Battlefield 1943 Playtest
43,000,000 kills? Damn Right Skippy i'll help!Published 08/07/2009 at 15:00 by xvLIAMvx
Battlefield 1943 DLC On The Way [33]
BallsupField: 1943 [54]
BF1943 Problems Investigated [34]
He’s in my sights, that bastard that blew my tank up – now I have become a sniper and the little sod has no idea he is a breath away from meeting his maker. Lined up and compensating for targets distance and movement speed… patience… squeeze gently… 3… 2… HOLY CRAP – jump! Damn, too late! An enemy plane shot down by a flak cannon just ditched right into my observation tower, which I thought was a safe vantage point from which I could snipe from. I was wrong and this game just slapped me around the face with a big reminder that anything can happen here. Am I really playing a downloadable title? Did I really pay so little for such quality? Ouch, yep – I’m not dreaming.
Above is a description of the first ten minutes into my play test on Battlefield 1943. For a non-retail downloadable title you expect to be called to forgive a lack in features and sophistication. Happily BF: 1943, developed by Dice and published by EA, dishes out surprise after pleasant surprise, providing an instant action rush yet backing it up with a fully fledged gaming experience. Pick it up and drop a few birds from the sky or dismantle a tank with a well place demo’ charge, or get down and dirty with a serious “this island belongs to us” approach and “my team and I are not giving it up!” Dice have tweaked and boosted their Frostbite engine for this title – the Frostbite game engine allows a good deal of destruction and fantastic sounds and effects, and whilst anyone having played Battlefield Bad Company will instantly recognise the graphics and game play (this feels like the same game) the isolated island in the Pacific and setting make ‘1943 really stand out.
But let us get to what you the reader wants to know: is it fun? My answer to you is: damn right skippy! Jump in to a quick match and you are less than a minute away from a battle taking place on the ground, on the water and indeed in the air. Want to play with friends? Then squad up with anyone you wish to carry your letters in case you don’t make it and start hurling lead towards the enemy. Want to know if there will be TSA only “boot camps”? Yes, yes there bloody well will be! This game caters for all trades and will see pilots strafing landing craft and raining highly explosive tickets to hell on the poor ants battling below. It will see snipers with a smile the length of the Nile after dropping an unsuspecting foe from across the other side of the island. Gamers will be shouting “did you frickin see that?” after hitting the detonation switch when a tank roles over some well placed explosives. With so many ways to dish out death – 43,000,000 kills doesn’t seem so far away but it is going to be one hell of a blast getting there.
The mechanics are pretty much the same as all other FPS games. It doesn’t try to be complicated and is really easy to just pick up and get on with it. Run around guns blazing and you’ll soon rack up the kills. However, get tactical and form a good team and you’ll be dominating the island and sending the enemy a clear message that you won’t go down easy. Planes are easy to control and offer machine guns and bombs to deal out the pain, with dogfights being the highlight. Should your plane take too much damage you can nose towards the enemy on the ground, or jump out with the safety of a parachute and live to fight another minute. The controls are easy enough that anyone can fly but take the time to master them and become an ace and you will nail other fighter pilots whilst making craters where the enemy once stood. Tanks are truly rolling beasts of steel and take as much punishment as they can dish out. You can drive and gun whilst a team mate takes the 50 cal’ on top. With a canon, a coaxial machine gun and a mounted 50 these babies will become a nuisance for even the most skilled of opponents. You will also see nimble jeeps to tear across the island whilst dodging shells and decorating your bonnet with a new coat of red gloss.
