TheXboxLife

If the original Battlefield: Bad Company wasn’t badass enough, take a look at the improvements made in Battlefield: Bad Company 2. Ok, so one of the biggest problems with the original was not only the physics and weights in the buildings all off, but you couldn’t even entirely level them to the ground. Good thing that’s been changed this time around. In the new installment users are able to fully take a building to the ground while setting up explosives all over the building. It looks great, and seems much more realistic then the original attempt. Along with the improved building physics and destruction, the characters are toned down a bit more in the new version.



Gamers will still be playing under Preston, the hot tongued soldier who’s platoon looks a lot more like something out of Three Kings then a disciplined unit. This time around, though, the company will have to take their job a little bit more seriously. Players begin on a frozen tundra level covered in snow and full of Russian bad guys. After stumbling across some loading products into a truck, a simply recon missions turns out into all out blood fare while exchanging fire with the Russians. You’ll be hiding behind burnt out vehicles and the normal positions, so there is nothing to new on the movement feel around the area.



A huge improvement to the game, which was notably an issue with the previous, is the movement of your friendly company and the AI that drives them. Situations where you’ve blown holes into walls and destroyed property will register with the computer-controlled adversaries, and on top of that, they’ll be following directions much better too. Preston is still the leader, and wherever you go the platoon will go, but now it’s done in a much more realistic fashion. They’ll get into position, cover you, and stay closer to the group while you prepare the plan that’s going to take your enemies out.



Tanks, tanks and more tanks! In BF: BC2, places, people and automobiles blow up left and right. While being chased by ATV gun running enemies, you’ll be ready with massive tanks and firepower that will surely put a theme of destruction in the companies ways. The single-player mode is great, but the real focus is on the multi-player options which have been greatly improved upon. Considering that most games today need to have a strong online showing, BF: BC2 does not disappoint. Gamers will be happy that setting up matches with friends will be easier, and [hopefully] a co-op mode.



There will be an incentive addition to the game, so that from the very beginning you don’t have all the available options. DICE is hoping to keep players more engaged and the longevity of the game raised. Developers are “actually challenging the player to go out and do something specific in order to get something”, which is similar to the earlier addition of players healing other players.

Overall, Battlefield: Bad Company 2 seems extremely promising with the improvements to the scenery, and to the multi-player mode. Definitely going to be worth purchasing upon it’s console-wide platform.

Look out Tony Hawk fans, there is a new skateboarding game coming to a video game store near you! After years of the Tony Hawk series dominating the console-gaming world as far as skateboarding games go, Skate 3 has mustered out the strength to give gamers a little more to play for — complete and utter control through the analog sticks. Skate 3 offers a unique control system that is dominated by the analog sticks, allowing for the gamer to have much more interaction and feel while achieving and completing massive combination tricks.

What may seem as an “anti-Tony Hawk” game, Skate 3 offers a lot more control over the movements of the character, but it comes at a price, it’s not insanely perfect. The left analog stick will be used to control the skater movement, with the right being the control of skateboard flips. The triggers are used for various grabs, and in the end, as much interactiveness may come from the unique controls, it does make it difficult to replicate certain tricks. Considering many tricks are very similar in base, this may cause some challenges when trying to pull off a specific trick in a competition. Though it can cause a level of frustration for the gamer, a little practice and perfection will surely ease the pain and allow you to become a true master of the board.



With the unique control design, the gamers biggest challenge off the bat is mastering various grinds. In real life, skateboarders must perfect the heights of their jumps to nail certain rails, and in Skate 3, this is no different. The game is all about timing, so if you demonstrate a level of grace with the analog sticks, the gamer will quickly catch onto the art of ollieing. At times this may become different because of the camera angle, but lining up your grinds will come in time.

The career mode can offer some challenges, like really knowing your city and skate zone. Certain objectives can only be completed in certain areas depending on the criteria, so being familiar with the area is definitely a huge plus. Along with this you’ll complete challenges that may be point, trick or time based. Overall, there are many different aspects to the career mode so it’ll take practice to master everything.



You can travel around the city exploring different spots, and even open up hidden spots such as X Games areas, which is pretty cool. The loading times are fairly quick unless you are attempting to warp to specific areas. It’s not a big deal unless you are trying to achieve the same objective over and over again.

Because of the significance of timing in the game, the online mode really suffers. Playing against users with a slower connection than yourselves highly damages the game play because of the glitchyness of the timing. Personally, though, this isn’t a game I’d get just to play online.

Overall, Skate 3 offers a unique gaming experience and is definitely a move in the right direction for the franchise. With enough tweaks, this game could easily become the king of the skateboarding game industry, and is definitely worth the benjamins to pick up a copy.



8/10