This is an article written by a friend of mine from Advanced Tactical Squad.

As a clan we’re all trying out the beta to determine if we can move to this game after the flop with Modern Warfail 2.

Please note: Views, Impressions & Comments in this article are of the original writer and of not my own, nor should they reflect on Battlefield Bad Company 2, Dice or EA.

The Overview:
Well i have played bad company 2 for the last few hours and i believe that this will be a great game.The game mode that was in the beta is called rush; the objective for one team is to destroy 2 locations using a set number of respawn points for the team, while the other team will defend it.

The map that is in the beta has 4 or 5 sections (forgot which ones) where the teams will progress through doing this.

In Battlefield Bad Company 2, you have a set amount of health unlike COD4, so u have to rely on medics to heal you. This takes some getting used to at first but if u have a couple of good medics (like myself) you will do well.

The controls feel a little floaty at first but you get used to it quickly. Something that I believe needs to be included in the final release is a team balance function as a couple of my teams ended up 8v2 after a few rage quiters!

The Classes:
Assault – the assault class uses an assault rifle with a grenade launcher attachment as the base version. this class is used for mainly taking out infantary. the assault class can also throw out ammo packs so that u can resupply

Engineer – The engineer is for repairing and destroying vehicles. he has a silenced smg to be stealthy as well as an RPG for taking out vehicles. he also has a drill for repairing vehicles

Medic - The medic has a lmg which is effective when standing still and rubbish the rest of the time. they also have defibrillators to bring dead people back to life. finally they also have health boxes which players regain health from.

Recon - The sniper class. Obviously a good long distance weapon, however u have to aim at the upper body as a single shot to the lower half will not kill. the sniper class also has c4 which is very useful for destroying the targets in rush.

Vehicles:
There are a wide variety of vehicles from quad bikes (for flanking quickly), tanks, helicopters, and troop carriers. all of these handle well and can be useful if u have a cooperative team that will provide cover for you.

Graphics:
The graphics in Battlefield Bad Company 2 are stunning, unfortunately this means that to run recommended you need a pretty good mid range computer. The minimum requirements however are easily achieved.

Similarities to MW2:
I hate to admit it but Battlefield Bad Company 2 does borrow quite a bit of “inspiration” from COD4 and MW2. The kill cam feature is carried across (admittedly slightly different but cod made it first) and the most blatant copy would be the “hardcore” mode which removes ‘hud’ and bullets do more damage (sound familiar?)

In conclusion, Bad Company 2 is shaping up to be a fantastic shooter. With new inventive game modes on the way (squad deathmatch anyone?) Battlefield Bad Company 2 looks to be the multiplayer game of choice for quite a while (unless MW2 releases dedicated servers, Battlefield Bad Company 2 will still hold its own though).

It may take some getting used to from us cod players, but the possibilities for teamwork mean that this will be a great clan game.

The following write up is from another member of Advanced Tactical Squad who has also tried out the beta, this is what he thought so far.

Classes:

ASSAULT – I have spent most time of this game playing assault, using the 2nd unlocked rifle; or the Thompson, which is one of the global unlocks (guns that can be used in all classes) I found the noob tube (grenade launcher) has been fixed since Battlefield 2 and is now more like COD4’s but unlike COD4 it has zero splash damage, so you have to go for a direct hit. Unlocking the red dot sight makes assault a lot easier but unfortunately takes a long time!

SCOPE - A lot like Battlefield 2, which for some COD4 scopers might be annoying, there is still slight bullet fall, but after say an hour u get used to it and your’re head shotting in no time.

The biggest flaw in scoping imo, is that with every sniper only a headshot is 1 shot kill, which is rather BS, so u basically have to aim for the head if you’re combat scoping because u might not have another chance to shoot. I found the first 2 snipers to be shit, but the 3rd one seems to be a lot more accurate; also the sniper unlocks a mortar strike, which can be called in say once every min on a certain area, and shells a small radius for about 10 seconds, this is very good against AT but not really an AA weapon imo, this replaces the C4.

Engineer – This is my least favourite class basically just because the guns are a load of crap, they do little to no damage, but thanks to the global unlocks the Thompson, does help. The RPG is a good rocket launcher but lacks the ability to guide it, but you do unlock a new one, so that one might be able to?

MEDIC – Medics are pretty much the same as Battlefield 2 except now they have the heavy machine guns. They still top the score bored if played properly, but yeah they are the same as Battlefield 2.

The Map:
The first and only map is awesome, was able to play on it for 7 hours straight with out being bored! It is a massive map though, very very large, but very well developed, there are some great sniper holes, and well placed MG’s and tow launchers.

Destructibility:
I will miss this most when i play COD4, it’s awesome being able to blow walls and roofs off buildings and kill the campers inside! It’s great being able to cut down fences and doors with your knife. The destructibility is just awesome!

The Knife:
It’s a hybrid between COD4 and Battlefield 2, now you just have to press a button and you do a stabbing motion, but like Battlefield 2 the knife is very random, there is the animation of u stabbing the guy in the face, but yet he doesn’t die?!?! So more Battlefield 2 like knife fights of random lunging ducking and jumping…

The Perks:
Obviously stolen from COD4, you unlock perks as u go up ranks, these include perks like bandoleer surprise surprise, and also vehicle perks, like more Armour or more splash damage.

The Health System:
They have the same health system, so no health bar, but when you’re low on health blood fills the edges of the screen, medics around you are able to see your health bar though.

Conclusion:
Awesome awesome awesome, I’m loving the beta and hopefully all the small problems are fixed by march!