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Let me start this review with
this: “I disliked Digital Illusion CE (DICE)’s
original Battlefield 1942 despite the reviews, the massive
amount of players and all the successful modifications released
for it.!” When Battlefield Vietnam came out, I did
not even give a glance. Why did I not enjoy Battlefield
1942? I felt the game as whole was a sound idea, but individual
portions of the game such as the infantry, ground vehicles
and aircraft experiences were poorly developed. I also felt
that there was a lack of team play in the Battlefield universe.
At this point, you may be thinking that I will be giving
this game an inadequate score. I will tell you now, that
your assumptions bear no fruit. Battlefield 2 can potentially
be the “ultimate” first person shooter multiplayer
experience to date and I am here to tell you if it is or
not. Back in 2002, two World War II titles were released by big time publisher, Electronic Arts; Medal of Honor: Allied Assault (MOH:AA) and Battlefield 1942 (BF1942). While MOH:AA focused on the single player experience, DICE made BF1942 with a “multiplayer first” mindset. After several expansion packs for the original BF1942, DICE shelled out Battlefield: Vietnam in 2004. Although it was not an expansion to the original BF1942, fans of the game felt it was the same game in a different setting. Roughly a year later, DICE unleashes its true sequel to the original BF1942 under the name, Battlefield 2. Like its predecessor, Battlefield 2 allows players to use an array of combat vehicles, aircraft and infantry weapons to overcome their opponents. In Battlefield 2, you are involved in a three way global conflict between three world powers: the United States Marine Corp (USMC), the newly formed Middle Eastern Coalition (MEC) and the Republic of China. This conflict occurs sometime in the near future which means some of the most advanced weapons available in modern times are at your disposal. The Technology Behind The Mayhem There is a substantial improvement in terms
of graphics, physics and sound for Battlefield 2. So what
kind of system you will need enjoy these new sights and
sounds, let alone run it. The rig I used to test Battlefield 2 with was: Intel Pentium 4 3.0E @ 3.2 GHz At a resolution of 1280x960, the game ran great with everything turned to high except for Terrain, Texture and Dynamic Shadows options, which were set to medium. No anti-aliasing or anisotropic filtering options were used. I did not suffer any video stuttering of any sorts, even when all hell was breaking loose with explosions going off left, right and center. It is very gratifying to see my Radeon 9800 still pushing out the polygons at a steady rate. For the sake of glorifying the game I did take the screenshots with everything maxed and 4x anti-aliasing. You may have noticed I mentioned no video stuttering, but there was still stuttering found when I was playing Battlefield 2 online. At first it appeared to be nothing more than a bad server, however when I checked the ping to the server it was rated at mid-50 ms. Luckily, this behavior did not surface frequent enough to cause me any substantial grief. The Images of War Compared to the original Battlefield 1942 and Battlefield Vietnam, Battlefield 2 naturally has them both beat in the graphics department. Every model ranging from soldiers, to tanks, all the way to helicopters look fantastic. It is apparent that DICE poured a vast amount of resources into how the vehicles and people look more than how the maps themselves. Despite how great United States Marine Corps sniper looks under all his camouflage gear, the maps leave more to be desired. Although they are not obscenely grotesque in appearance, the difference in quality is evident. The most noticeable issue with the maps is the aliasing. One would expect the game to exhibit minimal aliasing at a resolution of 1280x960, but not in Battlefield 2. This should not be a problem for those of you who can turn up the anti-aliasing without worry. For the rest of us, during a heated battle, I doubt you will have time to admire scenery.
Animations and effects in Battlefield 2 are top notch for the most part. Effects such as the shellshock effect or the monochrome view of the missile cam for the AH-1z Super Cobra all add that extra touch of authenticity to the game. Battlefield 2 also included the now cliché/requirement that is the rag doll physics effect. Although the effect is sometimes accurate in portraying how body would react to explosions and other kinds of damage inflicted by mortal weapons of war, there are times where it is a bit extreme in nature. It is gratifying to see a person fly backwards after being shot by a tank, but to see him do a front flip after shooting him in the foot with a M4A1 Carbine is a bit unrealistic.
Other quirks in animation include clipping through walls when a person is prone and is too close to wall and the lack of animation when a person gets killed while in the anti-aircraft emplacement. Although these quirks can be fixed with a patch or two, this third problem I have involves how people get in and out of vehicles. There is no animation for it. Unlike the Halo games where you can see the Master Chief climb in and out of his vehicles, DICE has you magically teleport into your tank. Although, this is not a huge issue, it does make it easier for infantry to instantly hop from one critically damaged vehicle to a brand new tank.
