Customer Reviews

Battlefield 3

5 star:		(352)
4 star:		(120)
3 star:		(77)
2 star:		(56)
1 star:		(96)

 

 

I have to say I was a COD type of player. My friends would talk to me about BFBC2 and I would say "That game looks boring, where is the action?" But got to admit, I got tired of COD, same old gun and run. I wanted something more complex.
I played the BF3 beta, and damn after getting in the Metro Station, from the Operation Metro Map, and hearing the bullets, the RPG's on the edge of getting you, and the explosion all around, I got hooked up. It is so realistic, having "TurtleBeaches" or so, really helps a lot. It is intense, full of action, and really fun.
For all those people saying "I get killed really fast, they are all just camping, I can't even get close to the objective, I get lost on the map 'cause is too big" Well, don't run like a noob in the middle of the street! take the long way around, be sneaky get behind them and kill them, and most important of all press the SELECT button when you see an enemy to "spot" it, as this is a team based game, your friends will see them when you "spot" the enemy. When spawning get into a vehicle, better if it is a Tank or an Amphibian, with them you can get close to the objective and kill lots of enemies, it is better if you are an engineer as you will be able to "fix" it when damaged.
I can't deny there are some issues such as: Voice chat being choppy, bugs here and there, but no game is complete when it first comes out. I think it will just get better after some patches, don't listen to the trolls, and just give it a try. Hope you find out how good this game is. CHEERS!

Ok, I gunned half through a few hours of single player simply for the trophies and then dropped it for a few hours into the MP end of stuff. This is an early rummage of thoughts to give some people on the fence an idea of what they are getting into. Even most of the PC reviews out there have been pretty vague. I haven't cleared this 100% for the Platinum or put in 100 hours of ranking. But I have been playing Battlefield games for awhile so some early thoughts after a few hours.

First off -- 200+ meg update before you can play then you're off to the races. Battlefield: Bad Company 2 was similar to Crysis, in that you could navigate the landscape the way you wanted, within an admittedly small area. Wooden huts and hideouts were for the destroying if you were so inclined. In Battlefield 3, you are literally led by the nose with little blue and red boxes on EXACTLY what to do. It's pretty insulting. Walk one foot too far this way or that way, and you are immediately told to "RETURN TO THE BATTLEFIELD." The levels are much more confined than the last game, but I think they went way too far on the scripted confrontations. On the realism end, there is a a few instances where a Marine will drop dead right in front of you and the other soldiers will just walk right by. Pretty lame, Marines don't tend to do that sort of thing. So the story sucks, but nobody reads Playboy for the articles right? Character models are not the strong point here. Where in CoD, everything looks like shiny plaster, here they look like clay . The environment textures look good most of the time, but occasionally do load slowly. Also, first thing I would do, is jack up the controller sensitivity, the default setting is way too slow. So far, I see a real missed opportunity in the single player end. I don't know why they just don't take the large maps from multiplayer and come up with a story based task for the single player. Corridor shooting needs to finally die. Anyway, the campaign doesn't do much new thus far, but there are good points. The audio is absolutely stunning. On my surround sound, the bullet hits and muzzle sounds are really awesome.

But playing Battlefield by yourself is like buying a banana just to eat the peels.

There is the new seemingly obligatory online pass to jump through and then you are greeted with a "free" M1911 pistol reward. Yay.

Online, there are still some occaisional collision problems from the beta. I have been sapped by a LMG more than once half stuck in the floor geometry of a building, but other than that the game does play pretty good. This is Battlefield - so when you can spawn on a boat and grab some airpower - you'll probably crash right away. haha. It happens every time. In 1943 it took me awhile to get the plane over Suribachi too. But there is a new feeling of dominance gunning around with the Apache's instead of just having tanks or jeeps with machine gun mounts. I haven't had too much time with the jets in Conquest yet, but I'm getting there. Tanks are still the main fun for me. There's nothing more satisfying than blasting down an entire roof where a sniper is camped out stopping your troops from getting the Gas Station capture point. Bullet drop with snipers from BC2 seems less pronounced or it may be a placebo.

