Battlefield: Bad Company
A Review - By Gaetano Prestia
Battlefield: Bad Company was made with one objective in mind: complete and utter destruction. Unlike in other blockbuster FPS like Resistance and Call of Duty 4 where a burning car, brick wall or sheet of metal will protect you from a bombardment of bullets, Bad Company keeps you constantly on your toes as almost any solid object is willing to be blown up without early awareness. No longer can you take refuge behind an object, and this is pretty much Bad Company’s main aim to fame.
Battlefield: Bad Company puts you in the shoes of Private Preston Marlow as he enters into Bad Company, otherwise known as B-Company. It’s a group of misfit soldiers who have been “punished” with the military’s most dangerous and crazy missions.
While the developer, DICE, never had the intention to make this game overly serious and as politically intense as Call of Duty 4, the gameplay is a mixture of humorous dialogue, slapstick music and intense and challenging battles. In some areas this mixture comes off well, but in others in comes off a little inconsistent and forced. While the side-characters each have their own unique personalities and funny moments, the game tries to mix both humour and action together, often at inappropriate times, and it offsets the experience. For example, the game gets pretty hot and heavy towards the end with grenades, bullets and bodies flying everywhere, but then you hear your team-mates laughing and joking around like as if they were invincible goliath monsters mocking their enemy. It also takes away the realism from the game.
However, the single-player campaign is a hell of a lot of fun and the humour isn’t something that should turn you off completely from the experience. While it’s not overly lengthy (it’ll take you anywhere between 4-10 hours, depending on your own skill and difficulty setting), it has enough action to keep you enjoyed for a vast majority of that time. While the missions are basically the same throughout – destroy that thing, protect this thing, reach that thing, destroy them – there is constant and consistent action at all times. Even on the easiest difficulty, the enemies don’t back down that easily and you really need to be tactical and wise in your approach to particular battlefields. Overall, the game is very accessible.
One thing that COD4 was able to do so successfully was hide the fact that it is, at its core, a linear FPS. You’re never really given the opportunity to explore the battlefields. The areas themselves and the ways in which they were designed gave them a far bigger feel as to what their actual size was. With Bad Company, it’s a similar direction. You won’t be able to wonder off into the land and what’s good about this title is that instead of blocking you off with objects, you’re forbidden entry beyond certain areas by an invisible border that acts as enemy territory. If you stray into these areas you’re given a few seconds to get out before you’re blown up by enemy bombing. This is a great little addition as it gives the maps a far bigger and more atmospheric feel to them. Instead of looking into the distance and seeing blocked off areas, the land is vast and never-ending.
DICE’s unique Frostbite engine has been incorporated nicely into the gameplay and thankfully, the developer doesn’t rely too heavily on the engine’s destruction abilities. From a presentation standpoint, Bad Company won’t blow you away, however the environments literally do. While the gameplay doesn’t focus and/or rely on you blowing away walls or blasting yourself a doorway into a building, you may find it suitable in particular areas to use explosives to destroy the elements of the environment. What DICE has been able to do, quite impressively, is avoid the mindset that the Frostbite engine is a gimmick. The way it’s done this is by giving the player the choice of blowing things up instead of making it compulsory. They could have based missions on destroying whole buildings with a RPG but instead they’ve created enjoyable missions that give you the freedom to make your own choices as to the direction you take, be it through a doorway or through a whole you decide to blow in a wall.
The weapons on Bad Company are definitely something to applaud and they demonstrate DICE’s obsession with perfection when it comes to your battle arsenal. Weapons are scattered all over the single-player maps and there’s a whole bunch to unlock and find and while some are obviously more effective than others, it’s a lot of fun to try out different weapons that you find being dropped by killed enemies. The aiming system is good and accessible and the inclusion of a shoulder aim makes it easier for those who aren’t comfortable with normal FPS aiming. Weapon detailing is also top notch and very realistic.
Graphically, Bad Company holds up but doesn’t exceed any expectations. It gets the job done with an impressive draw distance and great detail on character design and weapons, however some of the environment is a little pixelated and less realistic up close.
The audio is top-notch and everything from the musical score to gun sounds to explosions and battlefield-banter sound great. Particularly during intense battle, this title shines through the speakers and anyone with 5.1 surround sound will be able to experience one of the most impressive sounding games this generation.
Multiplayer is a mixed bag. While the single-player is the major focus for Bad Company, the team-based gameplay of online holds up with minimal lag and a little enjoyment. It doesn’t hold up anywhere near the quality of COD4 online but with future promised downloads coming soon, Bad Company may turn into an impressive online experience. There’s only one offering at the moment with the team-based Gold Rush but this mode offers plenty of action to last those of you hanging out for some overly destructive multiplayer.
Battlefield: Bad Company is a solid FPS with a focus on the single-player experience. There’s plenty of humour, great destructive elements and a great incorporation of the Frostbite engine, accessible gameplay, awesome sound and a solid multiplayer experience to warrant a purchase for those wanting a new FPS.
Gameplay
8.5/10
Accessible and enjoyable. DICE have a done a great job of mixing in the destructive elements with a cool story and enjoying, challenging missions. There’s a whole bunch of weapons at your disposable and blowing holes in buildings has never been so much fun.
Graphics
7.5/10
Nothing overly impressive, but it gets the job done. Nice detailing on the characters and weapons as well as some impressive environments.
Sound
9.0/10
Great voice-acting, great battlefield sounds and a nice musical score round out a nice presentation.
Value
7.8/10
While the focus was on the single-player, it can be a little too short for the hardcore crowd. It gets longer with the increased difficulty and overall, the single-player is a better experience than the multiplayer. Online is fun but more modes are needed to increase its worth.
Overall
8.3/10
If the Battlefield: Bad Company gameplay had to be summed up in one word, it would be “wild”. There are a lot of explosions and plenty of battle and action going on and most people will find incredible enjoyment in blowing up buildings and objects so freely.
Submitted by Gaetano
03/07/2008
10
Join MyPS3 to vote for your favourite story!
More Info:
Battlefield: Bad Company
Other Reviews:
Related News:
Related Videos:
-
Battlefield Bad Company: Run Wild Trailer (HQ)
-
Battlefield Bad Company Bad World
-
BFBC: Rainbow Sprinkles
-
Battlefield: Bad Company Demo Trailer
-
Battlefield Bad Company Beta Moments
-
Battlefield: Bad Company Assault Weapon Trailer