Battlefield 2

"Awesome multiplayer game"

PROS: Enough new stuff to make it feel like a whole new game; great maps; variety of weapons and jobs; smooth controls; outstanding graphics; addictive; unbelievable moments

CONS: Some players don't get it; single-player mode isn't much fun; no friends list; lag

The art of an online game. It's always fun to play with others across the world, isn't it? Well, Battlefield 2 is obviously the best online fps to hit the PC since Counter-Strike.

After Battlefield 1942, DICE and EA clearly knew what they were doing. They've loaded this game with plenty of new stuff. Squads now can contain six people, and you can respawn on a squad leader. Each team has a commander that can launch artillery, drop supplies, and use radar. Anyone on a team can apply to be commander, but the most experienced player will be accepted. The interface for applying to be commander or joining a squad and it's very easy to do while you're lying on the ground for 15 seconds before you can respawn.

You have no control of which of the three armies (US Marines, Middle East Coalition [doesn't exist] or Chinese People's Army) you fight for. The server automatically chooses for you, but you can convert to the other side if your team doesn't treat you well. One time they mutinied me as commander for no apparent reason, so I just switched sides and eradicated them. You see, you can remove a commander from his position if he kills too many people on your team with an artillery strike. You can also kick someone off the server if they're being a loser. Be careful and make sure you get the right person, however. The interface for this isn't as easy to find- you have to press TAB, right-click, and then click on the correct tab. Another thing you can vote for is a map to be played. The chances of having a successful map vote are slim because all 32 of you playing have a different idea of what maps are good and what maps aren't. The only bad map is Zatar Wetlands, but every other map is entertaining in its own, unique way.

Here, you fight alongside 15 others against another team, trying to capture objective points represented by flags. The main objective here is to get as many flags so your opponent loses tickets quicker than you do (a postmortem respawn costs 1 ticket), and when one team reaches 0, they lose. Unfortunately, some of the people playing have a problem understanding this. Since they're real people, I can't say that it's an AI bug. It's not. It's human stupidity. Why on earth are there 5 people on my 16-person team waiting on the carrier for a plane to appear when only 1 of them is going to get it? People think that planes are cool to fly. They are, but the main objective here is GETTING THE FLAGS. Unfortunately, this makes it all the more challenging for you. You're supposed to work as a team here, and since some people fail to understand it, capturing flags can become quite frustrating. Also, some people won't forgive you when you kill them by accident, and some people on the other team will be aggravated if you kill them in their plane twice (one guy tried to kick me out because of this).

In this game, you can play with several different kits that grant you different abilities. The spec ops kit, my favorite, will allow you to plant C4 explosives on enemy artillery, radar, and tanks and blow them to pieces. Of course, they can also blow people (like yourself) to pieces. So be careful. The assault kit is relatively basic, there really isn't anything cool about it other than a good gun. The sniper kit allows you to hide in the weeds, surrounded by your own mines so anyone who comes near you gets blown up. The medic kit will allow you to heal yourself and your team, as well as wake the dead. Yeah, you can wake the dead here, but they won't be zombies. The support kit will provide ammo to those in need of it, but the gun overheats and is quite inaccurate. The engineer can repair tanks, cars, artillery, and radar, as well as use a shotgun. Lastly, the anti-tank kit will let you blow up enemy vehicles more easily. All of this variety, spread out among the 16 members of your team, makes it all the more entertaining. You can easily change kits for your next spawn, too, and have a whole different experience having a completely different role.

The controls here are relatively easy to learn. A good way to do this is to play the game's single player mode, which is just a stripped-down version of the online multiplayer. This isn't much fun, but it allows you to accustom to the keyboard as a controller if you're used to your Xbox's analog sticks. The controls are smooth and work well, even for driving one of the game's many vehicles. And trust me, there are a lot of them.

Did I mention the graphics here? Wow. They look almost real. This is really, really cool, and makes the game obviously entertaining to just watch.

This game is gorgeous in almost every way. It's addictive- you'll want to play every day until you get bored with it after three months. You'll meet all kinds of people, however there isn't any way to keep track of them. So what- the core of the game is addictive with unlimited replay value, and some of the moments are crazy. Like when a helicopter blows up right in front of you and crashes behind the jeep you're driving, or when you're riding in a plane and the pilot does a barrel roll. Except for the single-player, everything in this game is outstanding and fun if you're on a good server (some of them have lag issues). I just hope that the people playing it can learn that having a plane isn't everything and they can come join my squad and blow the brains of the other guys out. Four guys working together can easily eradicate eight guys waiting for a plane to appear. Go out and get some flags… a 9 out of 10.

Reviewer's Score: 9/10, Originally Posted: 07/21/06