The first Battlefield game (that’s BF:1942, for those of you keeping count at home) only reached its defining moment when a group of intrepid modders hacked modern weapons and vehicles to replace the WW2-era weapons the game shipped with. The mod was Desert Combat, and it was the first large-scale multiplayer combat game featuring modern weapons.

After a forgettable sophomore attempt (Battlefield: Vietnam), Dice has created another game that pushes the genre forward. Battlefield 2 manages to combine the fast pace and cohesive action of a small-squad game such as Counter-Strike with the grand scope and vehicular combat of the Battlefield titles. The secret is in the squad.

But before we can really talk about squad combat, you need to know the basics of the game. When you first join a Battlefield 2 server and pick your team, you must select a class. Different classes have different abilities and weapons.

You can carry anything from semi-automatic sniper rifles to chain-fed machine guns. There are also several classes that fulfill support roles—healing teammates, repairing vehicles, and replenishing ammo. There are dozens of vehicles sprinkled throughout most maps, including planes, tanks, boats, helicopters, and even automobiles. You’ll need the vehicles to succeed, so it’s crucial that you keep them repaired and stocked with munitions.

The object of the game is to capture and hold all of the spawn points on the map. If you take over all the enemy spawns, while defending your spawns, you win the round. Lose the spawns, and you lose the round. The maps are huge, but unlike BF:1942 maps, they’re chock-full of choke points, which focus the battle into small, super-concentrated areas. Close-combat urban skirmishes make for brilliant fun!

By focusing the battle in those key areas—mostly urban settings—the emphasis has moved away from squad-level battles spread across five or six square miles to squad-level battles spread across a three- or four-block area.

Facilitating communication between squad members and separate squads sets Battlefield 2 apart from its competition. Every time you connect to a Battlefield 2 server, you have the option to join a squad. When you join a squad, you automatically get voice communication with your squad mates, and they’ll show up as green blips on your radar. Most importantly, in addition to the normal spawns, you’ll also be able to spawn at your squad leader’s position. As long as your squad leader remains alive, you’ll be able to respawn wherever he is.

In large games with multiple squads, the ability to spawn next to your squad leader enhances the intense, squad-vs.-squad combat. Battlefield 2 makes it easy to issue orders to your squad, as well. Press T and a context-sensitive menu pops up with orders that are appropriate for the target. The menus are faster and easier to use than the old keyboard shortcuts, and they provide much more useful info than in other games.

Controlling all the separate squads on your team is one all-powerful Commander. The Commander controls strategic Battlefield resources—artillery, aerial drones, satellite scans, and supply drops—in addition to giving orders to individual squads. The Commander can also talk to the squad leaders, giving them instructions or a warning about incoming enemy concentrations.

A painfully slow server browser and the absence of a mechanism to get you playing with your buddies keep Battlefield 2 out of 10/KickAss territory. But Battlefield 2’s combination of small-scale combat and large-scale strategy is damn fun, warts and all.
—Will Smith

Month Reviewed: September 2005
Verdict: 9 Kick Ass
URL: www.battlefield2.com

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