Maps range from HUGE to more conventional "CoD" style boxes for deathmatch. For me, TDM really is pointless in this type of game but it is a game mode that never seems to die no matter what game they put it in. Whatever, I prefer the larger skirmishes with objectives, but I think the larger maps do bring up the obvious. This game is probably better played on the PC for one real reason and it has nothing to do with graphics. The PC will hold 64 players - and that is where the real meat of the series has always been. Eventually, I'll probably up for the PC sku when I can afford an upgraded rig, but this does well for now.

Battlefield 3 is not for everybody. Black Ops this is not. MW2, this is not. You cannot hide in a tin roof building like in Favela during an Apache onslaught and expect to ride out the bulletstorm. You can't run around and knife from 10 meters away. If you played Battlefield BC2, MoH, or even the PSN/XBL 1943, then you'll know what you're getting into here. Weapons sway, reloading takes time and there's no MW2 pinball score counters. If you are curious and big on CoD quick turn maps where you can noob tube to a nuke with OMA - this is probably not your game. Battlefield matches can be long drawn out affairs and inching your way on foot to objectives or blasting your way through buildings to a flag is a better way to success. Not to say the knifing isn't useful. If you don't play as a team - you will have a very bad day. FYI you can't jump off the top of a three-story building doing a 360 turn and pop a guy in the head with an Intervention and run off into the sunset with a 73-7 k/d in Scrapyard with the chopper gunner singing in the background. Battlefield isn't about killstreaks, it is about a 'battlefield.' Ironic I know. Battlefield 3 pretty much holds to the history of the franchise thus far. There are some mistakes here and there - all of them in the single player end - mostly because I feel it is a mistake to try to compete with Call of Duty. Call of Duty is a slowed down Quake 3 - fun but aging, fake and in no way a war game. Battlefield 3, on the other hand, is pretty much the game it was 10 years ago, but now with much better graphics, more lethal vehicles and stunning sound design. Don't buy into the hype one way or the other. But if you're tired of endless 'nade spamming, chopper gunner spamming, host lag, knife spamming, and want something objective based - give Battlefield 3 a look.

*****
UPDATE: I'm going to just drop a few last pieces in and leave it at that. Right now I'm rocking the ever popular M416, suppressor, bi-pod and Holo with the M26. There was a point around level 7 or 8 where you really start making a weapon your own with the sights, rail attachments and the game really starts to come into it's own. It no longer feels like the early "grind" and you start to know the maps. Even TDM starts to make sense at least on Metró. Though CQB is still clumsy. I haven't touched the single player again - and I doubt I will. Frame rates could be a tad better, but this was built for a PC with SLI cards, so what can you do? Oh and the Battlelog stats site is ripped almost completely from the Killzone stats site. Go figure. Not sure if Xbox live lobbies are back up yet, but 3/4 time I get dropped immediately into a game from PSN. Once in awhile I get kicked during search. Server list is helpful and would be welcome in any other console FPS. I'm in for the long haul. If you got the stomach for the climb to level 45, it's worth it. There are few things more rewarding in online gamedom than making a push with a good team in conquest, hopping over a rail to heal a fallen teammate and throwing up cover fire with a well tuned weapon with an Abrahms tank on your back blasting the wall of an apartment building with laser sights bouncing around on your position to take the win. Hard to find this type of experience anywhere else.

*****

I've got my MW3 preorder in on the 360 but I absolutely have to post this. It's so funny because I think it's true.

Look up -- 14 Ways to Spot a CoD player in Battlefield 3 on the OXM UK website.

*****
Well I caved. Finished a new PC build with a Core i5 2500 and 2 GTX 560 ti's. Battlefield 3 runs like glass. EA's Origin is awful, but the game is just stunning. Maps are much bigger and even single player earns a few points back. I'll still be playing on PSN, but the PC version has to be seen in motion to be believed. If anybody has any questions on the differences, let me know.

