Unexpectedly EA turned up with Battlefield Bad Company 2 at this year's Eurogamer, letting us get hands on with the game 5 months before it hits store shelves! Bad Company 2 sees a heavy influence on what the series is known for best - multiplayer.
Straight away the first thing we noticed was that graphically the game looks absolutely superb. Although at a quick glance many of the game's aesthetics look similar to its predecessor, after getting close up it's impossible to deny just how fantastic the game is visually. For a game of this scale with large hectic battles DICE have done a brilliant job of making the game play smooth, from what we saw, yet improve on an already great looking game. On the desert map we experienced, dust particles flew all over, guns have an appropriate reflective shine to their metal areas and the explosion effects look down right awesome.
The destruction 2.0 definitely showed an improvement over its predecessor with the ability to blow small chunks into walls and also destroy buildings in a much more believable and significant way. This should again add another tactical layer to the game.
We saw 4 classes during the build we played, however this may be set to change. Each of these classes appeared to have much greater customisation options with the swapping out of primary/secondary weapons, equipment and more. However it was hard to get a feel for how DICE have improved upon the first games relatively basic unlock system. From reading multiple sources I'm lead to believe this has been largely improved, but during our limited hands on time this couldn't possibly be reflected.The squad system was also something we were unable to get a real grasp for.
We can however confirm that BFBC2 does indeed have parachutes! Finally they're back after an odd lack of appearance in the first Bad Company. No more having to sit in a Heli getting shot up knowing theres nothing you can do. But sadly regardless of previous speculation there didn't appear to be any way to go prone. Whether this could be some kind of class perk/unlock to gain we're unsure at this time. Another surprise was the inclusion of Remote Control Helicopters, much like those seen in Frontlines.
Battlefield Bad Company 2 impressed all of us who played it. The game feels similar to its predecessor yet refines it in almost every way possible. With DICE focusing heavier on the Multiplayer portion of the game this time around it really shows. The game is a more visceral experience with the inclusion (finally) of small blood splats when hitting an enemy, along with realistic cries of profanity coming from nearby squadmates.
Currently Battlefield Bad Company 2 is scheduled for release on March 3rd 2010 in the US on the PS3, 360 and PC.
Note - Sadly EA were being extremely strict with all of their titles by not allowing us to film or take our own pictures. Sorry about that!
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