Battlefield Hardline Beta and the State of the Franchise

So What does everyone else think of the beta this time around? I personally think that it's absolutely terrible to put it bluntly. I know that Visceral Games is really making the game, but what is DICE thinking allowing them to take control and turn this into an annualized game? I guess DICE has just completely sold out to EA and is taking all the money they can get. I know It's a business and they're trying to make money, but they're ruining this franchise and there's no doubt about that.

I remember how excited I was when Battlefield 2 was coming out. BF1942 was so amazing and BF2 promised to only be better, with a new graphics engine and whole new setting. It turned out to be just as good as I had hoped. It came out three years after the original. Battlefield 3 got me just as excited and blew me away with another great graphics engine to go along with that same great Battlefield gameplay we all loved. It came out a full six years later (I know BF2142 was in between but that's kind of a forgotten entry).

Then Battlefield 4 was announced...Very soon after Battlefield 3. It released only two years later and featured the same graphics engine, the same general premise, mostly the same gametypes, and even some of the same maps in the DLC (not sure why people just didn't play BF3 instead of wasting money on that DLC...). Having said that, I truly did enjoy Battlefield 4 but there's no denying that in truth it was Battlefield 3.5 or the first real Battlefield game on consoles with full 64 player maps.

And now we have Hardline. I played the beta the first time last summer and hated it. It got such negative attention that it was delayed until this year. I just got done playing the new beta and I can't tell that any work whatsoever was done to it in the 6 plus months that it's been in between the two betas. Here again, we have the same game as Battlefield 3 but new maps, weapons, and some stupid new cops and robbers gametypes. How is this not an expansion? Or DLC? That's what DLC and expansion packs are for. There is nothing that warrants paying full price for this game. Nothing. And the sad thing is that it will have its own DLC too.Not only is it identical to BF3 and BF4, I think that it actually plays worse and just isn't as fun. The new premise to it just seems weird and forced and just not Battlefield.

What do you guys think? Have you played it? Even if you haven't, what are your thoughts on this game? Does anyone else think that the franchise is on a very bad path?

I remember when BF3 was announced, that was hyyyyyyype. Now BF is just CoD with bigger maps and decent physics. Im interested in BF 2143 and BC3, any other BF spinoffs can f off.

Haven't even downloaded it

@silversix_: That's the most lazy and willfully ignorant statement about BF3 and BF4 possible that doesn't carry any weight to people who have been playing the series for the past few years. Battlefield 4 in its current state (not how it launched), is probably the finest Battlefield to date. Most refined mechanics, best balanced, excellent diversity in the maps, the most amount of gamemodes, and a renewed emphasis on teamplay, all while DICE and EA have shown their ability to support a game well after launch if they put their minds to it. The next major patch coming in a few weeks is refining the game even more and adding in tons of quality of life features that will just make the experience better. Which is good because Hardline is going to flop hardcore and Battlefield 4 will live on.

Vicersal was making a cop drama game and had worked on Battlefield titles in the past and some EA executive decided to merge it with the Battlefield series as DICE was given the go ahead to make Mirror's Edge 2 as well as Star Wars Battlefront. A lot has changed at EA since this decision was made, but it's still a product of EA's legacy of terrible management. It has no right being a Battlefield game. The series should just take a break while the whole modern military craze kind of dies down and DICE is off making other games.

The Battlefield series needs a break. It's suffering franchise fatigue and the BF4 fiasco was proof of that. EA has diversified their shooter lineup with Titan and Battlefront and doesn't need to be pumping out a modern military shooter each year. Battlefield 4 is great and could easily last a few more years if they just keep making DLC for it. A large expansion pack with 5-10 new maps, vehicles, and some game modes for like $30 would keep the game going for another year strong with ease. They don't need a sequel right now. The work they've done to BF4 is proof that the team is committed to it and isn't slowing down the support.

EA needs to rethink their strategy here.

Should of just made Bad Company 3.

I played it for a couple of hours and then uninstalled, disgusted that a product being retailed at $60 isn't much more than a Battlefield 4 mod. It looks like ass, too.

This game is going to flop big time. No doubt that a lot of Battlefield fans will buy it, but I suspect most will play it for a couple of weeks and then go right back to BF4, Call of Dudebros, TitanFail, or whatever other shooter they were playing before Hardline.

@Wasdie: Completely agree. Battlefield 4 could live on for a while. I wasn't attempting to downplay it in my OP because, as I said, I really like it; it's just pretty similar to BF3, which is a good thing. But yeah, very balanced and amazing maps and gametypes. Definitely an improvement on BF3.

@Wasdie: great fucking post. bf4 is great. i would prefer they keep pumping out map packs and weapons for that instead of dumping out hardline. hardline feels like a bad bf4 mod.

