gaming Battlefield 4, the good, the bad, and the morally questionable

[Hell Patrol 41]

So, with Battlefield 4 quickly coming up over the horizon and Battlefield 3 fading rapidly in the rear-view mirror there is never a more questionable situation I find myself in than in fact whether or not to purchase this game, or what to think of it, or just the game in general. I would discuss it on the Battlefield 4 forums but if they're a sign of anything the average intellect of a member of the BF4 community is not polling in the triple digits as of current.

 

Now, Battlefield is one of the few reservations I still make for FPS games in the current market, and while no doubt the series has left much of what made it Battlefield behind many years ago it still continues to entertain and provide a reasonably entertaining if not a bit untapped shooter to the market. Battlefield 3 to me was a giant dissappointment, but it was by no means a particularly bad game, and Battlefield 4 looks like a vastly upgraded version of that, however here lies the problem. Battlefield 4, simply looks like more BF3, and while no doubt the improvements to level design, weapon and vehicle customization, and general gameplay fluency speak for themselves, I largely feel that it could do so much better. Considering recent statements on what the developers want in Battlefield 5 it's almost brought to question whether these games are increasingly built to become obsolete. Don't believe me? March on over to Battlefield 3's extremely promising but poorly taken advantage of vehicle and weapon upgrade system and then look at Battlefield 4's vastly upgraded but also not properly taken advantage of version of the same system. I had my fun with Battlefield 3, we all did, but I like my Battlefield 1942, Vietnam, 2, and 2142 a lot hell of a lot more than I like Battlefield 3.

 

So, the good, the bad, and the morally questionable. Well what's arguably the bad and good has been fairly well covered and we come to the inevitable business model. Battlefield 4 barely interested me until E3 2013 in which my interest shot into low level orbit, but since then it has fallen and fallen, climbing slightly in the beta only to dive off a cliff to several developments shortly after. Battlefield 4, or more specifically EA, have gone out of their way to pull out all the stops in combining everything people hate into one simple package. Pre-order DLC? Yep. Timed exclusive console DLC? How about that kids. A premium service which also nullifies the entire point of pre-ordering? Present and accounted for. Ingame microtransactions with a dubiously questionable system about how they're earned through legitimate play? You bet your ass they're there.

 

So, what's excited you about Battlefield 4? What's left a sour taste in your mouth? How do you feel about the business model? Are you getting the game? Or do you just not give a shit? I'm interested to hear so get posting.

[Display Name 448]

I know how you feel.

 

With all honestly, its just a re-hash of Battlefield 3 with minor graphical tweaks and whatnot.

Me, my friends and many other people would rather have a Bad Company 3, than this.

 

I had much more fun playing Bad Company 2 than Battlefield 3. Especially the campaign in BC2. You gotta love Haggard!

[Champion RD92 8,658]

I'm really excited for BF4, but yeah, BF 2142 was a lot better than BF3. Battlefield 2142 is one of my favorite games ever. It's too bad I can't play the newer BF games on PC though cause my laptop isn't nearly good enough to play those games lol. I actually did like Bad Company 2 a bit more than BF3, there was something about BC2 that I really liked.

[Pomfritter 165]

The first BF games I played were 1942 and Vietnam when I was very young. I enjoyed those games and, looking back, I do miss the focus on gameplay those games had. While I enjoyed the BF4 Beta, I wish that the game would concentrate more on the purpose of the game, instead of all the fancy features they can implement. While I'm not saying having a huge skyscraper fall over amazing, it shouldn't be the highlight of playing the game, as it was for me and probably for others.

[NightOwl 912]

I'm pretty excited for Battlefield 4 I played the beta and I thought It was really good! I love how DICE have added commander and spectator mode back in the battlefield series. I like how they have balanced things like the attack chopper so that it won't dominate infantry any more and I'm sure more stuff will get balanced prior to release definitely looking forward to playing it . 

