

Now on New Gen


Battlefield: Bad Company, developed by DICE, is the first installment of the successful PC series to be released for PS3 and XBOX 360. Taking a shooter best known for its hectic multiplayer with intense gun fights and vehicles and putting it in the rather unfamiliar territory of consoles may seem DICE-y (Ed. – hehe). Yet it is shaping up to be something that could give even Call of Duty 4 a reason to look over its shoulder.

Renagades


Fans of the series will be glad to learn that the console version of Battlefield will not be a simple port from one platform to the next. For starters, Bad Company will have a proper storyline. Gone are the days of nameless, goody-two-shoes soldiers; Say hello to the renegades! You play Preston Marloe, who has been assigned to a ragtag group of soldiers known as “B-Company”, where the B stands for ‘Bad’. Preston ended up in B-Company after committing some sort of crime against the good ol’ US of A. I know that is a little hazy but I can assure you that you will discover the exact reason over the course of the game.

While out on a mission, Preston and his comrade’s notice a truck full of gold heading across the border. They decide to steal some of this gold for themselves, becoming renegade soldiers by doing so. Don’t expect this war story to provide a serious a tale. It is not likely to rival games such as Call of Duty or Brothers in Arms, yet it is new and refreshing for the series.

Besides single player mode you have Battlefield’s famous multiplayer. Like previous games in the series, large scale maps full of vehicles and all sorts of other madness will be available; all with your standard capture the flag and deathmatch game types. Also confirmed is a ‘Capture the enemy’s gold’ game mode. Much like Battlefield 2142, the amount of classes will be lowered, with the necessities being represented in Assault, Spec Ops, Sniper, Engineer, and Support, with up to 24 players being able to play online.

The game looks good, that’s for sure. Things look shinny, explosions impressive, and the settings –such as forests and desserts– are richly detailed and very well textured. But don’t be too quick to think that it is just a prettier Battlefield with a new story. You’d be wrong then.

New and improved


Battlefield: Bad Company has something that no other current shooter has: a new graphics engine called Frostbite which makes 90 percent of the game world destructible. Running over trees in a hummer or crashing a helicopter over a forest will cause trees to fall over. Shooting a rocket launcher at a wall will make a huge hole. Everything is destructible, and this can drastically change the game. Only building frames seem to be indestructible so you can imagine the damage one can do to the maps.

Imagine an enemy hiding behind a wall. You are waiting patiently with your trusty M40 Sniper Rifle. Simply sniping the wall a couple of times will cause it to lose its structural integrity and eventually collapse. Your prey will now be a sitting duck. There is no way to get into that house where you –know- several enemies are holed up in? Toss a grenade and blow a hole in the wall, sending chunks of plaster and wood flying while you mop up whoever survived the blast. Full destructibility is a feature in both single- and multiplayer mode, so never expect to be safe by running around a corner.

The controls in vehicles have also been tweaked a bit. In the console version of Battlefront: Modern Combat, hopping into a helicopter sometimes resulted in a suicide crash. DICE has promised to make it easier to take control of helicopters, leaving you to get those much needed kills.

Another new feature is HDR sound. HDR sound is similar to HDR lighting in which light doesn’t look the same indoors as it does outside. For example, if you are shooting bad guys inside a home, expect your ears to ring. Bad Company will also feature a full variety of music. American Gospel and Russian music can all be heard on the radio in Hummers, as well as fully orchestrated music.

Gear up this war!


Finally, you cannot discuss Battlefield without mentioning the weapons and vehicles. Along with the previously mentioned Hummers and helicopters, tanks will play an important role. Sadly, jets will not be included as they may be too difficult for players to take down. Weapons include staples such as Semi-automatic guns, grenade launchers, and grenades. A new weapon, however, is the laser designator. It works much like the Hammer of Dawn in Gears of War: just point at a target and an air strike will come in and drop bombs onto it.

Despite the shaky start of the series on the consoles Battlefield: Bad Company looks to live up to its PC predecessors reputation. Improved controls, fully destructible environments and multiplayer modes full of Battlefield vehicle goodness, make this one game you shouldn’t miss this year.