The aim of the game is to capture all the points on the island. With each point offering its occupants new vehicles and advantages such as capturing the airfield to give you aircraft on the island. Some points offer you tanks and jeeps, some even offer you a communications bunker allowing you to guide three bombers over the island to perform a bombing run anywhere you want to drop it – and a damned destructive bombing run it is too. Both sides start on a carrier ship with planes and landing craft (via water) for starting your assault. The carriers also house flak canons and defences to make sure your planes are safe from any enemy planes circling above for an easy kill. You will then land to take control of all points on Wake Island, Iwo Jima, Guadal Canal and a battle over the Coral Sea once all PSN members hit a combined 43,000,000 kills. You can get up close and personal with the Infantry class packing a machine gun, bazooka and hand grenades. Stay at a distance with a sniper rifle or get sneaky with the explosives using the Scout class. Finally there is the Rifleman that gets a semi-automatic rifle good in medium to long range battles, with the ability to slam on a grenade to launch like a make-shift mortar.
A very easy to play and offering many incentives to master type game, ideal for a community get together and offering weeks and weeks of multiplayer fun. With great graphics, a very good damage model, and fantastic sound effects this game gives a real sense of a hectic battle for control in every match. Plenty of variety and buckets of fun for up to 24 players, you can rest assured that this game will get the TSA community touch and receive the attention it deserves. Why waste time downloading the demo when you could be making your mark in the full title?
The community race between the PS3 and 360 formats to reach 43,000,000 kills and unlock a 4th map (Coral Sea) begins 10th July 19:43 (GMT+1) that being 7.43pm here during summer months in the UK. TSA will be hosting events and ongoing community sessions for this title, more information will be made available very shortly. Now I’m off to take to the skies, no I’m nicking that tank, no wait I’m going to snipe… ah sod it – charge!
Comments
Please note that all comments are the opinion of the individual author and not TheSixthAxis.
Gastos84 | 08/07/2009 15:04
Team TSA: Writer
3888 TSA Points | Member since: Apr 2009
TSA in 1943. Oh this is gonna be good.
Don’t tell me you need a new 1943 related nickname or can we transfer over Shooter McDoom
FruitOfDoom | 08/07/2009 15:16
Member
481 TSA Points | Member since: Dec 2008
Fruit(Maverick)McDoom now mate
Gastos84 | 08/07/2009 15:18
Team TSA: Writer
3888 TSA Points | Member since: Apr 2009
lol Gastos the Grenadier it is then
Roynaldo | 09/07/2009 01:33
Member
2990 TSA Points | Member since: Nov 2008
Rampant Roynaldo will do for me.
haz360 | 08/07/2009 15:06
Member
424 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
Can. Not. Wait.
Ryan1991 | 08/07/2009 18:24
Member
1996 TSA Points | Member since: May 2009
This is the reason I need a debit card.
hannes_truce | 08/07/2009 15:07
Member
2919 TSA Points | Member since: Sep 2008
I may have to go sell something on my lunch tomorrow so i can pay some money into my account so that i can buy this. great read and you’ve just made me want it even more than I already did.
Soild_Nat | 08/07/2009 15:09
Member
804 TSA Points | Member since: Apr 2009
Brill preview guys. Tomorrow just got all 1943!
shrimpeh | 08/07/2009 15:09
Member
324 TSA Points | Member since: Jan 2009
Hope I can finally get my PS3 online again for tomorrow. Too much work not enough play at the moment
Is there helicopters? I used to be a beast at flying them on BF2.
Gastos84 | 08/07/2009 15:16
Team TSA: Writer
3888 TSA Points | Member since: Apr 2009
On account of the fact that only Germany had copters in WW2 (and very few at that) i think it would be historically accurate to include them
Gastos84 | 08/07/2009 15:17
Team TSA: Writer
3888 TSA Points | Member since: Apr 2009
*inaccruate
Downey92 | 08/07/2009 15:09
Member
632 TSA Points | Member since: Jun 2009
Gamers will be shouting “did you frickin see that?”
I love those sorts of moments in games and it looks like there is going to be a lot of them in this one.
Jas-n | 08/07/2009 15:20
Folding With TSA Co-ordinator.