This review is from An Adult Gamer Since 1987. An Avid Call of Duty player since Finest Hour. This is the truth from the heart unlike every fanboy who reviews video games. I've tried other shooters like Killzone and Halo and all that I found fun was the Campaign. Call of Duty has always been Complete for me - Great Campaign, Super fun Multiplayer. After last years Black Ops I was left with a Sour Taste in my Mouth. I Still played it but didn't enjoy it as much. I have never played a battlefield before so I purchased BF3 and MW3 (early through Kmart) the same day out of curiosity. MW3 was good but it was expected from CoD, same design with added extras. This is were I was left in shock. Battlefield 3 is a masterpiece. The Campaign is forgettable but the multiplayer is truly something out of the future. Large maps, team base gameplay, balance, jets, cars, tanks, destruction you name it. I played CoD for an hour with my team, then we played BF3 for 4 hours straight. I had to stop because of the wife but if I hadn't I would've been playing it all day.

If your looking for a game to last you a very long time and was skeptical about it, I would choose this. It is genuine and simply amazing. I guess EA can add another converter.

Video - 20/10
Gameplay - 10/10
Audio - 10/10

Final Rating - Phenomenal!

The reviewers have it wrong. I'm running on 720p and the graphics have some screen tearing, but if you are that picky, then you shouldn't ever play a game because every gamer knows that it's all about the gameplay. Not that the graphics are bad, they're actually pretty amazing to say the least. You probably won't be too happy if you're running on standard definition.

Campaign:
+I started the campaign very confused. It took a few cutscenes to get an idea of what was going on, but I was in it to play, not hear a story, so this was not a problem for me. The story did not catch my attention at all, but the gameplay completely made up for it. Just about every mission was very cinematic and I felt like I was in a movie.

+The environments were great and the ability to move from one, very large area to another wihout loading times made it each mission very satisfying.

-there's an annoying 2-3 second freeze each time the game saves and it saves while you have control of your character.

-The campaign is very short. If you aren't interested in any online multiplayer, then rent this game. Although it was very short, the countless hours of multiplayer will completely make up for that.

-I felt there wasn't enough involvement in vehicles. There are no missions that allow you to fly a jet or a helicopter which is what I was looking forward to the most.

Co-op:
+This is a great feature. I was expecting another Onslaught from Bad Company 2, but it was more complex. Helicopter, ground, humvee, and sniping missions really had each mission standout from the other.

The missions take around 10-15 missions to complete, so it ends with me wanting more. I really enjoy the co-op missions, but I wanted to see more.

Multiplayer:
Incredible. I am really enjoying all game-modes except for team deathmatch because the maps are waaaaay too small. Lots of spawn deaths in team death match, but thankfully they brought squad death match which is 4v4v4v4. The maps are the perfect size and I have not had any issues with this game mode.

Conquest and Rush are very well-designed. Rush promotes bomb camping, so if you can't stand any kind of camping, then stay away from Rush. Conquest is by far my favorite game mode. The only issue I have are the players because everyone wants to fly a jet. One game I was the only person capturing bases because every teammate I had was waiting for the jet to spawn.

DICE said the maps would be cut down for consoles. Well, the player number was cut down as well, so it is perfect.

-Servers are currently unstable. Day 1 was bad, day 2 is much better.

-Starting sniper rifles are incredibly weak in normal mode. I've had to get 2 head shots for a kill and 3 chest shots for a kill. Sometimes it has taken up to 5 shots. Too many for sniping in my opinion.

Overall:
Worth every penny. I'm impressed with how well the game is running for the first couple days. Remember mw2 and black ops? Call of duty games are unplayable for about a month. Score 1 for DICE. I gave up on Activision because of their laggy peer-to-peer servers for DICE's incredible dedicated servers and I have no interest whatsoever in ever going back. This game is borderline flawless. There are some bugs I've heard of, but I have only experienced a couple that didn't come close to ruining the gameplay.

Get it and get a mic too, because communication is key here.

