Here is my own review, you will notice im not impressed a bit by the game - it brings nothing new to the FPS table.
Ok, so after 6hours of trying my beta code on the redeem site (obtain via EA Store, buy then cancel) i finally got in... I pass on the menus which i didnt really spent much time on, its a BC2 menu re-skinned, nice graphics i suppose but extremely buggy Interface with no responses and empty lists... ok so i get in a server on the big open map;
First thing i felt: this is BC2. Sorry but i play BC2 a few times a week and the player movements felt the same as did the scenery/models around me. But there is a twist, somewhat DICE managed to screw with the weapons it feels like you are holding a branch or a fishing rod! There is no "life" in the weapons, when ADS they look terrible (and i played on high setting 1920x1080).... Talking about weapons the recoil is gone AWOL! There is none. Result? No matter waht SMG or rifle you are holding you will shoot someone across the map no bother :confused: ; Still on the weapons, the animations look amateur at best, impact and muzzle flashes identical to those of BC2.
The spawning system: terrible from the few games i had. Doesnt seem to be any logic at all, you click on something that says "Spawn at base" but yet the game spawns you anywhere at all.... I was spawnkill 4 times in a row at one point :scratchchin:
Again on the character models, they feel really unpolished, death animations are terrible (you can see a few in the video below).
Im struggling to find positives really... ah yes, the 2 maps presented are gorgeous. Really nicely detailed with a fair amount of destructible stuff (small).
All in all im not sure what to think, i feel sorry for the DICE/EA team who worked on this, it feels as if they are 2 years too late: nothing in this beta i haven't seen before. The HUD stuff as well as many features are directly pumped from COD4/6 and it left me with a feeling of un-originality that is really disappointing. Not only they took a lot from COD but the gameplay i enjoy in BC2 is not there! the maps are medium size but there was no clear objectives as to what we had to do and in the end a lot of areas dont get used.
I know i didnt play much but really i failed to get excited at any stage. With BC2 i had a smile on my face straight away, the game wasn't too far off BF2 and was improved in many way. This game in contrast feels like its going backwards, there is no prone, crouch is still not "togglable" and you cant reload ADS sometimes (perhaps a bug)
If this game want to suceed it will take massive work to fix all the bug i could spot in the few minutes i played. And more maps - @ 8 MP maps on release and no Public Dedi files or Modtools i dont give this game 6 months of popularity.
The video (quality should improve over time):
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HZUhomGwhls
