One of the most talked about rivalries in gaming right now is that of Call of Duty vs. Battlefield. Rightfully so, as DICE has made no bones about going after Call of Duty and its first-person shooter popularity crown. While the comparison seems like an obvious one, we’re not convinced that Call of Duty is the best measuring stick for Battlefield 3. Sure they’re both military shooters but, outside of their genre, these two games set out to achieve very different things, especially on the multiplayer side.
Perhaps a better comparison would be to that of Battlefield 2, a game that a lot of people still consider to be the high mark in multiplayer gaming. Or maybe we should use the most recent Battlefield project, the Bad Company series, a side franchise that has become quite popular amongst the console crowd. So how does Battlefield 3 stack up against its much-loved older brothers?
One of the single greatest things Battlefield 3 has over its most recent console predecessors (and most console multiplayer games) is a server browser. We know server browsers are nothing new to PC games but they’re somewhat rare on consoles. Not only does Battlefield 3 have one, but it’s far and away the best we’ve seen yet. There are tons of sorting options for every game type and mode, you can flag favorite servers for another date, see which servers your friends are playing on, and even see what rank all the players on a particular server are before jumping in. Again, this is old potatoes for PC gamers, but for console players, this is a welcome offering.
[drop]Speaking of game types and modes, there’s a new one that had a lot of players rolling their eyes when DICE announced it, and that’s 12 on 12 Team Deathmatch. Deathmatch isn’t new to the Battlefield series but in the Bad Company franchise, deathmatch was kept strictly to a squad format. Squad deathmatch is still an option but this time there’s also the 24 player variation. This mode plays dramatically faster than every other game type, mostly because of how small the maps are. It ended up being one of our favorite modes to play, because it gives you a CoD-esque sense of speed, while keeping the large-scale battles (minus the vehicles) and varied gameplay you expect from Battlefield.Other available game modes include Battlefield staples, ‘Rush’, and ‘Conquest’, as well as hardcore variations of every game-type, and even a ‘infantry only’ option for the objective based games.
One of the things that make all those game-types so great is that you can play them on every map. Unlike Bad Company 2, Battlefield 3 has a different map variation for every mode in the game. The Rush variants are usually the biggest, and the deathmatch maps are generally only a small, strategically sequestered, fenced-in piece of the full map.
Speaking of the maps, they’re awesome. Every one of them. The game ships with 9 total, and not only are they absolutely massive in the objective games, but it feels like DICE went through each of them, time and time again, combing out exactly where to put choke points, intersections, and objectives. They all feel unique, and some of them even have a distinct draw to them, like the ability to BASE-jump from a helipad and parachute in to the next objective.
To go along with the fantastic map design, the weapons and vehicles are also masterfully crafted and balanced. It’s hard to believe that a game with over 40 primary weapons and 20 vehicles can achieve a very high level of balance, but Battlefield 3 pulls it off. Thanks to the new ‘scope gleam’ and the slightly ‘nerfed’ sniper rifles, snipers can no longer dominate the game 300 yards away from the objectives, as was the case in the Bad Company games.
Regarding the vehicles, all the tanks and land vehicles feel roughly the same as they did in Bad Company 2, but the choppers received a major handling overhaul. They’re still quite useful with the right pilot and gunners, but their impact is kept in check thanks to several changes DICE implemented.
And then there are the jets. To be honest, we were never able to have a significant impact with the jets, nor did any of the other people we played with. Don’t get us wrong, as an infantry soldier, seeing four planes duking it out in mid-air is an awesome sight to behold, but they rarely had an impact on what was happening on the ground.
Perhaps the greatest part about Battlefield 3’s multiplayer is how many things there are to do at any given time. This isn’t always the case when playing a deathmatch mode but in Rush and Conquest, we were never at a loss for secondary tasks. Depending on which of the four classes you choose to play as, you can hand out health, throw out ammo packs, revive teammates, place mines, drop mobile spawn points, spot enemies, and even use unmanned drones to complete a couple of tasks. Of course, that’s all just in an effort to help achieve your primary task of completing main objectives while eliminating the opposing team along the way.
The visuals in multiplayer do take a bit of a hit compared to what you see in the campaign. There’s a little more draw-in and pop-up that will occasionally catch your eye, but even at its worst, it’s a sharp looking game that rarely slows down, even during intense moments when a lot is happening in confined quarters.
It will come as surprise to no one, but the audio effects in Battlefield 3 are downright stunning. The guns sound crisp, the tanks and jets sound intimidating, and there is never a moment when the game’s audio design allows you to fall out of immersion. Also, the subtle music that starts to play when your team is about to win the game is a very nice touch.
