Battlefield: Bad Company 2

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 is a first person-shooter video game developed by the Swedish firm EA Digital Illusion CE and published by Electronic Arts for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360 and iOS systems. It is a direct sequel to Battlefield: Bad Company and is part of the Battlefield game series. It was released worldwide in March 2010.

The game is primarily a squad-level online first person shooter based in a contemporary modern warfare setting. Additionally, the game includes a single-player campaign, where the player re-assumes the role of Preston Marlowe, the protagonist of the original game. The game's Frostbite 1.5 engine allows for destructible environments and multiplayer maps contain a wide selection of vehicles, aircraft and emplacements and allow for five different game modes.

The game was announced in February 2009 and free game demos were made available prior to the game's launch. It was met with a positive reception from game critics, garnering a weighted man of 88% from aggregator Metacritic for all three ports. It has also become a commercial success, having sold in excess of nine million units since its initial release. Seven VIP map packs as well as a downloadable game mode have been released thus far, and an expansion pack centered around the Vietnam war which was released on December 21, 2010.

Gameplay

While a first-person shooter, the game follows the series by including controllable vehicles, including ATVs, APCs, tanks, and helicopters. On foot, players are given access to a variety of real-world small arms such as assault rifle and machine guns; players can jump, crouch, and sprint. They can carry one primary weapon and a pistol in multiplayer, or two primary weapons in single-player, as well as grenades and other equipment. Players can fire "from the hip", but zooming in and using the weapon's iron sights, reflex sight, or scope (depending on the weapon) will provide much better accuracy when shooting.

Bad Company 2 heavily emphasizes destructible environments. Large sections of most buildings can be destroyed by explosives; some walls and fences break down under barrages of bullets. The game's physics engine realistically simulates the destruction.

The game utilizes a "regenerating health" system, rather than giving players health points as older games in the Battlefield series have done. To accommodate this in multiplayer, the Medic equipment now accelerates health regeneration rather than directly restoring the player's health. If a player is wounded, he or she must take cover and avoid damage in order to regain health. A heavily wounded player will see dirt and blood around the edges of the screen. Along with Battlefield Vietnam and Battlefield 3, Bad Company 2 is one of only three games in the Battlefield series to show blood without third-party modification.

Single-Player

Bad Company 2 features a story-driven single-player campaign. For most of the narrative, the player takes control of Preston Marlowe, one of the members of the titular "Bad Company". The exception to this is the first mission set prior to the rest of the campaign. Each mission is divided into a series of objectives, often interspersed with cut-scenes which simulate the style of films.

Aside from infantry combat, the campaign contains several missions in which the player controls a vehicle, or mans a weapon turret while a team mate controls the vehicle.

While the other members of Bad Company will engage in combat, the game relies upon the player to complete the objectives and kill most of the enemies. The player's allies can never die.

Each weapon in the campaign is considered a collectible - the first time the player picks up that type of weapon, a "Collectable Unlocked" message appears. There are also sensor stations throughout the campaign the player can find and destroy - this is also recorded in the campaign stats. "Supply Drop" crates are scattered throughout the missions, where the player can exchange weapons and replenish ammo. The Supply Drop crates will remember any weapon the player picks up and this weapon will be available for the rest of the campaign.

(Relase Date: *NA March 2, 2010  *EU March 5, 2010  *AUS March 11, 2010  *JP March 11, 2010)