“OK, what the hell is going on” were my initial thoughts during the first minute or so of playing the Battlefield Bad Company BETA. I found my first steps very daunting, I was tentative about playing it. So, I just took the plunge and jumped right in. BANG!

The very first thing to strike me, like a bolt from the blue was the sheer chaotic carnage unfolding before my eyes. Subconsciously I instantly drew up a comparison with Call of Duty 4 - I couldn’t help myself. For months now our expectations have been met and Call of Duty 4 has gone beyond “a war game” and become a routine adventure of glorious playability - Battlefield just blew Call of Duty out of the water - rung that sucker out and booted it in the butt. You want a gritty, face smacking, grizzly war game? Well, those prayers weren’t in vein. Battlefield Bad Company comes with no pretence and no alluring gloss - it’s a dirty beast and I love it.

Words can’t really describe the pure panic of it all, you need to think fast and act faster. Included in the BETA are two levels - Oasis which is very sandy and foots clumps of houses rather than the more spread out plotting in the vastly greener and hillier Ascension. Both locations look very different, but both are glorious in detail. Destruction is the hook here, pretty much everything can be blown up with the debris looking particularly stunning. It’s like a leap in originality - kinda like Portal. But unlike Portal’s wimpy laser gun, in Battlefield if you come up against a door, fence, wall or anything that‘s in your way - just hook your grenade launcher up and blow a hole it! It’s quite remarkable. Along with the stunning visual effects the sound also deserves the title ‘Stunning’. Everything sounds like it’s damn real! Twigs snapping, walls crashing water rushing - people dying….It’s glorious.

Offered in this BETA is the main multiplayer mode - Gold Rush. Now, the story is simple; the war is over - finished. Only, some renegade soldiers have seen fit to try get rich and get themselves some gold. You’ll either be placed on the Defenders team or the Attackers team. As a Defender, you must protect your gold crates and prevent the Attackers laying a charge on them - stealing the gold and taking over your base. If The Attackers do manage to get their greasy mitts on your (usually) 2 crates of gold - then the level opens up. As a Defender you will be pushed back and will have to defend 2 more crates. If the Attackers manage to secure ALL crates then they win, if the Defenders bring the Attackers combined health bar down to nothing - then the Defenders have been successful in their objective. I saw a preview a few months ago - and if I’m honest the idea didn’t really excite me. It’s only after actually playing it - that I see the true genius behind it. It’s as entertaining as anything I’ve ever played online.

Back and ready for action is the wide selection of vehicles. Hummers, Helicopters, Boats, Tanks and a wide array of turrets. The vehicle control is excellent. Unlike other FPS’s like Halo and Half-Life, in Battlefield the vehicles don’t use the analogues to accelerate. This is a blessing for me - they control how they should. You can take a ride on vehicles currently doing the rounds or find one for yourself. Also, if you can manage to get onto an enemy tank, you can shoot the head sticking out of the top and take it over - simple but wonderfully entertaining.

This BETA has left me wanting more, it’s excited me about the upcoming release and has wetted my appetite for the full multiplayer - with more maps, modes, customisation and being able to easily play with friends. I’m also hyped for the single player. As BETA’s go - Battlefield Bad Company is a job well done.

Pick up the full game this June.