Pros:
+Great graphics
+Incredible audio with surround sound
+Addicting multiplayer with perfect game modes
+Cinematic campaign
+6 fun co-op missions
+9 incredible multiplayer maps
+Destructable environments
+Perfect sized maps for the number of players
+Team Deathmatch (12v12) and Squad Deathmatch (4v4v4v4)
+Amazing with PS3 Ear Force PX21 Gaming Headset

Cons:
-Some minor bugs like squads splitting up when a game starts
-No "hardcore" option in the quick match
-Confusing and uninteresting storyline
-Very small maps in team deathmatch which leads to spawn killing
-Starting sniper rifles are weak

First off. I think this game has reached the technological limit of the current generation of gaming consoles, which is why the only way for it to look better is on a PC. I do not think current consoles can make a game any better. I am a casual adult gamer, who enjoys the single-player and Co-op more than the online multi-player. Why? Because I have a job, and don't enjoy getting killed every 60 seconds by teenagers who have all day to practice their knife-and-run and sniping skills. I have not been in the military, but this is about as close as you can get to the real thing, and not have to pay for your mistakes with a hole in your behind. I loved everything about the single-player. Admittedly, I considered taking away a star due to the occasional freeze (twice so far), I hope this is remedied in an update. But, the game is SO good in every other respect that it doesn't bother you too much. I love that you get a good taste of a variety of combat situations, from ground, to .50 caliber machine guns, tanks and fighter jets.

I find my self stopping the action to look around in awe at the surroundings, the graphics and sound are that good. The sound is great from a TV, but absolutely superb when I'm wearing the Sony PS3 Wireless Stereo Headset. If you don't have one, get it ASAP. Wow, plus your wife/GF will appreciate the silence, while you get the full-audio in surround sound, you'd be surprised at how much sound details you're missing. I am not big on story-line, which is part of the strong point of this game versus the Modern Warfare series, with its cutscenes, which I think reduces re-play value. The single-player/co-op is the most realistic war-game ever created. I found it to be fun and exciting. I don't get what all the complaints were about, I was amazed at the graphics and sound alone. The one complaint I had was about the AI. I felt there was so much focus on the 5-star audio-visual graphics and sound details, but no improvements on the AI of the computer. It is the same pop-up shoot and hide predictable computer opponents, that behave unnaturally. Oddly the members of your squad behave more naturally, but the enemy AI is just plain silly and uncreative. But perhaps this generation of gaming consoles is not capable of handling computer AI that is able to behave organically and dynamically within the gaming environment which is why they seem to behave so robotically. But that aside, this game is a lot of fun, if you let yourself get into it and appreciate it for what it is, a chance to enjoy the most realistic combat simulator ever made. I am not a hardcore gamer. I am about halfway through and am enjoying this game thoroughly. This game is fun, I am going to be sad when the campaign-mode is over. Fun and exciting.

The Battlefield franchise brings a lot to the table, and one thing that I love is that they make improvements on each new title. Battlefield 3 is no exception. The graphics are much better from Battlefield 2 and the gameplay is more smooth and realistic. The single player campaign is very good and extremely entertaining...but the multiplayer is out of this world. You are immersed into a large scale battle. Fighter jets, Tanks, Attack Helicopters, Little Birds, Ground troops, and even boats. I sit down to play for 30 min and look at the clock 5 hrs later. Its insane! Here is a scenario during multiplayer that gives you some perspective. I see an enemy player from the other team and begin to shoot him as he enters a building. I didn't quite kill him yet but I knew he was hurt. So I pulled out an RPG and blew the wall off of the building he was hiding in and the blast finished him off and I got the kill. Also if you don't quite kill someone and they get away just as one of your teammates kills him, you get assist points based on the amount of damage you do to him. When you start a map on Battlefield 3 multiplayer everything looks new and fresh, but by the end of it, the entire town is in ruins and everything is on fire. Your running through the streets as RPGs, Tank rounds, and Attack Helicopter missiles are blowing down buildings. The experience is intense and the most fun i've had online to-date. A great game. So if your sick of playing the newest COD title or should I just call them expansion packs, and your looking for something new and better. Come join the BF3 community, where grenades and rockets actually blow down walls, and don't just leave a black spot. Have fun, I highly recommend this FPS.

I loved BF2 (plat'ed) and couldn't wait for BF3. I've played all the modes and completed campaign, here is my assessment.

Campaign - It was not good story. At all. I was disappointed that it doesn't follow up the story from BF2, because I really liked the characters and story from BF2. Anyhow, it doesn't and all the characters are different. I tried to have an open mind but it felt more like I was playing an extended unrelated chain-of-events exposition that simply showcased the different modes in the game. On hard, it took me maybe 6 hours to complete. (and the "Butterfly" trophy is bugged, it doesn't pop when you fulfill the condition!)

