Battlefield: Bad Company 2 First Impressions
Fired up the PS3 and popped my brand-new game in. So, what's the scoop? Is this a Modern Warfare killer?
Short answer: way too early to tell.
Yeah, yeah, that's kind of a cop-out. But it's the truth. And here's why:
Tanks handle, well, like tanks. The Scorpion MBT in Halo 3 is maneuverable, powerful, yet always balanced by the superb about of power weapons. But, while a n00b will easily get pwnd by the spartan laser or missile pod, at least he can jump in and drive without looking like a total fool.
Short answer: way too early to tell.
Yeah, yeah, that's kind of a cop-out. But it's the truth. And here's why:
Tanks handle, well, like tanks. The Scorpion MBT in Halo 3 is maneuverable, powerful, yet always balanced by the superb about of power weapons. But, while a n00b will easily get pwnd by the spartan laser or missile pod, at least he can jump in and drive without looking like a total fool.
Standard Equipment: A reverse breathalizer--because the instant you jump in, you drive like a fucking drunk!
Now, it's entirely possible it's just me, because I have seen people who can drive the vehicles in a straight line, but something about the control configuration is way off. Practice, in this case, will hopefully make perfect.
The fact that it has vehicles, however, is a huge plus. I wish I could use them effectively, but it makes for vastly different play versus MW2. One rather awesome moment I experienced so far: when playing (and losing badly) in a Conquest mode, I was retreating to our next base on foot only to be beaten there by part of the enemy squad who used a helicopter to leapfrog ahead of our lines. I've seen people use vehicles in Halo to flank, but the maps' line-of-sight are too open for it to be really effective. Here vehicles are both offensive/defensive power-houses and tactically versatile.
So once I actually get used to the controls, we'll see how it goes.
Only 3 Game Modes. Modern Warfare has a ton more playlists and a more transparent lobby system. I'm new to the Battlefield series, so I'm still getting my feet wet when it comes to the tactical modes (Rush and Conquest). So I'm having fun in deathmatch as I acclimate to the control schemes and weapons.
Will only 3 options get old? Only time will tell, but in MW2 I only ever play team deathmatch and domination. I've tinkered with sabotage and the other modes, but they don't really hold my interest.
So 3, in and of itself, isn't bad. The thing I don't like, though, is that they made the design decision that there always has to be 4 squads. But people are constantly dropping in and out of the lobby. Sometimes I've had full squads, but on average I'm usually in a three-man team. And a lot of matches end up with two. Which makes 50 kills a MUCH longer process than a typical Halo 3 mach. Granted, the maps are more realistic, with very few open sight-lines, but still.
4v4 would be interesting. But I understand that it always has to be squad-based. Because you get killed easier in this game than any FPS I've played to date.
Balancing. The first thing I noticed is how quickly you can die. Sniper rifles aren't one-hit weapons (sans headshot) but it certainly doesn't take much. It might have to do with sound design too, because bullet impacts seem muted, but there's very little difference between wounded and dead.
I also picked up (very quickly) on the fact that the grenade launcher here is the anti-MW2 weapon. Whereas the 'n00b tube' is freakishly powerful in the latter game, here it's almost under-powered. Which, in my mind, isn't a bad thing. I haven't tried shotguns yet, but I hope they're also weaker. I'm sorry, Infinity Ward, but how can a shotgun kill me at 30 yards? And don't get me started on the absurdity of 'Akimbo' weapons. . . .
So, while it's taking some adjustment, I like the realism here. MW2 isn't terribly balanced, but BC2 appears to be. Vehicles are offensively powerful, but weak to well-placed RPG and other AT fire. Snipers require real skill, but can be quite dominant (especially with the mortar fire ability). And there are loads of incentives for people in the support roles.
Graphics. This is more of a mixed bag. The level of detail and the destructability of the Frostbite engine is impressive--and adds numerous tactical opportunities. But certain things rub me the wrong way. Trees topple over with absurd ease--and that's all they ever seem to do. No splintering, no burning, just toppling over like some invisible lumber-jack went to work on them.
And some surfaces just refuse to let bullets through--even when they should. How can I kill someone through a corrugated steel fence in MW2, but not in BC2? Oh, wait, it's probably because of the fucking shotgun :P
0 Response to Battlefield: Bad Company 2 First Impressions
Post a Comment