NOW PLAYING: BATTLEFIELD: BAD COMPANY 2
Currently, I’m playing BBC2 on PC (well, a Mac running Win 7 in its spare time) and despite the typical “EA can’t get their server shit together at launch” deal, it’s quite a blast.
I did play the original Bad Company online quite a bit back in 2008 (on PSN/PS3) and has a great time. I actually am a bit dirty having bought the PC version since I was aiming for a console version this time but several of my now former CoD4 colleagues were preordering with the intention of playing the PC versions on our machines at work during our lunch hour. Away I go to pre-order, ignoring the beta, but these two PC diehards hated the beta so much they went to the trouble of getting a refund from Steam.
So I’m playing the PC version, and it’s a great game. It runs well on my machine but I can’t help thinking some of the issues I’ve had with MW2 are just as prevalent here. We have dedicated servers again, something that MW2 proves is a must for PC games (Hell, they really make online console games light up). But the server browser is a tad ungainly with pings not currently showing up (for me at least) nor is there any way to filter by geographic location (if say, you were sick of being stuck with a US host on MW2, you could stick to servers in or near your country). So in the end I use the quick match option and see where I land. It’s literally Russian roulette since the lat few games were on servers in Europe and one was in Montreal. It was hard to tell because the people who did type messages, typed them in perfect English. No writing as if a text message, 1337speak or barely comprehensible babble. It was a bit hit or miss as far as lag goes (the game seems to cover it up quite well most of the time). You can either hit people or you can’t.
The game offers a very intense dynamic but there are a few balance issues (as there is any game of this sort) as is typical with Battlefield games, some people lead charmed lives. Snipers are the bane of the game right now though this is from DICE, who thought Battlefield Vietnam would benefit from a kit that combined a super accurate M60 heavy machine gun with a grenade launcher.
I’ve not had a chance to play much of the single player, but boy does it feel like a slightly above average Medal of Honor game (oe a slightly below average Call of Duty game). Let’s say it’s a dead heat with World at War and be done with it.
If you’re sick of Modern Warfare 2′s quirks but want something similar, I’d recommend this.
For someone who’s not been much of a PC gamer at home, I’m finding the uber cheap (and ultimately devaluing) Steam sales to be a great way to A) Try out games I wouldn’t have taken a punt on and B) giving me something to do at lunch at work. Far Cry 2 a few weeks ago might have been a waste of $10 but undeterred, I picked up Batman Arkham Asylum and Just Cause today. I’ve been seeing a lot about JC2 that makes me curious so I figure the price is right. Batman AA is recognized as one of the last year’s best games so it can’t hurt if I give it a spin. Even if neither game doesn’t gel with me I can’t complain too much.
So Sony and Microsoft. This is directed to you. You both have the infrastructure on your respective online marketplace mechanisms to offer download versions of your games. Sony’s gone quiet here but MS’s Games on Demand is crying out for two things. Sanity in pricing- especially outside of the US, and sales. I’d buy Saint’s Row 2 as a 360 download in a heartbeat if it wasn’t double the price of the disc version. Both the games I just got on Steam would have been a no-brainer to buy on either HD console if the option had been there.
Back to some more BBC2 and hoping Bioshock 2 turns up soon.
