Guns, explosives, helicopters and tanks… 12 year old me
would say something like;
“There is no guy on this planet that doesn’t like guns?!”.
But then I grew up and reality took hold of my stupid little
mind. I now understand that there are some guys who think handbags can solve
terrorism. I guess I have just experienced the exhilaration of firing a real
gun under realistic circumstances, and having the mentality that it’s you or
them while in the army cadets or just paintballing with friends. This
exhilarating, team-based immersion is definitely one of Bettlefield 3’s strong
points as DICE have managed to bring this multiplayer feature through from its
previous First Person Shooter (FPS) games and given it new life with the new
squad spawning mechanics.
“I need a medic!” being screamed down your ear could never
sound more real when my brother or fellow squad mate is incapacitated in one of
the many epic fire-fights which happen between both teams in many areas of the
multiplayer maps. Now the maps are what really give the game its legs. The game
boasts 9 varied maps, which with the addition of all 5 expansion packs will
increase this number to 29 maps! The size of these maps all vary in size, with
more compact, close quarters combat taking place with fewer vehicles drawing in
an audience similar to that of a call of duty game. While other maps are much
more open, with tanks, jets and helicopters becoming available to players.
Although having vehicles to command is extremely cool and
presents some very cool vehicle battles, larger maps can become tiresome on the
console versions as much of the game will be spent waiting for a vehicle to
spawn, or sprinting from flag to flag across the map in order to try and get in
the fight. This can cause combat to
seem rare and long winded at times, making the game seem less personal and more
of a long distance chore.
"Did you see that shot?!"
My brother cries as he
shoots a foe from 400 metres away. The style of combat tends to vary between
game modes and maps considerably, with large maps, showing tournaments between
the snipers of both teams. This style of
combat is very unique in that the Frostbite 2 engine takes into account the
forces of the world causing bullets and rockets to drop if fired at a long
range. This means that players who use sniper rifles actually have to have some
degree of skill to achieve a long range kill. This is an area where Call of
Duty player may struggle with… you know, thinking about stuff.
The smaller maps, which
include the Close Quarters expansion DLC give light to insane iron brawls. Lead
and blood is spent and the gritty reality of war starts to shine through putting
you and your team mates in the spotlight. These bouts are frequent and are seen
in tight areas of the maps. It may be that a team is defending an M-COM station
in Rush, defending an outpost in Conquest, or simply trying to earn a
kill-tally in a team Deathmatch. Whichever is the case, these battles never
cease to entertain, with squads on both teams constantly attempting new
tactics, to try and flank or outwit the other team. The winners are usually the
team with squads that work well together and present their skill as a certain
class.
However, although the
Frostbite 2 engine produces some staggeringly beautiful graphics, which makes
the game both gritty and realistic; it does occasionally have some annoying
little glitches and can lag substantially at times, which really ruins the
game. Although DICE and EA have addressed some of these more comical issues;
like the “zombie” glitch and some boosting glitches, the game still has some
time out and lagging issues which can see you kicked from a game for no
apparent reason.
“What about the storyline?”
I hear you ask…
Well, there is a polished
single-player campaign in addition to multiplayer. The story follows Sgt.
Blackburn of the US 1st Reconnaissance Battalion, and several other
characters who are important to the plot along the way. Blackburn, the main
protagonist is being questioned about events that happen throughout the game. I
won’t give away too much, but the campaign does have some unique missions which
give you a bit of a buzz. However, it’s something that has already been done
and isn’t really that original. In fact, it has some extremely similar moments
to that of the Call of Duty franchise. Specifically looking at MW2 and MW3. All
in all though, the campaign is fun to play, with some unique and heroic feeling
twists. Only let down, by some confusing events, muffled dialogue and
repetitive combat. 
The saving grace of
Battlefield 3 has to be its multiplayer modes. With so many variations in play
style and scale no battle ever feels the same. The amount of weapons and
customisation choices far exceeds its predecessors and other games in the
genre. Teamwork is key in this game however, so it is more fun if played with
friends or friendly strangers. If you are more of a lone-wolf, then prepare to
become bored very quickly…
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