Battlefield has always been a series that I found to be fascinating, everything about it screamed “just another FPS!”, this is of course how it looks like. However, there are a few crucial factors about a Battlefield game that separate it from the title of “just another FPS”, and that’s its massive maps, and vehicle based combat.
Battlefield 4 is not exception to this rule, ever since battlefield bad company, the game had fantastic destruction to go alongside the great vehicle warfare. Although this game isn’t something revolutionary and new, it still improves on almost everything Battlefield 3 included, and it’s the better game for it.
Campaign: The campaign is fairly unremarkable… it spans just about 4-6 hours, and that in itself is weak. However, unlike the god-awful battlefield 3 campaign, this one strives to tell a more personal story about a squad of soldiers. This was a great choice by whoever wrote the story, as I by the end I could remember all the characters names, and even like a lot of them.
Its story isn’t half-bad either, something that’s both exhilarating and touching in some areas. And I can’t say there was a single moment in the game where I was downright bored. I feel that around six hours is an understandable length for an “on the rails” shooter like this one.
I can’t continue without mentioning how spectacularly beautiful the game is. I can easily say it’s the best looking game ever to be released, and the frostbite 3 engine is a technical masterpiece. It not only improves the textures of the ground, buildings, and even weapons tenfold over Battlefield 3, but it also makes the lighting and shading impressive.
Although you are placed head first into a “map”, during the single-player, the game still gives you enough room to explore and approach the target the way you want to. It utilizes the destruction much better than Battlefield 3 did.
Multiplayer: This is what we have all been waiting for, the multiplayer is the TRUE reason to buy a game like this. And it does not disappoint in the slightest.
Now, don’t get me wrong, it’s not revolutionary or a far cry away from Battlefield 3. But every single little tweak that it adds, every single little perk and pickup makes the gameplay experience THAT much better.
The levelution system that they added was simply music to my ears. I have to say, apart from the massive game-changing events that you can trigger, like sky-scrapers collapsing, or dam’s breaking and flooding the map, my favorite bits of levelution are the smaller changes. For example, you can switch off the lights, making true “in-the-dark” combat that you can utilize to sneak up and kill your enemy. This is the biggest, and most welcome change.
It isn’t the only one either, the game comes with a plethora of new and old weapons. Each one feeling slightly different than the last. Also, the customization system has been improved as well, making you able to add more attachments to your weapon. On top of all of this, they added a smoother UI to the PC version of the game, making navigating the screen easier.
All of this accompanied by a solid “battlelog” system that they implemented in battlefield 3, the game is more than just an upgrade, it’s a pleasure. As soon as you enter the game you will feel the similar feeling you felt when you first played battlefield 3, however, that feeling will triple when you see the massive buildings collapsing as the destruction gets bumped up five notches.
The multiplayer is something that I will be playing for months to come as I fight my way to the highest rank, having a blast the entire way through.
Consensus:
Overall, the entire product is solid, the campaign, although short and a bit unremarkable, offers enough visuals to sustain you for the time being. However, the multiplayer is once again the gem of the series, blending almost photo-realistic visuals with 64-player vehicular combat with such fluidity and precision you cannot help but snicker and laugh at the failed Call of Duty title that launched this year.
This is a great title, from a great company, with a great life-cycle. All I can say, in this time of great joy, is see you on the battlefield.
Grade: B+
awkwardreviews 