Battlefield 2: Special Forces is a solid expansion pack, but does little to justify its price.
Having played Special Forces for a few days now, I’m more pressed to say that the new features don’t constitute the admission price. Special Forces is a good expansion in regards to the obligations an expansion must fulfill, but there are only six new maps. Several of the new classes, such as the Insurgents and the Rebels, use the exact same weapons as the Middle Eastern Coalition team found in regular Battlefield 2. The British SAS, which are used in a small number of the new missions, have an all new line-up of weapons. They’re good fun and all, but you can unlock them in regular Battlefield 2. Instead, I ended up paying $30 for this. Special Forces doesn’t expand very far.
I remember StarCraft: Brood War and WarCraft III: The Frozen Throne as expansions that could have sufficed as their own, stand-alone products. I have become accustomed to seeing my dollar go further after plopping down a grand total of $80 on one game. With Special Forces, this is just not the case. It’s a very small addition to a decent sized game. When Yuri’s Revenge came out for Red Alert 2, there was really no reason to ever go back to regular Red Alert 2. I cannot say the same is true for Battlefield 2: Special Forces.
While this is a very good game and I will continue to play it, I can’t recommend it because it doesn’t really push the game any further. It’s basically just Battlefield 2 with some missions that take place at night, which then requires you to use your awesome Special Forces training and press a key to activate your nightvision. It’s a solid addition to my favorite shooter of 2005, but there are more reasonable uses for $30.