Unfortunately, all the glowing praise we’ve offered above about Battlefield 3 doesn’t amount to much if you’re not actually able to get on to a server and play the game. And for a lot people (including us), that’s been a very real problem. Just about every network issue you could dream up occurred for us at one point or another. Connection failures, servers booting everyone out mid-game, random pockets of lag, several lengthy unscheduled maintenance sessions, and sometimes a complete inability to successfully join games with more than one person in a party.
[drop2]It’s a real shame the multiplayer launch has been this rocky because the game itself feels like a finished product, but on many occasions the frustration of not being able to play with friends (or at all) outweighed the fun we had once we were finally in.Another thing we weren’t so fond of was the lack of loadout options for your soldier. You can only customize the U.S. soldier before going in to a game, which is confusing because there are guns that are temporarily exclusive to the Russian side of multiplayer. To set up your Russian soldier’s loadout, you have to do it in-game. Even though you’re given some time to do this before each match starts, it was still a bit odd.
We also weren’t impressed with the stats that are available to view in the game. You can’t see any specific weapon or vehicle stats without using EA’s ‘Battlelog’ on PC or select mobile devices. The Battlelog (when it’s working) is nice enough, but we really felt like we should’ve been able to see a more detailed breakdown of our stats within the game itself.
Although the co-op mode in Battlefield 3 was also sporadically affected by the server issues, there were a few times when we were able to play while waiting for servers to come back up. There are 6 missions total, all of them placing you in a random scenario without any story-related reason to complete the objective. And that’s precisely why co-op was never really anything more than a time killer while waiting to play competitive modes. Without any type of context, it’s just not that much fun to randomly kill waves of opponents while nothing is pushing you to move further. For some, the unlockable multiplayer weapons will be enough to warrant at least some time in this mode, but for us, it was nothing more than a quick distraction before trying once again to get on a multiplayer server.
Pros:
- Many different ways to play each game.
- Amazing sound design.
- Maps are brilliantly constructed.
- Good balance between weapons and vehicles.
- Loads of stuff to unlock.
Cons:
- Terrible connectivity issues.
- Co-op feels tacked on.
- Lack of loadout and stat options.
Once we made it on to a server and in to a properly running game, we found Battlefield 3 to be one of the most intense and enjoyable multiplayer experiences we’ve ever had. Unfortunately, technical issues absolutely devastated the launch of this game and have likely left a very deep scar on the Battlefield community. Any fan of the franchise or modern shooters in general should definitely give Battlefield 3’s multiplayer a shot, but at least for the moment, be prepared to fight through some mean bush to reach the good stuff.
Score: 8/10
You can get our review of Battlefield 3’s single player experience by clicking here.
Reviewed from the Xbox 360 version of the game with the optional texture pack installed.
Awayze
So this game gets 7.5/10 overall lol.
I bet MW3 will get at least a 9 because it’ll have a better storyline and the MP will be funner as its faster paced. No doubt that the MW series has one of the best story lines.
tonycawley
Well, someone had to do it I suppose, comparing it to modern warfare. Funner is not a word though.
david24
i love how you always try to make your opinions sound like fact.
Awayze
Well there must be a reason why COD sells more as its online is more fun than BF3 and last time I checked gaming was about fun.
As for campaign, COD 4 has one of the best campaigns ever and I bet MW3’s will be as good.
tonycawley
But surely the “fact” it’s more fun isn’t really a fact at all, it is merely your opinion?
BIGAL-1992
Call of Duty have a large fanbase and a large advertising campaign to go with it, thereby getting a large amount of sales. As for it being more fun online then Battlefield 3, that’s a matter of personal opinion, not outright fact, as if I wanted to, I could say Team fortress 2 is better then Call of duty, as I had more fun on it then all the Call of Duty games I’ve played online. But I can’t, because it’d be a biased opinion, so I won’t.
KeRaSh
By your logic Justin bieber must be your favourite musician. I mean millions of people love his music so it must be a fact. Please stop drinking from CoD’s Kool Aid fountain.
Awayze
You can’t compare Beiber to games.
Michael Jackson, Metallica etc have outsold Beiber by 100,000,000+ albums. Millions of little girls may love his music but even more people love MJ, Guns N Roses, Linkin Park etc. Yes those artists are clearly better than not so talented Beiber.
Awayze
I should have wrote “more people will find MW3 funner and the sales will prove it”. Who would buy a game that’s not fun for them….
