Battlefield 4 Review
By Nathan Ball
Platforms: PC, Playstation 3, Playstation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One
Developer: DICE
Publisher: EA
UPDATE: Battlefield 4 has had one of the worst, if not THE worst, launch of any game in history. The game was reviewed on the Xbox One (read below for the original review) and was absolutely unplayable. The game was not even good enough to be called a Beta, that’s how bad it was. The game was so broken that saves would delete if you quit singe player, servers in multiplayer wouldn’t display actual games so you joined all alone in hope of people finding you, one shot kills half the time, walking through floors/walls, disconnects after disconnects, crashes after crashes, and that still doesn’t break the surface on the game’s flaws.
However, DICE and EA has been hard at work trying to fix this game. After all, their stock prices plummeted due to the negativity swirling this game along with a major lawsuit alleging the misleading of investors. Definitely hasn’t been a promising start to next generation gaming for EA.
Patches to fix the patches were implemented to finally get this game to a playable state and you definitely won’t be disappointed with the game. Battlefield 4 is by far the best in the series regardless of all of the issues at launch. Pick up a copy today, and you won’t be disappointed with the amount of fun you can have out on the battlefield!
ORIGINAL REVIEW
DICE is back at it again in their latest installment of the Battlefield series with Battlefield 4. DICE and EA have created a revolutionary levolution system in the first person shooter genre that will set the bar for future shooter games. Commander Mode is back and is far more intriguing than the previous attempt. Not only are you armed to the teeth with weapons, you’re vehicle armament is vast. Need air support? Check. Need a tank to help push forward? Check. Need a jeep to drive you to your objective? Check. Every war aspect is covered in full detail and delivers in every way possible.
Battlefield 4 multiplayer on next generation consoles is massive, allowing 32-player teams. However, current-gen consoles are limited to 12-player teams. Teams set out to complete various objectives depending on the game type chosen not only creates a fierce battlefield, it creates the need to slow down. You will die, that’s inevitable. However, if you dedicate your time to teamwork, understanding the objective at hand, and communicate, winning can be accomplished. In addition to teamwork, players will need to adapt to certain events that take place during the match, altering the foundation of the area – levolution.
Has your team pounded the gunner at the top of the prison tower? Yep, because it’s now tumbling down to the ground with the gunner perishing in the rubble. Ever wondered what would happen if you released the pressure in those underground pipes? Well, it sends an explosion through the map that cracks and levels the road throughout the map. The maps are ever changing and as they do, your strategy must adapt too.
Large-scale destruction of the maps are inevitable and teams must adapt to come out on top. Once again, players can wreak havoc on the environment to eliminate the campers in the buildings. Have a teammate assist in a tank and blow the wall to pieces, killing the player perched behind it. Even the simplest structures can be toppled with a well-placed shot, creating a hiding spot that only you have created.
Where Battlefield 4 shines compared to its predecessors is with the slightly altered combat system. For example, knifing someone from behind still awards you with a new set of dog tags, however, a frontal attack can now be countered. This adds more of a realistic touch to the gameplay and is rewarding for the person who counters because of the sense of accomplishment of stopping a knife attack. In addition, sniping has become slightly more realistic with bullet drop needing to be accounted for prior to taking the shot.
Customization is at its finest in Battlefield 4. Earn experience in your games and as you level, you earn more and more unlockable items to help in combat. In addition, classes have been redesigned allowing more of a free weapon change rather than being limited. For example, the Recon class no longer limits the player to a sniper rifle and shotgun. Feel free to equip a machine gun to help in close quarter battles if a shotgun just isn’t your cup of tea. Gadgets, do however, stay tied to the class itself. This is refreshing considering past Battlefield’s really hindered a player from selecting their weapons they felt comfortable with.
Commander Mode returns and is a fantastic addition compared to its predecessor which really limited the capabilities. Once a player reaches level 10 in the game, they can use their tablet to fire up Commander Mode. The Commander observes through the Battlefield 4 app on a tablet and can observe everything going on. Not only can they assist by watching and identifying targets, Commanders can now deploy ammo drops and request vehicle deployments. Missile strikes can be ordered to strike critical blows to the opposition. Assist in any way possible from the convenience of your tablet and take your team to victory. For these reasons, multiplayer is phenomenal and is the reason to play DICE’s new installment.
The campaign, however, is far from perfect but delivers an action packed thrill ride if you’re able to play without crashes. Many times, I was forced back to the main menu during points in the campaign and other times my entire save file vanished. However, I did get this much out of the story. Your cast into the role of Recker throughout the game, compared to predecessors constantly switching out of chronological order, leaving you to remember which events took place when to piece together the whole story. The game begins with your vehicle submerged underwater with your fellow squad, only to realize you must make a decision – shoot the window out to save all but your fellow squad mate Dunn, or lie there to die together.
I inclined to save most of my squad, unfortunately allowing Dunn to perish below the depths. At that moment of truth, you flash back to Baku, Azerbaijan where you’re a member of Tombstone set out to retrieve important intel from the Russians. You play the key moments leading up to the crash and get an understanding where the story is headed. The visuals are absolutely stunning. When you experience the open field, where birds can be seen in great detail and the sun is visually superb, you realize just how beautiful of a game Battlefield 4 really is. The characters are lifelike and the equipment look like exact replicas to their real world counterparts.
At the time of publication, I’ve yet to complete the campaign and people from other consoles are experiencing the exact same issues. I’ll have to put it aside until the saved files vanishing is patched because I’m tired of losing my progress. It really seems like this game was rushed to market and it’s unfortunate because of the potential the game has. Not only are there issues in the campaign, there are issues in the multiplayer occasionally.
For example, in between matches you are kicked to the main menu or booted to the home screen, forced to find another match. Many servers are empty and some game types are unable to be played. In addition to the connection drops, there are map issues. At one point, I spawned and fell through the ground, bouncing up and down as if the game had me walking underground for periods of time. I know this is a tough time with the launch of two systems, but wow, other first person shooters aren’t having these issues!
Overall, when Battlefield 4 IS working, DICE has delivered in every possible way imaginable. The destruction elements are valuable to assist players in eliminating campers, Commander Mode is innovative, and the graphics are phenomenal. I highly recommend picking up Battlefield 4 but definitely wait until all of the bugs are ironed out. At that point, an updated review will be completed and the game’s score will be adjusted accordingly.