Good online multiplayer, along with some insanely awesome special effects, make up for the short/forgettable campaign.
Storyline:
Though I picked this game up not expecting much from a storyline, realizing that I was pretty much accurate is always a bit of a letdown. It's not necessarily that this game's concept is bad, or even boring for that matter. What it really all boils down to is this one fact: it is too damn short, and not unique enough to make it memorable. Here's basically how the game goes. Your are Preston Marlow, a convict who was given the choice between going to jail (for crimes which were never explained), or join a U.S. army group known as "Bad Company" (hence the name - yes, I know I am smart). Obviously we know the path he took. Anyways, you begin the game basically pursuing some lousy mission that the modern-day crew was assigned. To be completely honest, after two weeks of not playing the campaign, I don't even remember what exactly the mission was necessarily - as you can see, the whole "forgettableness" concept is already coming into play. As the story progresses, your crew basically gets a bit too lazy and care-free and ends up taking their objectives and amending it. It goes from some kind of stupid mercenary manhunt, to your crew realizing the riches these mercenaries held, and goes from there. It turns out being a fight for your life in order to get some gold to pawn. There's a bit more to it, but not anything I can go into detail with unless I were to spit out some spoilers, and this is something I will not do. All in all, the campaign took between 3-5 hours to complete. That definitely is short, even for a war game. To wrap it all up, the game's storyline was by far the biggest letdown, and a bit stupid because it showed real potential.
Graphics:
Although the graphics aren't those of "Call of Duty", for example, they are still pretty darn good. Using the "Frostbite" engine, EA managed to come up with some pretty cool detailed, as well as realistic visuals. The atmosphere changes according to the situation, and it all just works out very well. There is the occasional glitch, but nothing serious by any means. Also, the framerate is just about as smooth as it gets. I also want to bring up that the explosions in this game are absolutely gut-wrenching...in a good way. You almost feel them yourself, just by watching them. Explosions are a big part of this game, and they really do a lot with it. One thing EA actually did that you will find no where else is an idea that basically redefines realism in games - shooting a rocket at a wall will make it crumble. I know, it's some crazy stuff. All joking aside, this is truly something you don't see too often in videogames. Even in the best of the best, this whole idea is never used. It was definitely a fresh concept that they came up with, and although it seems stupid and silly, it is pretty much awesome.
Entertainment:
It really all comes down to entertainment in this game. It doesn't have a very innovative storyline that is memorable by any means, but it is still extremely fun to play. There is a lot you can do here, and that's always good to see in a genre that is crowded with stupid overly-direct games. You can approach situations here in numerous ways - whether it be stealing a vehicle and running over a town of crazy people, finding an MG a mile away from the target, or simply going into the village and ripping their faces off one by one, you will certainly have a good time. Also, the game has replay value, mainly because of it's online multiplayer. In other words, this is a game that has the potential to be very addicting, and also one that can get hard to put down. There are two very simple, but fun, multiplayer games. Although it isn't like some of the bigger names that have 12,031 game types, it's still good enough to make the multiplayer a blast. I think EA did a great job in making a game very fun, as well as violent...all while keeping the level far enough down to make the game a T rated one.
Recommendations:
-FPS gamers
-Teens with parents who don't like M-rated games
-People who are really in it for the multiplayer
Overall: B