Simple team deathmatches are focussed and taut affairs that rely upon good communication and considered approaches. That’s really the main ethos of the multiplayer, although it’s not specifically depended upon and more assumed. Far removed from the twitch-shot reaction tactics of Call of Duty, Battlefield relies more on the range and breadth of a conflict zone to add scope to the many different styles of player interaction. In many ways, the campaign feels like an awkward introduction to the superb multiplayer mode.įar from having the most variables in a FPS multiplayer, Battlefield 3 has added a great sense of depth and stratagem to its fairly meagre number of play modes. Its limited range is compounded by the lack of any real emotional impact from the characters and whilst the core mechanics are very well presented, the layout and structure of the levels forces your hand when deciding on strategy. The campaign is short, disappointing and bland. Whether you want to call it theft or homage, it does build towards a believable level of atmosphere albeit not something that is either comfortable or charming, but war is neither of those things. Green Zone, The Hurt Locker, Generation Kill, even back to Three Kings they’re all in there somewhere coughing tango-talk over radio bursts or cursing as long range rifle rounds clang off armour plating. Whether you’ll like the campaign depends on how many Iraq based war film/television shows you’ve enjoyed/grown weary of in the past ten years. As you progress, the story navigates its way though missing nuclear warheads, covert conspiracies and nondescript villains with biblical surnames until the fairly tame finale which sees private jarhead saving Times Square from another overtly generic apocalypse. In a similar fashion to CoD 4 you begin your campaign in the dusty boots of an American soldier on the hunt for desert dwelling extremists. Having never engaged fully with a Battlefield game in the past, I was led to assume the strict topography of modern combat FPS games was resigned to the sad and staid blueprint originally drafted by Call of Duty 4 and in many ways, Battlefield 3 does exactly that.
It led me to believe the most compelling aspect of any FPS lies more in its aesthetic quality as opposed to its mechanical quality. It’s odd that this simple and repetitive action could make up the foundation of the most popular genre of this generation. The speed at which you can accomplish this task represents your aptitude in this particular branch of game. Put your crosshairs over the enemy soldiers and pull the trigger. The challenge of a first-person shooter is the same title from title.