Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (2010)

I was completely deceived by BC2’s opening moments. First I thought we would be playing as someone else (we don’t, at least not after the beginning). Then I started getting this really weird, unexpected vibe from the game’s music and art style, almost as if Bioshock and Tomb Raider decided to get together to make a military shooter baby. That impression also dissipated fairly quickly (though the Bioshock tone in a couple of its tracks is uncanny and remained throughout).

The cherry on top was when I thought the game would be considerably easier than its prequel, and while that would naturally result in a decrease in challenge, it would ultimately succeed in better delivering a true elite soldier power fantasy. That was the overwhelming impression throughout the first mission, but boy, was I wrong on that one too. If anything, after that point the game felt harder than BC, because it felt more unfair. Somehow the damage indicators are even worse this time around, your squadmates are even dumber (!), and enemies show up out of nowhere (sometimes almost on top of you), do incredible damage (the amount of one shots you get is insane), and can once again hit you from the Moon. Obviously, none of this is ideal in a shooter. You also can’t really control your health anymore, since the infinite HP shots are replaced by the more traditional heal-over-time system. To add to this, the HUD is worse (poor colour palette and readability), and the destructible environments, while still very present, seem somewhat toned down in comparison.

All that said, in my opinion, BC2 still manages to be a better game than its predecessor today, in 2023. And a big reason for that is its QoL improvements. Things like a dedicated grenade button, supply drops that allow you to swap weapons on the fly, better sprint control (press vs hold), binoculars, aim assist, reload hints and being able to reload while sprinting, all add up to ultimately make the game feel a lot more up to modern standards. And even though my complains about them still stand, enemies are now a lot less bullet spongy which makes a clear difference when engaging them (the great ragdoll animations when you one-shot them is a really nice bonus). The weapons are also a highlight here, both in design and sound, driving is greatly improved, and I like that you spend more time on weapon duty when you're on vehicles as opposed to BC, where you were mostly tasked with driving.

Another upgrade comes in the form of its presentation. Even though the game never managed to live up to the hype the opening scene gave me (what an awesome intro), BC2 is still a much more visually polished, cinematic experience, and though that means you also spend more time in cutscenes, there’s an upscale luxurious feel to it that is nowhere to be found in BC. Part of this is also showed in its levels, which are a lot more varied in setting (desert, snow, forests and cities), though at the same time they feel more corridor-like and less expansive when compared to the first game. In line with the same tone, the story is a lot more grandiose - often nonsensically so -, even if more similar to your bog standard war narrative. And while the ending is a massive meh, that ragtag group of renegade soldiers really grows on you over the course of the two games, making you appreciate their interactions all the more.

So in 2023, without nostalgia, do I see Bad Company 2 as the masterpiece many have touted it to be? Honestly, I can’t say that I do. But I can see why so many feel that way, and I can certainly entertain the notion that my thoughts would be quite different had I played it when it came out. Amidst its flaws, there is something charming about this game that is hard to pinpoint, yet makes you look at it fondly. And when all is said and done, the fact that I still enjoyed my time with it, 13 years after release, is certainly a testament to its original quality. 7.5/10

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 is an excellent game. A true evolution from Bad Company. The first good move DICE did was put more emphasis on gun-play rather than vehicular combat. One thing that DICE screwed up was, of course the campaign. While this campaign is fun for the shooty-shooty gun-gun parts, the storyline is a total snore-fest! DICE really needs to get some talented writers and directors together to create a good campaign, because the CoD and Halo franchises had great campaigns, so why can't Battlefield?

Anyhow, you will completely forget about the campaign once you get started playing the fantastic multiplayer, because it is great. By incorporating true cooperation between players to win matches, rather than being a violent bloodbath like in CoD. The Frostbite engine is great. While the visuals are pretty forgettable, the destructible environments are a very welcome addition that adds to the suspense and tension of matches. Not to mention the incredible sound design! Man, the sound design in this game feels very triple-A, and a lot of effort was put into it, which is good. Overall, Bad Company 2 is a great game.

played This game for around a week on and off. Not a huge impact on either the story or gameplay.

Pros:

1. Weapons collection. The sniper is perfect, really love that weapon in Fortnite. To think of it, most weapons are ok, but they are greatly put in Fortnite.
2. shooting is ok, the enemies are bots, and was easy to complete the game, even at difficulty high.

cons:

1. no impact on the story, no good graphics, for the time.
2. the weapons collection is mediocre, but only the Machine gun is good, playing with any other weapon is a huge disadvantage, in terms of gameplay.
3. no soundtrack, nothing entertaining or intensifying. I still remember the Crysis 3 sound track, because of the impact it had on the gameplay and the intensity it provided. nothing like that is found in this game. a
4. unrelatable characters. characters have no depth and are not relatable to the average gamer.
5. too much sand can't see the enemies clearly but kept getting shot by them.

Overall the game is okay but I won't play it again. ever.

Anybody planning to play this only do so when you are playing all the battlefield games or have no interest in the story and just want to frag some bots.

The funny thing I liked from this game is this statement, from the aspects guy in the squad. "Why is it When the defecation hits the oscillation the squad is always split up?", is a funny way of saying shit hit the fan. good humor.

I'm not too hot with Battlefield games lately, since I care more for the story modes and less for multiplayer. However, this spin-off caught my interest since I watched the trailers of the first Bad Company, which are console-exclusive. The humour and the somewhat colorful squad in the story mode you play with added new appeal to this big franchise on its own, while adding destructible environments and delivering high quality production. The same applies to the sequel, which was even released on PC, except that I feel that the characters got watered down in a more somber tone than what was presented in the first game (as far as I saw in those aforementioned trailers). The story is average at best and carries on the narrative of the new cold war that drives it on. It eventually ends on a cliffhanger but any news of another sequel has yet to be confirmed by the date of this review.

The campaign levels do bring good varieties for the player to fight in different terrains. Even vehicles over land, sea and air introduce the gameplay as you get to sit in on on-rails action and eventually driving yourself to carry out the missions your way to some extent. True to the AAA standards, the graphics hold well for its time and the sound has a crisp production.

In the end, I am not so blown away by the end result but am still satisfied to have gotten a taste of the Bad Company franchise.