When Battlefield 2142 debuted two years ago people wondered were DICE would take the franchise next. Having covered the past, present, and future of warfare, the franchise could either go further into the future or DICE could re-boot the franchise. With Battlefield:Bad Company, DICE has decided to take the second option and for the most part it they've made the right decision.
I've been playing the online multiplayer demo on Xbox Live on and off for the last week or so and these impressions are based on about seven hours of total gameplay. After my time with the game I've come away with mixed but mostly positive feelings for the game. I've been a huge fan of the Battlefield franchise since the Battlefield 1942 demo and being so close to a franchise for so long makes it hard to accept changes. Up front I do have to say that I'm terribly disappointed that the game isn't coming to the PC as that's really were I learned to love the game. I know there's a better market for console shooters right now but it does feel odd playing a Battlefield game with an Xbox 360 controller and not a keyboard and mouse.
The demo contains two maps and one game mode from the final game. The two maps are Ascension a small close combat map in a Euro flavored village and Oasis a large desert map with the full complement of air, ground, and water vehicles. Of the two maps I prefer Oasis because I'm a sucker for big maps with a lot of vehicles and even with the sensitivity cranked up I had a hard time with the close quarter combat in the smaller map.
The featured game play mode is the new Gold Rush mode in which one team attempts to defend a series of gold filled chests while the other tries to acquire them. As the attackers secure chests they force they other team to retreat to another location to defend another set of chests until they run out of fall back points. Once the attackers have secured a set of chests they can now spawn at the new location. When you die you are can re-spawn back at your current base or spawn with your squad. This has been a staple of the series since Battlefield 2 and it is perfected in Bad Compan as you can see where you are going to spawn ahead of time. This allows you know how much trouble to expect if you spawn on your squad. The only problem with spawning on your squad is that occasionally you end up with that one idiot sniper who sits on the ass end of the map eliminating the benefit of the squad spawn.
The Gold Rush mode condenses combat in the areas where the chests are located rather than having several multiple smaller battles like you have in the classic Battlefield Conquest mode. In a way this mode is a bit like the Frontlines system from Frontlines:Fuel of War except that the frontline only moves in one direction. The mode works out fairly well as everything is funneled through the chests which creates instant points of contention no matter what the score of the game is. Since the attackers have to get the chests to receive reinforcements (more lives) it forces them to continue to work for the points. Defenders are likewise involved as they need to keep whittling down the resources of the attackers if they want to win.
My only real problem with the mode is more of a philosophical one than anything else. I don't mean to go emo on you but I do have some problems with the franchise reducing goals to a financial rewards rather than the standard vague military ones. I get that the game is a bit of a riff on the Three Kings storyline but it feels a bit odd playing what is supposed to be a US soldier who's trying to compete for cash. It works in Army of Two when the characters are mercenaries...excuse me, Private Military Contractors, but here it feels a little out of place. This is one of those things that will only bother people who are in the military or have family in the military (my father served for 30 years and I have a cousin who's a pilot). It's a quibble but something that has been sticking in my craw since I started playing the game.
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