Awayze
*more fun -_-
KeRaSh
I’m sure a good chunk of people will buy CoD because their friends are playing it. There certainly are the ones who would enjoy any shooter their friends are playing no matter which of the two franchises it’s from. I’d love to have your crystal fortune telling ball though. It seems useful.
MICKY17
Loving the MP at the moment and agree that all the maps are fantastically fun to play. I disagree about the Co-op mode though because I think it’s great. I’ve not finished the last level yet but loved the ‘Drop em like liquid’ level’.
HoboCastro
Excellent review Matt. I’ve hardly scratched the surface on Battlefield 3 so far but it looks promising, though some of that has to do with Battlelog. Rather than server problems, I found some pretty dead servers and that as frustrating and no connection at all.
I’ve also found playing with TSA it get a bit boring as we dominate every match. Communication is a massive part to this and I think DICE need to work on this.
david24
wow, I’d never consider dominating boring lol. i guess you must be very good at games if you’re getting bored of winning!
HoboCastro
God no. I was terrible in some games but in a run of 9 games with the TSA guys, we won all of them. People from the other team kept leaving. That became boring.
rht992
i remember that happening in a tsa meet for Bad company. 8 of us on one guy. he kept trying for the whole game poor guy!
Voganlight
Yea.. When I look back at the night I was playing with you guys on Battlelog it’s just a row of won matches.
rht992
I havnt yet had the problems with the loadouts but the lag is a bummer. Still for me it doesn’t take away from the awesomeness that unfolds and as far as jets and helicopters go at the start they don’t mean much but you unlock weapons to use on tanks after a few levels. Takes time but it makes a huge change
Rocket_345
I’m kind of glad I’m not getting this til xmas as although it looks brilliant and I want to play it badly the problems that people are having should all be sorted by the time I get it.
bacon_nuts
Wont get to play this for ages, hoping it’ll have quietened on the servers due to UC3, skyrim, MW3 etc to have a clean experience. Sounds good in all other departments!
Yahavage
I play on ps3 – sometimes the games are fine, sometimes the lag just ruins them. I’ve watched my entire squad get pushed along parts of the map. It makes it very un-enjoyable, which is annoying because when you do get a good game, damn, it’s a good game. Hoping it gets resolved soon, either by means of a patch or people finding something else to do. >.>
Scotty34
My only problems i have with it are: Only 4 friends in a squad, making it difficult to join a game for everyone when theres more than 4 of us on and… Even when you join a game in a party there is the chance you won be on the same team… Other than those issues and trying join a game in the first place alls swell!
DirtyHabit
‘fight through some mean bush to get to the good stuff’ !?
Like when I first met my missus ;-)
Matt W [Echo]
I can’t believe it took 50 comments for someone to make a joke about that line.
I couldn’t help but snicker when I typed it :-)
DirtyHabit
I know! I checked the comments twice to make sure no-one else had ….. :D
KeRaSh
I have to say I find the score a little unfair. Connection issues on the release of a millions of copies selling blockbuster? Hardly unforeseeable and surely not the first time it happened to a game. I have yet to hear about any serious connection problems from my friends. I understand that you have to base your review on your own experience but this just feels rushed. Kind of as if you wanted to get out a review as close to the release as possible because it is such a big thing right now. This is not something I usualy get from TSA reviews.
KeRaSh
Premature submit… What I wanted to add was that it wouldn’t have been a problem to just give it a little more time.
Matt W [Echo]
I understand your point but I have to respectfully disagree. The game is supposed to be finished when it hits shelves. Battlefield 3 already had a huge day one patch for fixes they couldn’t get on the disc, and while the game itself feels like a finished product now, that doesn’t matter if you can’t properly get online to play it.
I don’t think waiting for additional patches is necessarily the best process. And if we start doing that, where do we stop? Developers sometimes spend months ironing out bugs before they stop. Are we supposed to wait until they’ve patched and fixed everything before submitting a proper review? Because if we do, you could be waiting for months.
Last, just to be clear, just about every other publication out there had their Battlefield 3 review up several days before we did. We waited 7 days after its initial launch before putting the finishing touches on the multiplayer review, and despite having technical issues on the server side *every single time* we played online, we still looked past them to the great game lying beyond those issues and gave it an 8/10, which is “very good” on TSA’s full 10 point review scale.
KeRaSh
Don’t get me wrong. I don’t care if it gets an 8 or a 11. That’s not what bothers me. I know that BF3 has server load issues. I could have told you it would be a launch problem 6 month ago. I can tell you CoD will have similar issues. We both know it will get better soon. So knowing all of this I don’t see why a temporary problem has to be such a big thing in a review in general. There are just some games that attract the masses and it will be the same almost every time.