Despite its technical problems, Battlefield 2 is a good game.
If this game had been published by someone other than EA, it would've been great. However, EA, being the money-hungry bastards they are, did publish this game, which resulted in it being shipped far earlier than the developer (DICE) probably would have liked.
First, I'll talk about the gameplay itself, and how Battlefield 2 succeeds as a multiplayer game. Later I'll talk about the technical aspects of the game.
This game successfully blends infantry and vehicle combat, and allows you to fight battles any way you want. For instance, you can jump in a tank to mow down enemy infantry and light vehicles, or you can grab a sniper rifle, find a well-camouflaged spot, and take enemies down one-by-one. Or you can jump in a helicopter with your squad and rain fire down on enemy infantry. Heck, you can even fly a fighter jet to take out enemy tanks and helicopters, or engage in crazy dogfights with enemy planes. The list of possibilities goes on and on.
You can fight with 64 players in one game. That's quite a few, and the battles are awesome, but the connection quality sometimes suffers as a result. Upon joining a game, you will be prompted to choose an infantry class. There are seven distinct classes to choose from (SpecOps, Sniper, Assault, Support, Engineer, Medic, and Anti-tank), and each one has different weapons and specialties. The game features a ranking system based on how many points you've achieved in multiplayer, and as you progress through the ranks, you will be given unlock points to use on new weapons, making the game rewarding to long-term players.
The squad system is an excellent concept, and is implemented well, although many players will choose not to join a squad. You can access the squads screen at any time, and join any one you feel like. Each squad has a squad leader, who acts as a mobile spawn point, and it's usually important to keep him alive. The squads are coordinated (Hopefully) by the team commander. Any player can apply for the commander position at the beginning of the round, but only the applicant with the highest rank is given the job. Many times, the commander may choose not to give orders to the squads, but he is still important, due to his ability to call in artillery strikes, UAV scans, supply drops, and other goodies players may require during a battle.
The game has a rock/paper/scissors-esque feel to it. For instance, helicopters usually beat tanks, tanks usually beat infantry, and a well coordinated group of infantry can take out a helicopter. But you never feel trapped by your role. Helicopter pilots know that a well-aimed round from a tank cannon could take them out if they aren't careful, infantry know that a skilled helicopter gunner could wipe them out of they don't take him down fast enough, and tank drivers know to be on the lookout for anti-tank rockets, as it only takes 2 or 3 to put the tank out of commission. It'ts like rock/paper/scissors, with a twist. Like, "What if the rock is sharp, and cuts through the paper?", or "What if the scissors are really tough, and can cut through the rock?". It's this amazing, unique gameplay style that attracts players. But only if the players are willing to keep playing, despite the game's flaws.
Had DICE had more time to playtest and fix the game's technical problems, this game would have been excellent, far surpassing any multiplayer-based shooter already on the market. However, as I said above, it was published by Electronic Arts. So, of course, as with many other EA titles, you'll probably notice just how much advertising and DRM has been crammed into the game. Unskippable intro ads, long load times, poor weapon design, and a terrible netcode ruin what would otherwise be an excellent game. I believe DICE would have perfected this game if they had more time to work on it.
The official gamespot review provides a fairly accurate depiction of the gameplay, graphics and sound. However, I am astounded that the reviewer had the nerve to say this game is technically stable, as it is one of the least stable retail games I have ever played. Even now, 3 years after the game was released, CTDs are still as common as they were when the game was first released, game servers will frequently crash (which doesn't make server owners very happy), there are still some vehicle imbalances (although it is rumored they will be corrected soon), and the netcode has yet to be improved from its original state. The poor netcode is what makes me most angry. EA had 3 years to improve it, but did absolutely nothing. Player hitboxes lag behind the player models, so you are sometimes required to lead your target BACKWARDS, based on his/her latency. This really frustrated me, as I had to learn a whole new style of sniping to take down my enemy. Along with the hitboxes, the hit-detection system also lags behind, so even if your target is visibly hit by a bullet, there is a chance they will not take any damage. This also frustrated me, as it gave high-latency players an advantage over players with better connections.
On top of these issues, the ballistics model is extremely poor. Weapons will spread at an unrealistic rate, requiring players to carefully aim one shot at a time. It is as if nobody at DICE bothered to think about how weapons actually behave when fired. This, coupled with the hit-detection problems, may result in a broken keyboard, as a result of banging your head on it out of frustration.
Here's my overall rating of the game, based on Gamespot's review system:
Gameplay: 8
The battles are amazing, Infantry versus vehicle combat is fun and balanced, and ultimately the better-coordinated team will come out on top. However, a lot of technical issues, some gameplay imbalances, and a poor ballistics model ruin what would otherwise be a flawless game.
Graphics: 8
The graphics aren't the best you'll ever see, but they aren't the worst, either. My only complaint is the steep system requirements (considering the quality). Some people have complained about long load times. I have found that this game's load times are proportional to your graphical settings. Since I play on low/medium, I never feel as though the loading sequence takes too long.
Sound: 9
The sound is very good; explosions are appropriately loud, planes roar overhead, and artillery echoes in the distance. Although some of the voice-overs can get annoying, the sound does a good job of complimenting the action.
Value: 7
Considering I payed $50 (US) for this game, I feel like EA ripped me off. It was obvious the game was shipped only half-completed and improperly tested, as a patch was required less than 2 weeks after its release. But considering you can pick this game up for about $15, and many of the major issues have been ironed out, it's well worth the money.
Tilt: 8
This game succeeds as a multiplayer game, but falls short as a first-person shooter. I still play this game, and it still has a large online playerbase. I would recommend this game to anyone who has a system able to run it.