I was having fun with the beta until I tried the hotwire mode. Its awful

Downloading it on PS4 now. They need to release a Bad Company 3... Those games were insane.

It's pretty weak. A step down from bf4 imo. A really bad mod is the perfect description of it.

I saw the new beta was out this morning, and downloaded it while at work. Played it for 30-45 minutes, quit out, and deleted it.

It seems I'm not alone with how unimpressive I think this game is.

Haven't played the beta yet (currently downloading) but I really do enjoy BF. I think it just needs to stop being annual, it feels forced. Sure 4 is fun, but it isn't much of a step up from 3. I am probably in the minority, but I would love another WWII BF. Thought 1943 was a ton of fun, if not a bit limited.

I actually am one of the few who quite enjoys BF Hardline. I've been playing on my X1 for a handful of hours and I can honestly say I've had some really fun moments. It's nothing groundbreaking at all, but my experience with the Hotwire mode was pretty interesting and dynamic. The close games have crazy intense car chases around the map with bullets flying in every direction, it really can be quite chaotic and epic when it goes right. I don't know if it's worth buying, but I've had a good bit of fun in the beta so far.

I'm enjoying it too. It's not bad at all.

I don't like the direction the series has gone in since BC2. BF3 and 4 just felt off to me, they exist in a weird middle ground between realism and arcadey that I am not a fan of. Honestly the series has spent more time being Arcadey, 1942 and Vietnam were pretty silly games and I kinda wish the series stuck with that. The community has gone to shit since BF3 came out so the large-scale teamplay that used to make the series stand out has vanished out the window, though I don't think this is really dices fault, more just a result of their successful attempt to tap into the CoD market.

With Hardline they are stripping out the only part of BF3 and 4 I enjoyed, the armoured combat, so my interest is pretty much nill.

I did a stream yesterday. It was meant to last two hours but after 15 minutes I had thought I was going to quit after less than an hour.. Somehow I ended up playing it for 2 hours. It wasn't that fun. It looked like a Source 2 game. It's not really my kind of a game but I see a limited appeal in it.

Played a couple of hours earlier today. Not a Battlefield game at all. And I don't just mean the small maps and the lack of vehicle combat.. There was no destruction, the weapons felt really light, and everything was just weird. The Hotwire mode is fun, but I can see it becoming boring after a while.
It's not exactly a bad game, but it's missing everything that makes Battlefield what it is, and ends up being just a generic shooter with some interesting game modes. I'll be sticking with Battlefield 4.

@SuddenlyTragic: I can definitely see the improvements since the alpha test.

That said, it still really looks and plays like a mod to BF4, and not in a good way.

I will certainly not be buying this game once released. Battlefield no longer means what it used to, and neither does DICE.

The game is a complete joke. The police in this game would pointlessly shout "freeze" at the criminals, right as they put a whole clip into them. DICE should have stayed with army versus army instead of something so silly like this.

Visceral is making this game. I'm sure whenever DICE makes BF5 it will be military themed, Hardline is more of a spin-off.

Bad company 2 was the franchise peak, been meh ever since. Bf4 is decent but aint no bc

I remember when they announced BC2: Vietnam DLC. A totally new setting, new maps, new weapons, new music, new vehicles and all that for the price of a COD map pack.

The BF3 and BF4 DLC meanwhile was a big disappointment. Barely added anything to the game and I only really liked one DLC pack for BF3 and one for BF4.

What I'm trying to say is this: The series used to really set itself apart from COD, now I feel it tries to be more and more like it.

I really not a fan of how weapons are unlocked.

I thought it was great. Hotwire and heist mode are really fun.

Number of maps/modes and length of the SP will decide when I get it.

everyone wants CoD moneyz. just like everyone wanted Gears money couple of years ago (thanks gawd the Gears of War clones have stopped)

There is a lot of negative news surrounding this. I still will download it today and see what all the hubbub is about.

The "lets copy COD" craze is over now too, thank god.

Last gen we saw so many FPS with a throwaway SP, MP with unlocks, 2 weapon limit, blood on the screen, etc... but in the past years we really got some great FPS with their own personality. I'm thinking COJ: Gunslinger, Wolfenstein, Titanfall, Shadow Warrior, ...

It's just that EA sure likes going after that COD-money. They ruined a great franchise in the process, MOH, which is quite ironic because Activision first made the very first COD as an answer to EAs popular MOH franchise. MOH at the end was totally soulless and just a very poor attempt to go after COD gamers, resulting in the series being dead now.

Bad Company 2 had lots of personality and again, the DLC was a clear attempt to outclass COD in every single way by doing its own thing. BF3&4 lacked soul for the most part to me. They were just another modern shooter. Though there were of course the big battles and vehicles, it might as well be COD now with the nearly yearly releases.

