Battlefield: Bad Company 2 is all about causing everything in your line of sight to go boom with some huge, overly compensating toys. As the title suggests, Bad Company (the squad from the predecessor) returns for this sequel’s single player campaign. Nonetheless, the unpredictable yee-haw nature of the ridiculous multiplayer is the real meat of BC2. Leading a vegan lifestyle might be a problem.
While the campaign is largely uninspiring, the main characters are exaggerated and quite enjoyable. There’s the average guy (whom the player controls), the lovable nerd, the hick, and the stern, but not too stern sergeant. Sounds like a sitcom. In reality, these four personalities bring a great deal of comedic relief into an otherwise serious “get the superweapon before the bad guys do” type of story. Even though individual members have great lines and interact very naturally, the campaign often feels hollow. The hollow nature is no thanks to the AI. The player will have to become a one man army that’s adept at stopping large groups of enemies, tanks, jeeps, trucks, and even helicopters because the rest of Bad Company enjoys taking frequent combat breaks. It is possible that the AI crewmembers are often useless at shooting and stay in one place in order to admire the game’s impressive visuals. Maybe they just like the sunshine.
The level of destruction that’s likely to occur in BC2 adds great visual flair to the overall experience. Entire buildings can collapse and even crush the player’s worthless existence if not careful. The game constantly keeps the pace moving due to the fact that cover can be blown up so easily. This keeps multiplayer matches from getting stale, and creates multiple ways to legitimately play the game while having a unique experience every time. Put that on the back of the box.
The core shooting has a natural feel to it with every gun carrying a good weight and seeming like it could seriously harm a poor fool. The multiplayer matches are large, frantic and feature 24 players along with a plethora of vehicles. Each map is carefully balanced to ensure maximum carnage and minimum nerd rage directed at thy headset. However, not every map runs every game mode which might cause some burnout for players that stick to a single game type. Unfortunately, the campaign does not match the level of intensity that’s offered by the multiplayer. For the most part, missions consist of travelling from one side of the map to the other in order to trigger an in-engine cinematic. Hermits beware of the campaign.
The single player can easily be ignored if that’s not your thing, but the real crime that BC2 commits lies in the multiplayer. There are only four game modes in total. Conquest is the classic Battlefield experience in which players fight for key control points on a map; Rush has teams attacking and defending objectives; Squad Deathmatch consists of four teams trying to get 50 kills in order to win; Squad Rush is essentially a faster version of Rush. Squad Rush is also locked out for 30 days unless your copy was pre-ordered at a certain store, though PC owners get it from the start. Get your torches and pitchforks ready, camp out in front of EA or Dice’s headquarters and shout for new modes to come via DLC. Even though there are only four modes, there is a lot of time to be spent on BC2. The engaging, persistent progression system in the multiplayer is constantly rewarding you with new guns and gadgets based on which class you’re using and getting the experience points in.
Each limited edition version of the game (which seems to be the only one in print at the time of launch) comes with a VIP code that allows players to access the in game store. The store unlocks two extra maps for the multiplayer, and there is promise of more content in the future. Those (read: suckers) without a VIP code will have to buy their way into the store.
Bad Company 2 is a great game that looks, plays, and even sounds fantastic. Weapons have a real kick to them, and some of the dialogue is appropriately vicious. The quality of the audio effectively contributes to create a great atmosphere and sense of scale. Hearing the rip roaring sound of a chopper blowing up everything in its path as it rushes towards the objective that your unfortunate character is standing at is always a thrill. Just make sure a rocket launcher is equipped.
Ultimately, Battlefield: Bad Company 2 offers an enormous sense of scale and a constant stream of hectic action. Those that enjoy locking themselves away from the world in a dark room won’t find much in the single player campaign, but the sheer quality and gameplay of the multiplayer will have you hooked even with only four modes to choose from.