Battlefield For Free

Platform(s): PC

Genre: FPS

Cost: Free

Developer: DICE/ Easy Studios

Publisher: EA

Release: 4^th April 2011

Reviewer: Big Matt

Battlefield Play4Free (Play for Free) is EA’s and DICE’s most recent addition to the Battlefield series, teasing players and fans while Battlefield 3 is in development. The game as its title suggests is a free online game, which while starts up in your browser requires to be installed to your hard disk. It takes a total area of around 1GB, and while the graphics aren’t mind blowing, their pretty good. The game gives you the basics and allows you some pretty decent upgrades and weapons free of charge, but the profits for EA is the game’s buying credits that allows you to expand and customise your already customisable character and weapons.

Graphics

The game looks and handles very much like Battlefield 2 unlike Bad Company’s realistic views, but for a free game you can’t complain. It runs on minimal hardware but I fear light or standard netbooks and laptops with integrated Intel video cards may struggle due to requirement of Hardware T&L, that said ION devices should be able to play it.

All the 16 vehicles (most off Battlefield 2) look nice and handle well. The experience of flying a plane or driving a tank won’t be hurt by a bad frame rate due to the dated graphics enabling you to play better and worry less about missing your target (a sad truth about most modern games).

Gameplay

 The gameplay  as in every other  battlefield game is that it is a FPS (first person shooter), that said the targeting system is nice and works very well, with a white cross acknowledging when you’ve hit your intended target much like other games. The main aim of each round is for either team to capture all 4 or 3 (depending on the map size) flag points and defend them till the end of the round.

Before you strap into the game’s servers (all of which are dedicated and are automatically chosen) you are able to select your soldier type between medic, scout (Recon), engineer or assault each with their own varying special ability relative to their type such as healing, repairing, supplying ammunition and the use of setting motion sensors can help you turn the tide. These factors make the game team working dependent (not along the lines of moonbase alpha) but require you to get along or have a very hard time.

The game seems to have taken a step forward of Battlefield 2 in the way that reloading a gun feels like a lifetime, the bigger the weapon the longer it takes, and so does the toll on your ability to run faster, which much like the hard choices in the halo series makes you think about what you’re going to equip.

The game comes equipped with vehicles ranging from heavily armoured abrams and APC’s to off road buggies and humvee’s. While airborne is taken care of by apache style choppers and carriers with jets differing between factions that are the US and Russia. Much like BF2 boats are included if you are left stranded on the US carrier or you feel a better tactic is in need.

The maps which are taken from BF2 are modified and range from large open landscapes to close combat town living areas with plenty of hiding spaces. The maps while small in comparison to older games such as BF1 for instance still provide the ability to have a good fight, with various types of weapons, although you will need to become accustomed to your weapons of choice as the only time you can change your armament is out of game servers.

The game runs an upgrading and levelling system, which provides you with better bonuses, weapons and the ability to unlock (through “training”) abilities such as reviving fallen comrades, piloting air vehicles, falling from greater heights and better grenade detection (realistic :P ). The current highest level is 30 for all soldier types.

The aspect of the Play4Free is simple, the basics of the game such as fighting and driving are free, but additional weapons and custom apparel require a small fee. Much like EA’s previous games such as Battlefield Heroes and Need for Speed World. Progression in the game does not require the use of spending actual money but it does help those who need it or can splash the cash.

Credits provide your characters the ability to wear additional or new uniforms and accessories while allowing you to buy better weapons that permanently stay with your account. Of course for those short of cash the game does reward team building activities and kills with silver credits. They allow you to buy additional or upgraded weapons of those you own for a trial period (normally 24 hours), be it you want to trial the weapon or want to play the game literally for free.

Conclusion

The game while has a few bugs is still in its BETA stage. And while this early on its looks good with an even amount of players. The game may expand on its range of maps, vehicles and upgrades and certainly as time goes on level ranks will go higher to compensate. The game which compared to other 2D or text base free online games is a very good, and an equally good move from EA, utilising the dying Battlefield 2 into something that anyone can enjoy and it can make a profit out of or promote its upcoming battlefield 3. Its free, its battlefield, go and play it for free... this is Battlefield Play4Free, DUALOR over and out.

Thanks For Reading! :)

big thanks to matt over at http://dualor.blogspot.com/ for the review 

check his blog out today !