[ReverseFaller 2,484]

I can't wait to play Battlefield 4! I loved Battlefield 3, and had a lot of fun with it. BF3 was my first battlefield game, so I can't really comment on what direction the series is going in. I have played some 1942, and Vietnam though (bots) and honestly those two games felt a lot less-battlefield like to me than Battlefield 3. Now I only played with bots mind you, so that surely took away from the experience of a battlefield full of humans playing together.

 

Anyways, I'm really excited for this game. I hope the maps are good.

[GrauWitz 1,010]

The only bad thing I can really say about Battlefield 4 is the roof-top campers on Siege of Shanghai. But what can you do about them? Well, I know that Badmins will be a huge problem, like they were in BF3

[Hell Patrol 41]

I'm pretty excited for Battlefield 4 I played the beta and I thought It was really good! I love how DICE have added commander and spectator mode back in the battlefield series. I like how they have balanced things like the attack chopper so that it won't dominate infantry any more and I'm sure more stuff will get balanced prior to release definitely looking forward to playing it . 

 

The thing I like is the stigla scumbags got a nerf. Those fire and forget launchers were broken from day one.

 

I can't wait to play Battlefield 4! I loved Battlefield 3, and had a lot of fun with it. BF3 was my first battlefield game, so I can't really comment on what direction the series is going in. I have played some 1942, and Vietnam though (bots) and honestly those two games felt a lot less-battlefield like to me than Battlefield 3. Now I only played with bots mind you, so that surely took away from the experience of a battlefield full of humans playing together.

 

Anyways, I'm really excited for this game. I hope the maps are good.

 

I think you wern't looking at the right things. There were so many factors that made BF2 a much more war-like experience in my opinion. The huge focus on vehicle combat, the way the vehicle customization worked, the way weapon customization worked, (I.E. there wasn't much it was team standard) was amazing. Not to mention the much deeper gameplay and much more balanced arsenal of weapons.

 

The only bad thing I can really say about Battlefield 4 is the roof-top campers on Siege of Shanghai. But what can you do about them? Well, I know that Badmins will be a huge problem, like they were in BF3

 

Siege of Shanghai was just a terrible map in general, I'd be more concerned about the fact that most of the combat was rooftop focused. Do urban combat right, do it where rooftops are an extra.

[ReverseFaller 2,484]

Hell Patrol, on 26 Oct 2013 - 03:23 AM, said:

 

I think you wern't looking at the right things. There were so many factors that made BF2 a much more war-like experience in my opinion. The huge focus on vehicle combat, the way the vehicle customization worked, the way weapon customization worked, (I.E. there wasn't much it was team standard) was amazing. Not to mention the much deeper gameplay and much more balanced arsenal of weapons.

 

Unfortunately I've never played BF2 before. The only game I've actually truly played so far has been bf3. So I can only really go off of what I know about that game. Anyways, I'm hoping BF4 has deeper gameplay/teamwork/balance like you mentioned.

[Scootalove 10,689]

I played the beta, and I'm pretty impressed with everything that the game has. A lot of people wanted Bad Company 3, but at least they made some improvements that should have been made in Battlefield 3 and they put it in Battlefield 4.

[Proctra Music 335]

I'm liking the whole output of the new step in the series. From playing the beta it felt really fresh, and crisp. Awesome new additions and loads of new features to fiddle around with. The maps are looking grand as of now. I can't wait to get into the full release.

 

Morally questionable?

 

Morals being tested is what is starting to make gaming a reality more then ever, and shows us themes we never would have known before.. Whether you're looking at The Last of Us, with the child strapped up with weaponry, knowing how to kill better then a trained military man. Or the new Metal Gear Solid, venturing to the darkest sides of the earth with child soldiers, not holding anything back with torturing scenes. 'Edgy' is becoming a standard, and I think it's important for games to explore this. Not only does it make you think outside of the game, but really develops the game world you play in. While games up to this point inspire shootings, inspire violence with no reprecusion games are starting to look around that into the effects that it has on the world, and how awful it truly is. That is important. If you don't understand what I mean, Portal 2, Amnesia: A Machine For Pigs, Metal Gear Solid: Phantom Pain, and Halo 4 are great examples of what it is to lose someone, or be in the guts of a disgusting world which it explores.