The Sounds of War “Hostile slick inbound!” I simply love the voices in Battlefield 2. They were well done and do not sound cheesy, but instead compliment the game’s rivaling factions by giving them a unique and distinguishing characteristic. The rumbling of the tanks and roar of enemy MIG-29s flying overhead was all represented well. The most audio pleasing experience is when you hear artillery being shot into the skies only to have it rain down in a shower of destructive power. Nothing strikes more panic into you than hearing the micro-thunderous impacts of a 2A42 30 mm cannon being fired upon you and your squad by an enemy Mi-28A helicopter. Simply a great audio experience!
DICE also took the effort to include support for Creative’s upcoming X-Fi audio card technology (EAX Advanced HD 5.0). With the X-Fi launching on June 27th, it will not be long before BF2 audiophiles can enjoy in the highest quality of audio. A nice bonus in Battlefield 2 is the built in Voice Over IP (VOIP) feature which allows you to speak with others without the use of third party software such as Ventrilo and TeamSpeak. The process of configuring the VOIP feature is simple through a built in wizard when you first install the game. Why War (In Games) Is Fun! It is amazing how a few subtle design changes can add so much to an existing gaming formula. Two key changes in Battlefield 2 include: • More emphasis on
team play As I mentioned one of the main reasons I disliked the original Battlefield games was due to the lack of team play. In a map, which contains up to 64 players, Battlefield 2 would be riddled with disarray without some form of direction. Luckily, DICE provides a few means to combat this issue. The first method of organization is the introduction of squads. Within each side (Team 1 or Team 2), players can join squads of six. The first advantage of being in a squad is the fact that you have joined a group of people who generally wants to work together. This makes capturing an enemy outpost that much more gratifying when you and your squad mates are the ones who conquered it. The more tangible benefit of being a squad is that your squad leader becomes a living spawn point. It does not matter where you are, if your squad leader is alive, you can spawn next to him. If he is in a helicopter and there is room for a passenger, you can spawn as the co-pilot or a passenger. Squad leaders can also request for supply drops, artillery strikes and orders on behalf of your squad. If I had to choose the one design change that makes Battlefield 2 what it is, then I would have to say this would be it.
The one man who commands these squads and/or troops is the commander. The commander can sometimes determine if your team succeeds or fails. The commander has a special view of the map in which he has a bird’s eye view of all the action going on. He can issue orders to squads including the basic attack and defend a position. The commander’s most powerful weapon is the ability to initiate a brief scan of the entire map revealing all enemy positions. The commander can also deploy Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), which can scan an area on the map for a brief period of time, revealing any enemy movement. Careful deployment of UAVs can uncover potential ambushes and should be used when appropriate. The most devastating assault in Battlefield 2 can be unleashed by the Commander; the artillery strike. Once the commander has painted an area for an artillery strike, anything and everything will be pummeled by artillery fire for a brief moment. Fortunately, friendly forces are warned when their immediate area has been marked for bombardment. The last important ability of the commander is his ability to drop supplies. These can aid in replenishing ammunition, heal and repair vehicles and soldiers. Unfortunately, friend or foe can use these.
