Looking for a modern FPS that's a bit different? An old fan of the battlefield series? Maybe you're just tired of Call of Duty? I think Bad Company 2 might be what you want.

Shakedown:

One of my favorite games to date, here let me explain why. As a fan of the Battlefield series I was pretty interested in it before it was released. When I first got a copy I played through the relatively short and easy story, I was more surprised and pleased with the finer points of the game than the actual story, which as far as stories go wasn't very memorable. I never expected it to be, for as any Battlefield fan would know it's the online multiplayer that had promise. But alas, shortly after completing the story and attempting to join the online ranks I ran into multiple problems. Well, one in particular, I couldn't play because all I got was white screen when I tried to load a match. After a while of trying to fix it I gave up, highly disappointed in EA's game support. It took them over two months to fix that specific problem, which I found pretty annoying. Once I got online though I haven't looked back, well, except for maybe a tiny whine at EA's support problems. I'd even go so far as to say the best online game I've played, and that's on top of Halo 3 and both Modern Warfares.

Online modes:

It has brilliant game-play modes, as limited as they are. I especially like the way they promote teamwork in some of them. It's always great to work together with a bunch of guys.

• Rush - One team defends objectives(M-Com stations) and one destroys, attackers have limited respawns and defenders have limited objectives.
• Squad Rush - Rush rules, but this time it's only two squads on the battlefield, and two M-Coms. This mode can be great for teamwork, but is generally quieter as there's less contact and more sneaking around.
• Conquest - Like capture the flag, but with more flags. Killing enemy guys reduces enemy tickets, holding more flags than them drains their tickets too. First one to no tickets looses, a classic Battlefield mode.
• Squad Deathmatch - Kill based mode involving up to 4 squads, first squad to 50 kills wins the game. Only one Vehicle on the map in this mode, more of an infantry game.

Note: There is another game mode called "Onslaught", where a squad of up to four players faces an onslaught of enemy AI soldiers. This game mode is only available on console versions of the game(Xbox 360, PS3).

Player Classes:

On to the classes aspect. Well, there's only four classes, but I guess they've crammed more into each one. Don't be surprised when you don't see a "Heavy Weapons" class or what-not. Here's what to expect.

• Assault - Do you like going for enemies or objectives and not really worrying yourself with much else? Then this is the class for you. Specializes in assault rifles of which most can equip an attachment like grenade or smoke launchers. Also the class that carries around ammo to throw at teammates whenever you remember you have it.
• Engineer - Well, this class does what you're thinking it does. Goes around fixing vehicles with a magic drill when it's not busy with shooting rocket launchers or laying mines. Specializes in silenced light weapons and anti-vehicle stuff.
• Medic - The guys that keep the other guys in the fight with medpacks and defibrillators that can heal you even if a tank shot you in the face. Surprisingly these are also the heavy weapons guys specializing in light machine guns.
• Recon - Basically the sniper class, specializing in high-powered rifles and getting around in cool yowie suits. Be warned, people who use this class tend to go find very remote out of sight spots on the map and spend half the round killing you when you think you're safe.

Opinion:

Overall there should be plenty there to keep you happy, and if there's not you could always check out the large amount of class-wide unlockables such as shotguns, pistols, and vehicles perks. You can even unlock a special gun by having a previous Battlefield game on your computer. With a limit of 50 ranks which I believe are based off the real army there's lots to unlock, I'm still not even half way to the top.

I also think the vehicles deserve a mention. One of the great things about Bad Company 2 is the great incorporation of vehicles. They aren't overly dominating over the infantry side of things, with many ways to kill them, but they can still be powerful to use if you do it right. Not to mention the amazing effects; tank fights, helicopters swooping over, even when they blow up it's brilliant. It's really a step up from the infantry only games.

The community is also a factor. With games such as Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, there is a lot of young kids with annoying voices and microphones ruining your day and letting your team down. Bad Company 2 has a much more mature fanbase, and as a result your games will be better. Not saying there isn't bad, immature players on it, just saying you don't have to look far for people worth playing with.

Closing:

My Bad Company 2 soldier is called "Custard7A", say hi if you see me! Thanks for reading.