Battlefield 2: Modern Combat Review

Battlefield 2: Modern Combat is pretty much the same game as appeared recently on the PS2 and Xbox. Of course, it's been overhauled to make use of the systems extra power and graphical abilities. I should just add that it's not quite the same as the PC version and has much more of an arcade combat feel.

If you've played the PC version, the first thing that you will notice will probably be the new sound effects and music. I really like the new music; it's very well done and gives the action in the game that little more of a push. While the sound effects are much more exaggerated and beefy (and in my opinion, more exciting) compared to the PC version. Of course PC users are generally not going want music playing during the action. I did however begin to get a little annoyed with all the radio chatter, although it's pretty novel at first, the constant talking does begin to get a little repetitive and slightly dull.

Graphically the Xbox 360 version is much more impressive than its last-gen counterparts as you might expect, character and vehicle models have a much higher polygon count and there are some very nice new effects in explosions and bullet hole decals. For example, if you stay on a 50cal, continuously firing, you'll notice the bullet cases flying out of the weapon and making quite a fair sized pile on the ground. This is just one of the nice touches, I'm sure you'll spot quite a bit more that make the game stand out from even the PC in some respects.

Of course Battlefield games are well known for multiplayer action, but being a console title, Modern Combat has to include a solid single player component and it does. There are around twenty missions and you'll never stay on one side. You'll get to fight as the US, China and the E.U, each having some different weapons that will be unlocked as you make your way through the missions. You'll also gain medals and stars giving you the ability to unlock more toys and even upgrades for your weapons. This will be simple things though, like being able to hold more ammo in a clip.

I definitely enjoyed the single player mode quite a bit but it's nothing outstanding. You'll have a lot of missions to make your way through with objectives changing mid mission, it's usually pretty much along the lines of defending and attacking. It's a solid effort but as with most games, it has its flaws.

The main feature in Modern Combat is the switching of classes and characters in-game. You'll never fight as one person but rather as a whole team. When you're in-game, all you'll have to do is look at the character you want to switch too and press X. You'll have a stylish little flight cam zoom over to that character and you'll gain control of them. This is all handy depending on your situation in battle. If there's a tank that needs to be taken out quickly, then you can switch to an engineer that can take out the tank with an RPG. This is also useful for making your way around a large map. You can simply point at someone that is on the other side of the map (or on another island) and switch to them saving you a very long mind numbing walk.

Multiplayer is much like the PC version. You'll have 2 modes to choose from, good old "Conquest" that we all know and love and old favourite "Capture the Flag". All the vehicles basically handle in a similar way to the PC version but in some ways a little easier. The helicopter isn't half as hard to fly in Modern Combat but the ground vehicles can seem a little awkward. Having to push up on the left stick to accelerate and turn is a little clumsy and takes quite a bit of getting used to.

This Xbox 360 version can seem much more of a hectic game in multiplayer. The controls are simplified and the "Hot swapping" in single player is obviously gone. You pretty much get what you paid for with multiplayer; a solid fun team based game that is probably the best multiplayer game I've played on the Xbox 360 so far.

You can join servers that have up to 24 players. You'll notice that there are a few more features in multiplayer that did not make an appearance in the PC version. One of these is being able to see what your team mates are doing in a First Person view when you're dead. It's always nice seeing how others play, as you can learn a lot from them or even have a good laugh at them if you're as mean as me.

I found pretty much all of the maps quite easy to learn and very fun to play on. Team work is vital as always in a Battlefield game and with the voice communications do make the game that much more fun, so make sure you get yourself headset if you didn't get a premium package. Don't worry though; you can mute anyone you like so you're not forced to listen to someone with a stupidly annoying high voice.

Although the Multiplayer is very enjoyable, the PC version does it a whole lot better. There are less vehicles in the 360 version and the maps seem a little less detailed in places, don't let that put you off though, I suspect a fair number of clans will begin to play this modern combat on the Xbox 360, competetive team based multiplayer gaming can be great fun.

Summary

Battlefield 2: Modern Combat has a solid single player component and a great fun multiplayer aspect, although only the graphics make the game stand out from the previous console versions. If you haven't played it before on earlier platforms then you should probably try this one. 24 player multiplayer combat is a must have for anyone looking for a good team based FPS on their Xbox 360, especially if they are new to Battlefield.

Good stuff

• Excellent graphics
• Great sound
• 12 vs 12 multiplayer

Not so good stuff

• Bad team A.I. at times in the single player game
• A few visual bugs
• Clumsy ground vehicle controls
• If you've already played the PC, PS2 or Xbox version then there's probably nothing new for you here