The commander position has to be applied for. If no else wants to be a commander, you will automatically become the commander. However, through the use of a global statistics system created for every player in Battlefield 2. Each player is ranked based on his or her performance in the game. Thus, if a higher ranked player (whom should be more suitable for the position) applies for the commander position, they will be able to take it. Battlefield 2 employs the class-based model that we have seen in other games before it. In Battlefield 2 there are 7 unique classes: Assault Class – The
only class to carry smoke grenades and highly effective
assault rifles with grenade launching abilities. The medic, engineer and support class have an “aura”, which passively uses their respective skills. For example, the medic will automatically heal any friend within the immediate area when he has his med-pack out. The same effects apply when the medic enters a vehicle. Anyone near or in the vehicle will reap the effects of the medic. All the classes have their uses except for the support class, which I found to be underplayed and almost unnecessary. It is rare to find yourself needing ammunition in Battlefield 2. Even the medic has enough ammunition to last a significant amount of time on the field unlike in Enemy Territory or RTCW, where the medic carries only one clip of ammunition by default. The only mode of play returning to Battlefield 2 is the Conquest Mode, which pits two teams on a struggle to capture as many strategic points as possible on the map and attempt to drive the opposing teams’ tickets down to zero. The more points you hold on a map, the faster the opposing team’s tickets deteriorate. Although, the conquest mode is what made the Battlefield series, an additional mode of play along the lines of Enemy Territory’s objective mode would have been a nice flavour. Capturing points is fun, but objectives would put the other classes such as the engineer and support class in the limelight more often. Each of the 12 maps included with Battlefield 2 can has a 16, 32 or 64 player version of it which can be chosen to better suit the number of players a server wishes to hold. Obviously, the 16-player version of Gulf of Oman does not contain any forms of aircraft, while the need for aircraft is almost critical in the 64-player version. Unfortunately, a majority of the maps are set in the Middle Eastern setting, so the variety in scenery is scarce. Hopefully, through the magic of fiction, DICE can find a reason to set a battle or two in some cold weather settings! So how does the game feel? The game feels great. Controls are plenty, although the inability to override button assignments without unassigning them is a tad annoying, but you should not be rearranging your controls too often anyways. Another issue I personally feel to be a design flaw is the location of weapon types in the weapon banks. The Medic classes’ grenade is not always found in the same weapon bank as the Assault class, which makes binding a special button for grenades impossible. You can also finally sprint in Battlefield 2, which I found to be a breath of fresh air for the Battlefield series’ infantry movement. You finally have chance to run out of the path of an enemy tank rolling your way! The standard duck and prone abilities are also available in Battlefield 2. Luckily, DICE decided to keep the leaning abilities out of Battlefield 2. The weapons adequately reflect their real-life counterparts in most aspects except for damage. I felt that each bullet fired should deal a little bit more damage. The most surprising aspect of the shooting comes with the Sniper class. In the age where swaying is almost a requirement in all first person shooters, DICE opted to not include swaying. Not a huge flaw, but I found it peculiar. Last, but not least, flying aircraft and driving other vehicles with a mouse and keyboard is relatively painless, however joysticks are supported for those keen on aircrafts. Identifying and notifying enemy troops can not be easier in Battlefield 2, the use of a “mouse gesture” quick chat system allows you to press the default “Q” button to bring up an overlay of quick chat options. The default quick chat command in the middle can be used when you have an enemy in your sights. By pressing the mouse 1 button, you will notify your team of enemy activity with the corresponding blip on the mini map. This style of voice commands takes getting used to, but it can prove very handy.
Although multiplayer is the focus of Battlefield 2, there are some outstanding issues which stand between you and the server you wish to play in. The most apparent issues include the significant amount of time it takes to logging into your Battlefield 2 account and the poor performance of the built in server browser. While most games can sort hundreds of servers and refresh them with ease, Battlefield 2 seems to struggle with these basic tasks. Again, I hope to see patches released in the future to resolve these two issues. If combating other live players in the world is not your cup of tea, then I advise you not to purchase Battlefield 2. The single player component is very weak and restrictive. Single player fans will be disappointed to find out that they are restricted to playing on the 16-player version of the maps only; meaning a lack of vehicle selection. Needless to say, the multiplayer portion of this game was the focus of DICE. The Future of Battlefield 2 Battlefield 2’s future looks extremely bright! Total conversion modifications such as Mech Tactical Simulation (MTS) and Battlefield 1918 show off how dedicated the community is with improving and providing additional Battlefield experiences. However, if unofficial modifications do not suit your Battlefield cravings, you can be certain that expansion packs will be released. I am looking forward to these expansions and their offerings.
Conclusion Experiences. That is what Battlefield 2 is about. After playing a few games, I am sure you can walk up to friends and share tales of dog fights in the skies over Karkand or the hell your team endured to capture the hotel point in Oman. DICE has done a wonderful job with blurring the lines of reality and fiction of war and yielding fun filled war-based game. So is Battlefield 2 the “ultimate” first person multiplayer experience? No, not exactly, but it is pretty damn close. The game play refinements and aesthetic improvements are welcome additions to the proven Battlefield formula. The ability to hop on a server and join up with a squad to wreak havoc on your enemies is simply a gratifying experience. Except for a few technical issues, which can be addressed patches, this is definitely a game to pick up! Game
play: 19/20 Overall: 91/100
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