Battlefield 3 Beta Impressions...

hello again fine folks in the interwebbings out there. i’m back with another update to this ole’ blog of mine. first, let me say that these past few days have been hectic, what with personal problems and car trouble. i really need to buckle down and look for a new car. my awesome jeep is about to give up the ghost. i love that car; we both have been through so much in this life. still, it’s time for a change. to break down and do a total makeover is something i’m willing to proceed with. it’s just that with the car leaving, all those memories i’ve had with it will float away…well, maybe not all the way. there are some things i will never forget about it. the front seats and back seats are fondly thought of as i write these words. oh how i will miss it...

anyway, as for the rest of this post, i want to forget the emotional stuff and focus on the Battlefield 3 beta for the Playstation 3. first off, this is for a console, not a computer. all the rumored, fabulous aspects of playing this game on a computer are lost on me. i can only tell what i have done. ok, so with that the first thing to say is, wow. i really REALLY liked what i played last night. i’m not an old school Battlefield veteran, but i have played them before. (i spent more time with Medal of Honor and Call of Duty on my old computer…) this new game in the series is pretty much the next progression from the original source. having never played any Battlefield game besides Battlefield 1943 and the sort of Battlefieldesque version on the latest Medal of Honor reboot, i can say that I managed to get a hang of the mechanics quite well, and quickly mind you.

i will admit that i am a rabid fan of the Call of Duty franchise, (i’ve stated that my favorite fps of all time was COD 2) but in the last few years the series has taken a stale nosedive. the enjoyment i used to have has been replaced with downright anger and frustration. the gameplay still felt like how it was on the computer, but something wasn’t quite right. COD 4: Modern Warfare was the last in the series i thought of as original, even though i didn’t want to upgrade to modern weaponry. the next installment, COD: World at War, was actually my favorite of the next gen series because it kept to its WWII roots. COD: MW2 was fun at first, but gradually began to fall to the wayside as i noticed many flaws in its design and overall presentation. COD: Black Ops was no different. Thus, the time has come for me to move on and try new things. having downloaded a supped up version of Battlefield 1943 from the Playstation Store, i quickly noticed a drastic shift. the gameplay was different in its overall style and choice making. as a player, i had to change my style of just “runnin’ and gunnin’”, and instead focus on more strategy and companionship in winning the games. this will now be my focus from here on out.

Battlefield 3 is already a wonderful game in its execution to be better than COD and the dedication to its craft and feel is truly remarkable. it’s hard to explain, but there is just something about running to a position, quickly jumping over a rail or wall, and then going prone all in one vast movement. in the COD games, i was never able to pull off these quick moves without getting cheaply shot over and over. the difference is astounding and you will most likely have to change your fps preference in regards to actually playing. the reality the makers tried to bring forth is a well done effort. no knifing from six feet away, no constant spawn killing, no instant kills with weaponry that shouldn’t be played in a cheating style, no unreal kills from weirdly associated shots or locations. nothing of the sort to be found here, at least from what i took of the beta. (killing an enemy is more fulfilling than any fps i’ve ever played. i don’t have that queasy motion of just pulling off a lucky kill and surviving by the skin of my teeth, but instead have a more refined and considerate notion as if i was doing good based off my skill of war mechanics and not some fantasy universe full of magical shots and explosions, ala COD. if that makes any sense…)

COD bashing aside, this game already feels amazing and surprisingly fun. i didn’t know for sure how it would be handled. would it be like COD, or perhaps like the Battlefield series in general? take little worry my friends because this game will cut the line down the middle. there is no straight comparison. COD is like a hide-and-seek/funhouse type game and Battlefield is more of an awesome, “i worked hard and my team won because we tried hard and accomplished our mission!” type game. what i mean is, no RAMBO can take on the entire match and get constant kills just by running around and being crazy. sure, there will be some who will play like that, and they will manage to get to that point, but the gameplay mechanics just don’t allow that to happen with ease like COD. you WILL HAVE TO WORK with your team. strategy is the key to winning and with that, i feel like i’m on an entire different level than the previous fps gaming i’ve logged many hours on.

Maybe COD has become the playground for the youth and Battlefield is the “Adult Swim” of fps gaming. i don’t know, but i’m going on twenty seven and i’m tired of being beat down at a game i used to have so much passion for. the COD universe has managed to become annoying with all the younglings taking over and spewing their verbal garbage. it’s not that i suck, because i admit to being damn good at COD, but it just isn’t the same. call me a bitter old man, but i know some out there agree. and for now, i can already say that Battlefield 3 is taking its place as my go-to game for online play. i just can’t imagine vast amounts of time being spent on the next COD, even though i will get it just to finish my “collection”. (seriously, if they can’t manage to change it up dramatically for their next incarnation, then i’m finally writing off the COD series. many have already, but i’ll give them one more chance after COD: MW3. a “wait and see” approach…)

oh, and not so i forget, the beta for Battlefield 3 was nice to look at, but of course can use some big touch ups. the gameplay was excellent, but some textures were not as great. i managed to fall through the floors a few times and sort of glitch up on others. graphics need to be upgraded pronto, and i know they can do the game more justice because other Playstation 3 fps are looking a bit more better than this one. it seems like a shame that the game is sort of an afterthought when it comes to consoles, but then again Electronic Arts did state that it was meant more for computers than the rest of us console jockeys. ah, and then there is the player count. i’ve heard rumors that COD: MW3 will have up to 32 people in online gaming, which is where everyone and their dog plays. why can’t the Battlefield team make this happen for us? those are just the few things that are on my mind, but overall, this game is going to rock anyway. i’m not getting my hopes up for a more bigger change with the graphics and multiplayer, and that’s perhaps the best thing anyone can do. i will enjoy this most definitely and i hope you all will too. see you online, October 26th!!! dig it…