1227 TSA Points | Member since: Aug 2008
This calls for a new thread…
Downey92 | 08/07/2009 15:21
Member
632 TSA Points | Member since: Jun 2009
Indeed.
A Top 10!!
Jas-n | 08/07/2009 15:15
Folding With TSA Co-ordinator.
1227 TSA Points | Member since: Aug 2008
This sounds like Battlefield Heroes, That’s a great game, which I don’t play much anymore
. Could do with a new PS game.
matty | 08/07/2009 15:17
Member
1331 TSA Points | Member since: Dec 2008
how much is this going to be? im still undecided on it
hannes_truce | 08/07/2009 15:20
Member
2919 TSA Points | Member since: Sep 2008
tenner…
matty | 08/07/2009 15:22
Member
1331 TSA Points | Member since: Dec 2008
ooo thats tempting
Amphlett | 08/07/2009 15:25
Member
1247 TSA Points | Member since: Jul 2009
£9.99 to be precise.
citizeninsane45 | 08/07/2009 15:21
Member
898 TSA Points | Member since: Oct 2008
Is this like a merge between Warhawk and Bad Company?
nofi | 08/07/2009 15:24
Wants a custom tag.
4303 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
Pretty much, yeah. Tomorrow is going to be all kinds of awesome.
Downey92 | 08/07/2009 15:45
Member
632 TSA Points | Member since: Jun 2009
“Tomorrow is going to be all kinds of awesome.”
My quote of the day
Zuler | 08/07/2009 15:30
Team TSA: Writer
10499 TSA Points | Member since: Apr 2009
Count me in for the TSA community action. AWESOME!!
Gastos84 | 08/07/2009 15:50
Team TSA: Writer
3888 TSA Points | Member since: Apr 2009
Zuler the Zeppelin.
Perfect seeing as that was the code name for a deception operation in the Balklands in 1943. That’s fate that is!!
moakesice | 08/07/2009 15:32
Member
315 TSA Points | Member since: Jan 2009
This game is going to be mint, i cant wait, ill be well up for some TSA battles!
TctclMvPhase | 08/07/2009 15:33
Member
818 TSA Points | Member since: Nov 2008
I was going to pick this up for PC instead, but I guess I may have to reconsider. Is anyone else worried this is going to turn into a heavily segregated, nickel and dime dlc experience? There are a lot of maps for 1942, particularly if they include the expansions.
Personally I might wait to pick this up since my fondest memories of 1942 usually involved the larger servers and I cant imagine the action being all that intense with only 12 people per team. Also werent Iwo Jima and Coral Sea two of the worst maps in the original game? I mean where is Berlin or Stalingrad? Those would truly benefit from the Frostbite engine.
nofi | 08/07/2009 15:43
Wants a custom tag.
4303 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
It’s subtitled “Pacific” and the Iwo Jima (at least) has been modified a fair bit.
Kevling | 09/07/2009 00:08
Member
2032 TSA Points | Member since: Dec 2008
Rehardng “nickell and diming”, the faq’s on battlefield1943.com says that NO DLC is planned for this title.
cc_star | 08/07/2009 15:37
Team TSA: Writer
7874 TSA Points | Member since: Forever
I’m buying this straight away
I have a problem that I’m on holiday for a week from Friday so by the time come back everyone will be expert and I’ll just be a noob
*Might postpone holiday*
Ro6afc11 | 08/07/2009 15:47
Member
1061 TSA Points | Member since: Feb 2009
Really been looking forward to this and even more so now reading your playtest. I forgot all about starting on carriers. Somehow i always managed to end up being on it when there were no vehicles available so would end up jumping off and swimming!
Bilbo_bobbins | 08/07/2009 15:49
Member
1406 TSA Points | Member since: Jun 2009
A mix between Warhawk and Bad Company. WOWSERS this is gonna be BOMBTASTIC !
Shows up the DLC for 2 maps on KZ2. With this you get 4 maps, and a whole new game for double the price.
Great, can’t wait for this.