Battlefield 2: Modern Combat – XB – Preview 3

It’s been a long time but
Battlefield is coming to the Xbox. With the recent release of Battlefield 2 for
PC, Xbox (and PS2) owners will finally have an opportunity to play Battlefield
on a home console. Battlefield 2: Modern Combat will be the console version of
Battlefield 2, which is already a hit on the PC. The previous versions of
Battlefield were set during World War II or Vietnam, but Battlefield 2 is based
upon current war-time affairs. But the settings of the game have always been
secondary to the gameplay.

Battlefield has always been gaming
at it’s most basic “Us versus Them.” Those that have played the PC versions know
what I’m talking about but for those that haven’t then let me elaborate.
Battlefield allows you to choose sides, good or evil (Axis or Allies) and then
play a huge game of capture the flag/king of the mountain. Instead of just one
flag being on a map the game has several flag spots located throughout the map.
The team that captures the most bases (flags) at the end of the match wins the
game. It’s a really simple idea that works amazingly well and has hooked gamers
for the past couple of years. There are countless stories about people playing
Battlefield for hours upon hours because it’s just so much fun. I’m proud to
report that all of this excitement appears to be present in the Xbox version of
Battlefield 2: Modern Combat.

The demo available right now offers
players the ability to sample the online multiplayer aspect of the game. The
demo allows up to 24 players to play the conquest mode, where you pick a side
and then battle it out for possession of the bases. Veterans of the PC game will
be right at home with the console version since the multiplayer hasn’t changed
dramatically. You pick a spawn point and then battle for possession of a base.
Once you have captured a base you can then decide to capture another base or
hold position in case the other sides comes after the base. Before you spawn
into the game you can pick from several different solider types that all have
their own unique weapons and abilities. For example if you pick an engineer then
you start off with a shotgun and have a rocket launcher. While a sniper starts
off with (of course) a sniper rifle. Each time you die and have to respawn you
can select a different type of soldier to use so you can experiment with what
works best for you.

The other key part of the
Battlefield franchise has been the vehicles and Modern Combat doesn’t
disappoint. Tanks, Helicopters and different vehicles are always littered
throughout a map. The helicopter played the biggest deciding factor in the Xbox
demo because it enabled the transportation of other gamers to different parts of
the map. But the helicopter doesn’t have to land, oh no, since you can jump out
of the helicopter and parachute down. I had a blast riding in the helicopter as
a engineer and trying to take out tanks using a rocket launcher. The vehicles
have previously been used to perform some amazing jumps and stunts in the PC
version and I wouldn’t be surprised if console gamers try to come up with their
own unique stunts.

The gameplay of the demo was tight
with the controls responding to everything right away. Switching to the
different weapons, firing the weapons, controlling vehicles and moving around
the map was never an issue. Since this is a first-person shooter the targeting
system and sensitivity was top notch as well. Hardcore FPS fans shouldn’t have
any issues with the controls. The demo did lock up a few times during a game for
no particular reason. One nasty bug would cause the game to freeze up while my
speakers were making this incredibly annoying sound. The only way to stop the
sound and get back into the game was to restart the Xbox. From the message
boards I visited this was a common problem with everyone. Another problem was a
server issue where it seems the servers would just drop a game usually at the
very beginning of a match.

The graphics on the game might be a
stumbling block for some gamers because there are some Xbox games that look
better. Xbox owners have grown accustomed to having some of the best-looking
first-person shooter games available for a console. Battlefield 2: Modern Combat
won’t be the best-looking game available. Some of the buildings in the game lack
stunning detail that gamers might be expecting. The framerate for the demo would
stutter at times, which was a nuisance especially during heavy combat. In fact I
don’t remember these issues being present with the demo I played at E3 this year
but there is still time to iron these issues out. One amazing effect that I
never got tired of looking at was the heat wave effect that would generate when
someone would fire a heavy artillery shell (such as tank cannons or missiles
from a helicopter). The stage would create a wave effect around the impact zone
to represent the heat generated from the blast.

The demo of Battlefield 2: Modern
Combat is a blast to play that no one should avoid. The demo is available in the
August 2005 Official Xbox Magazine which should be on newsstands right now. The
same intense, action packed, fun-filled gameplay from the PC version is here in
all it’s glory but with a modern look. Sure there were some rough edges present
in the demo but hopefully those will be ironed out by the final release. If
you’re a FPS fan that only has an Xbox then this is a must-own game that
shouldn’t disappoint. Look for Battlefield 2: Modern Combat later this year.