Multiplayer - Some great additions, included prone positioning, weapon attachments, ribbons, medals and fighter jets! Man, I was flustered at first, overlooking people on the ground and getting shot in the back, but it adds more strategy to the game. I love it now. The attachments (especially the bipod for you snipers) is awesome!

Co-op - a mixed bag, not because of the implementation but because of the skill of your partners. It is a lot of fun playing with someone who is good, challenging an army just the two of you. But some people just run into battle and die. I would definitely not play blindly with someone you don't know.

I can definitely see myself playing this for some time to come, every day I play I learn something new. Highly recommended!

Synopsis -

single player: BF2 > BF3
multiplayer: BF2 < BF3
Co-Op: New addition (a good direction for FPS)

I had to do a review on this because of all the negative reviews. It's almost like they're not even playing the same game! The graphics on this game are right up there with Killzone and Crysis 2's campaigne. Definitely top notch for this generation of consoles. A review below says the game is messed up because the mini-map doesn't show your enemies when they are shooting.. THIS IS BECAUSE THE MINI MAP ISN'T SUPPOSED TO SHOW YOUR ENEMIES WHEN THEY ARE SHOOTING! The only way for an enemy to show up on your mini map, is if you or someone on your team highlights the enemy in their cross-hairs and pushes select, this calls the enemy out to your entire team for a short amount of time. How about instead of saying the game is faulted, learn how to actually play it! The ONLY people complaining about this game are the ones that are comparing it to Call of Duty. Well it's not Call of Duty, and that's a good thing! I'm not a 'fanboy' of either and I'm without a doubt getting MW3 as well. I can already tell that I'm going to play MW3 for a week, then go right back to BF3. This game is amazing, it took BF2 and improved on it in every way possible. I haven't even touched the single player yet. The multiplayer alone is worth the money. I haven't had any kind of lag, freezing or kicks of any kind. No glitches either. The game runs like a sewing machine! The graphics are insane for a console, there is TONS of unlocks to get, the maps are GIGANTIC and you can even fly a jet over the battle grounds and parachute into battle.. AGAIN, THAT'S FLY A JET, JUMP OUT AND FREAKIN PARACHUTE INTO THE BATTLE!! How is that not awesome? Great game and it's worth every bit of the hype. It's not Call of Duty, it's Battlefield 3!

I hope this review helps out those guys that still are trying to decide if they buy MW3 or BF3, and also those that are only used to playing the old CoD and would like a nice and fresh change, focusing on MULTIPLAYER!!

I bought BF3 for my PS3 because a friend gifted me MW3 for PC, I've always played only CoD (MW, MW2, Black Ops) and loved the campaigns and multiplayer for the past few years, Black Ops had nice improvements regarding Multiplayer and I liked them too, still at last I was getting a little bored of pretty much the same gameplay CoD has always had.

When I first jumped into playing BF3 I had to get used to the classes and roles and gameplay but I found on it several improvements and great differences I'm starting to love more and more as I play, compared to MW3 multiplayer (which is pretty much the same as previous CoD games), there is just much more realism, you get the feeling you are not just playing an "arcade" like game where you have 10 minutes to just do "all you can kill" such as most of CoD games, but here you have big maps, bigger teams, better graphics, better and much more realistic gear, vehicles and planes, etc. Which give all together a much more realistic sense of a real battle field and war scenario, you truly feel you are in the middle of a war! The level of detail is better in every sense, I was surprised when I was in a small building snipping and a tank shot at me and the whole building fell down over me, the scenario changes according to the battle and what you do with it, in CoD the only things you can do is break windows and destroy some vehicles.

I still like CoD, more for casual gaming though, but I spend more hours playing BF3 with much more fun.

Overall i think its very good,

It is Bad company 2 with better graphics and enhanced maps, new weaponry and upgrades for all you can drive. Is very fun to get into the battle because it feels closer than its predecessor, there is no calm in any place of the maps, the sound and visual effects are very good and has the same destruction that BC2, which is something important in the franchise.

I think the intensity itself of this war game will be always better than the COD games.