Titanfall on the other hand, though taking a lot of stuff from COD and older shooters, had a lot of personality and charm.

@ghostwarrior786: it's funny because when Bad Company 2 came out it was just regarded as a great shooter with BF2 being the series peak.

Now that 3 and 4 happened everyone thinks BC2 is godly lol not saying it isn't awesome it just gets a lot of credit online, which wasn't really the case when it launched.

I downloaded and played the beta and then shut it off and went back to CoD AW. Haters can say what they want, but atleast CoD games are...FUN!!! I wont be buying another BF until either DICE decides to do the StarWars spin off or BC3.

I didn't like what I played of it today. It feels exactly like BF4 to me, with a lot of superficial changes. Needless to say I have not played much of anything post BC2.

@R4gn4r0k: I completely agree with you about Titanfall, it's one of the best multiplayer shooters to come out in a while in my opinion. It's part COD, part Unreal Tournament, and part Mech Assault. I just played it a few nights ago for the first time in few months and had a blast. For some fast-paced, in your face action with unique style, there's nothing else out there like Titanfall. The game died pretty quickly on PC but it's still very much alive on Xbox Live.

the people who like bf2 should like bf4, its an upgrade in virtually every sense. bc2 is a whole different animal altogether though so i can understand why a bf2 player might not like bc2 and vice versa.

for me bc2 is the best multiplayer game ever, ive clocked over 1000 hours into it and to this day still play it, bf4 actually isnt a bad game at all but i hate the unlocking system aka grinding so i just cant be bothered playing it

I think BF: Hardline will bomb and that battlefield needs a break. EA needs to split the series up into two games (one series focused on PC, and then one focused towards consoles/pc).

Let PC devs focus on the large scale battlefield without worrying about consoles. Then the console devs could focus on small scale (bad company series, also make for PC since it could handle it).

I would like it if EA could make dlc with bad company rush maps for BF4. Rather that then Hardline, wouldn't be surprised if it goes free to play and ea just cashes in on microtransactions. I dont see any value in blowing $60 bucks on Hardline after watching twitch gameplay.

I'll skip Hardline. They'll get me back if they make BF2143.

Love Titanfall, it's like the only shooter I've ever naturally been good at with very little practice. It's a tonne of fun.

today i logged on origin and the beta came up, i wish ea could've seen me giving them middle finger

I played a lot of BF4, and this doesn't feel like it at all. The weapons feel much lighter or weightless, kinda like CS. And the TTK (Time To Kill) is very short, so the combat encounters play out very differently.

Why does it take such an enormous amount of time to instal? It downloaded, I started it, the menu said it was still installing (started at 25%) and all I can do while I wait is check the empty Battlelog and options (controls, music and all that).

It's still at 54%. after some 3 hours......

I like the shoot-outs in the streets. Everything else feels kinda bleh.

This is the stuff I'd expect them to put in a $20 crazy expansion pack, much like Rockstar's expansions. I don't know. Maybe the campaign is rad. Who knows.

Do you know what feels exactly like BF4? BF3.

Yet I don't see anyone complaining about BF4 being nigh-identical to BF3...

Hardline is a unarguably a step in a different direction compared to what happened between BF3 and BF4.

In my OP I basically said that BF4 was BF 3.5, which I agree, it is. It didn't stop me from enjoying it but Hardline is a different story altogether. It just feels way too forced and out of place.

Played it on ps4 way back. I'll just wait for bf5 next year.

Oh yeah I'm sure the differences feel pretty significant for someone who's played BF a lot. Like if Valve were to change DOTA 2 even slightly the whole community has PTSD for a few weeks. But I've played like 5 hours of BF4 and most of it was in single player, I don't like the game feel. Call me superficial but I just can't relate to the way it presents itself. Battlefield isn't self aware and takes itself way too seriously, that's why BC2 will always be the best in the series for me.

My first Battlefield was BF3, which is one of my favorite shooters ever.... online anyway, couldnt stomach the campaign! BF4 was meh. Campaign was better but didnt like the online maps much.

Not excited for the new BF Cop Drama.

Shame what the franchise turned into. Bad Company 2 was dope back in the day.

Hardline takes itself seriously? Give me a break. Something tells me you didn't even play the game once. It has cops rolling around in ridiculous muscle-cruisers blasting dubstep and rap about smoking weed while mowing down robbers with giant gattling guns. This is WAY more tongue-in-cheek than Bad Company 2.

I honestly might be enjoying this more than Bad Company 2. BC2 was fun but it disgraced the Battlefield franchise with its arcadey consolized crap (no prone and such). This has the fun of BC2, as well as the versatility and tactics of a Battlefield game. They lightened up on the destruction-gimmick crap (which the Battlefield franchise has never really been about).

It's pretty fun, not gonna buy the game Day 1 or anything but maybe I'll get it some day.