Reader Review: Battlefield: Bad Company 2

Do you have what it takes to get a review published right here on Kotaku? Justin does, as he puts his pants on his head.

Yes, that’s right, we’re now publishing reader reviews here on Kotaku. This is your chance to deliver sensible game purchasing advice to the rest of the Kotaku community.

And thanks to the very kind chaps at Madman Entertainment, purveyor of all kinds of cool, indie and esoteric film, the best reader review we publish each month will win a prize pack containing ten of the latest Madman DVD or Blu-ray releases.

This review was submitted by Justin Robson. If you’ve played Bad Company 2, or just want to ask Justin more about it, leave your thoughts in the comments below.

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (360, PS3, PC)

Bad Company 2 is EA’s hugely hyped and self proclaimed answer to Modern Warfare 2, and… well… we’re not arguing.

Loved

Multiplayer Is Incredible: The maps and game types are all very lovable, varied and they seem built around the classes, weapons and vehicles. Some maps are better for long range combat, where others are more suited to faster paced battles, but everything feels “nice”. There are no maps where you know you’re inevitably going to get your face sniped off, and equally there aren’t any where you get ghosted by chronic knifers.

Weapons And Combat: This may sound like a “hated” point to some, but the lack of auto aim is sublime. There are no sticky sights, and it really makes gameplay more calculated and less spray and pray. The guns are also hugely varied, with pros and cons depending solely on your play style. Accuracy is encouraged, and firing in bursts finally pays off instead of just looking cool.

Lag Free Bliss: Even on a lowly 1.5mbps ADSL connection, lag is not an issue regardless of the time or who you’re playing. It takes some getting used to, but unlike Modern Warfare, you don’t need to cross your fingers and hope for at least a yellow ping. It just works.

Sound: The sound in this game deserves it’s own “loved”. Gunfire and explosions are an absolute guttural mind blowing experience. Watch footage of real guns being fired; it sounds like that. It is definitely best enjoyed with a surround system turned up eardrum destroyingly loud.

Hated

Multiplayer Problems: No online game is perfect, and BC2 is no exception. A lot of the time you feel like you’re spawning in the enemy’s sights, and this is exacerbated by insanely long respawn waits. Especially in conquest and rush, it often feels like: spawn, walk for a bit, die, wait, rinse and repeat. There are also little things like not being able to go prone, and how it just feels sparse at times.

Sniping: It’s ridiculously easy. Bullets are pixel accurate, and any hit from the chest up is an instakill. It’s extremely encouraging for campers, and most times you die it’s via a sniper rifle. For some, the sniper kill is sacred, but for others, well, they feel like they need to take a shower after effortlessly getting a five kill streak of headshots at long distance. It felt at times like people had neon signs above their heads.

Campaign: The best way do describe the campaign would be by using one of those cartoony sad trombone effects. It feels like an afterthought in every sense of the word. The plot is laughable, your team is only there for aesthetic effect and the AI is pants-on-head retarded. Where Modern Warfare 2 was unashamedly short and sweet, this felt like it was completely estranged from the multiplayer component and in that respect, it’s hardy worth playing even just to get a feel for it. The WWII prologue was by far the highlight of the game, and that’s saying a lot.

Even for someone new to the series, Bad Company 2 has a lot to offer in many areas. The campaign is meh-worthy, but the multiplayer is definitely the main course with some of the best staying power of this generation. This is a must have for any online gaming enthusiast.

Reviewed by: Justin Robson

You can have your Reader Review published on Kotaku. Send your review to us at the usual address. Make sure it’s written in the same format as above and in under 500 words – yes, we’ve upped the word limit. We’ll publish the best ones we get and the best of the month will win a Madman DVD prize pack.

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