Battlefield 3

I'll admit, when I first heard Battlefield 3's second DLC was going to be Close Quarters, I groaned a tiny bit. "Bloody Call of Duty-pandering limp wrists" I think I said. Since it was really the first true DLC for me (since I picked up Karkand in the Limited Edition of Battlefield 3 to begin with), I really didn't like the idea of the first exciting expansion being something that was so... well, un-Battlefield-y.

Disclaimer: This review is not going to be about whether Premium is a good deal or not - I think it is because I always intended to buy all DLC for the game - but just the DLC package Close Quarters. If you want whining about Premium, go somewhere else.

So Close Quarters. What is new? The DLC adds four new, close quarter (duh), infantry-based maps; Ziba Tower, Scrapmetal, Operation 925 and Donya Fortress. With them comes 10 new guns, and respective assignments, and a slew of extra achievements and game modes. To clarify, the new weapon camos and knife come with the Premium package, not Close Quarters.

The first thing you'll either have a violently adverse reaction to, or an inquisitive reaction instead, is the fact the maps in Close Quarters are most definitely the smallest maps ever made for a Battlefield franchise game. Like Rust on Call of Duty compared to the size of maps such as Overgrown and the like. Sorry for the Call of Duty references, but you really can't help but compare the two games when referencing the latest DLC. When you imagine Battlefield, you imagine wide open fields giving way to forests and cities peppered with tank shell fire and snipers in hay lofts exploding the heads of medics looking to revive the engineer just killed by a helicopter circling above. The realm of tight corners and cramped corridors belongs in Call of Duty. By the two games' very nature, you can't help but see how very different they are and root for one or the other, not unlike the rivalry between Microsoft and Apple, or Coke and Pepsi.

Some people will outrightly be enraged such a blatant attempt to garner support from Call of Duty players even made it to a Battlefield game. Others will buy the DLC with an inquisitive searching, hoping to see if the superior team-based gameplay of Battlefield can be meshed with the frenetic and easy to play style of Modern Warfare.

My thoughts won't be shared with everyone, but I actually found the Close Quarters DLC refreshing. Despite the overall size, with the number of levels and hidden corners throughout the maps, the new arrivals in Close Quarters seem every bit as large as if you are attacking an objective with a multitude of tanks on a larger map. Several times I'd wander down a hallway and not see a single soul for several minutes. Other times I'd be in the thick of a firefight where people died by the dozens it seemed. Despite this apparent largeness, there is no deny you do tend to pick up the kind of run-and-gun approach adopted from Call of Duty. Tactics sometimes (okay, usually) go straight out the window and you can expect your teams mates to be shifting violently from one area to the next, much unlike the roaming battle lines that appear in the larger maps.

But that does not mean you cannot have thoughtful and engaging team play on the Close Quarters maps. Especially when the servers aren't full, you'll often find yourself with a full squad, advancing like a spec ops team down a hallway, members peeling off to cover corners and provide cover. The emphasis is definitely on the kill rather than the revive or resupply, but as with any game, the more you use your team play resources, the more likely you are to succeed.

It's very hard however to concentrate when the walls around you are being turned into confetti. Especially on a map like Ziba Tower, where the fragile offices turn quickly into bullet-ridden craters, there are always explosions and havoc being caused somewhere. The visual overload is not without enjoyment, but in some cases it does look a little over-done. Going from the relative unbreakableness of walls in maps such as Operation Metro to a map such as Ziba where you can sometime see from one end of the map to the other courtesy of several RPGs, is often strange and lends itself to unbelievability. I'd imagine the computer-users would have a much better time of the destructive effects, as on the Xbox 360 it can look at times blocky and unrealistic. And it is highly disappointing when you blast a hole through a wall, only to find you cannot move through it completely as some indestructible metal beams block your escape. I'm not saying all walls have to be completely removable, but more than I've encountered would have been nice.

Again, although vertical fighting is a key feature in the DLC, I'm yet to see a floor where you can create your own holes through for quick drop-assaults. The obvious reasons for flowing gameplay are of course, obvious, but it'd have been nice. That doesn't mean death doesn't come from all angles in Close Quarters. Many of the objectives will have you glancing left, right up and down while capturing them. The flow of combat really is flawless, and I have no problem relinquishing my right to Battlefield expansiveness if well planned maps such as this keep delivering pulse-increasing action game after game.

There is one point that I will make with the Close Quarters DLC however; shotguns and other close quarter weapons. You feel almost obliged to use them exclusively. For about 5 games in a row, I never even needed to use more than a shotgun. There was not one situation where any other situation was needed. Variety is not needed. It sure does make picking the game of Battlefield easy to begin and conquer (especially if you're venturing from Call of Duty), but it takes away that feeling of a cohesive squad working together as it turns you into a bunch of lone wolves locked together in a cage. Extreme props to the man who is game enough to head on out with a sniper or similar long-range weapon - you'll be one of the first I've encountered. So on one side of the coin, Close Quarters will excite you and pump you up with killing, fast-paced action (and is great if you're into a bit of that but not a Call of Duty fan), but at the same time, it gets old quickly and will at times leave you yearning for games with more substance and meaning and tactical emphasis.

So my thoughts on the maps leads me to my thoughts on the new guns and modes. What can be said? I will admit I haven't tried all the guns (although I've definitely been killed by all of them!). The ones I have tried seem pretty stable, powerful and useful. After being on the receiving end a few too many times, I'd say the SPAS shotgun is definitely one of the most powerful new additions. Flechette rounds on that baby introduce the power of a shotgun to your face from a corridor distance away every time. Nasty. And of course the new assignments make it all worthwhile if you're like me and have completed the original ones from Karkand etc.

Game modes. You may be asking yourself, 'What is Conquest Domination?". Other than sounding like the love child of a Call of Duty and Battlefield sex act, I'd say it is pretty much Conquest made for Close Quarters. As you'd expect, closer flag zones but shorter capture times. The real new game mode is Gun Master. I mean come on, if you're annoyed at me for using so many comparisons between Battlefield and Call of Duty, you cannot hope to expect me NOT to compare this mode to the almost clone-similar mode Gun Game in Call of Duty! You start off with bad weapons, you kill and earn, then you get better guns. Sounds fun? It can be very challenging, but after a while, you get the hang of it and it gets very addicting. If anything, this will prove how you feel about Close Quarters; either you'll enjoy it and play it religiously, or you'll feel absolutely guilty that you like the DLC's injection of cheap thrills and skip back to the more traditional modes and maps of the main game.

That is the real reason I gave Close Quarters only 4 stars out of 5. Not because it's inferior, or because it's poorly handled. But because it really does force you to choose between the two styles of play and I'm not happy that a game's DLC should make such a dilemma for its players. I most likely will continue to enjoy the DLC for a while, then mix it in with the traditional maps, sticking to servers that have all maps in their routine. This way I'll be able to use Close Quarters as a nice break from thought-provoking tactical warfare, and inject some thrilling, mindless killing into the night's play session; but not enough to feel like I'm forgoing the true reason I love Battlefield's combat gameplay so very much. You'll have your own plans and uses for Close Quarters. But I would suggest that you do pick it up and give it a try. Try not to compare it too much to Call of Duty (says the guys who has almost solely based his review on it!), and enjoy it for the nice change of pace within the Battlefield mythos that it is. Sure it's a bit weird if you remove the comparison, but at least you'll have fun - and at the very very least, you'll bridge the gap to the Armoured Kill DLC which EVERYONE is excited about. So get out there, equip your shotgun and go blast some fools coming around your office corner!