The highly anticipated new installation of Battlefield has been released, and there is a lot to say. Designed as a sequel to its 2011 predecessor, Battlefield 4 is set six years after Battlefield 3 during the fictional “war of 2020.”

Developed by DICE and published by Electronic Arts [EA], Battlefield 4 boasts of an improved graphic experience over its predecessor. Built on the Frostbite 3 engine, the game is available for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4.

The Gameplay Is Still Lacking

Your character is a U.S Mariner Corp leader Sgt. Daniel “Reck” Recker, of the squat “Tombstone.” You and your team are stuck in Azerbaijan and have vital intelligence about China. Battlefield 4 comes with really great map designs, which help you take advantage of the world around you.

A significant change for Battlefield 4 is how the players have to adapt to rapidly changing environmental factors. The city’s flooding and the disintegration of hotels impact gameplay and force the 32 players to switch the missions, ruining a campaign. This was an attempt by the developers to add an unpredictable nature to the game, but it doesn’t always work.

Multiplayer Still Rules After 3 Years

In my review of Battlefield 3, I could not stop raving about the game’s multiplayer mode. A few years later, that is still the best part of the game. It has been expanded to contain three locations: the United States, China, and Russia. PC, PS 4, and Xbox One support 64 player matches, while PS 3 and Xbox 360 can only accommodate 24 players.

Multiplayer mode counters the sometimes lackluster your combat platoon has in battle. You have to give the AI soldiers instructions on your team, and they still don’t perform optimally. However, in multiplayer mode, you know that everyone is ready to take action, and your enemies are not joking either. The four kits are back with minor upgrades.

Re-Introducing Commander Mode

I could not believe my eyes when I saw the commander mode back in Battlefield 4. A staple in Battlefield 2142, commander mode used to be a boring option because it did not have the excitement of actual combat. But this has been improved, making it rewarding.

Commander Mode is the strategy component of Battlefield, where a player from each team gets to view the entire map and give orders to the team on the ground. You deploy vehicles, supply weapons, and order missile strikes on specific targets as a commander. For avid players of COD, whenever you request a drone strike, the people who respond are the players in Commander Mode.

There is also a spectator mode where players can participate passively in the strategy room. Spectators also have access to a camera which gives them a view of the map. I enjoyed this mode because it is quite uncommon.

Immersive Graphics Consistent With Battlefield 3

Built on the backbone of Battlefield 3, the graphics in this game are as immersive and stimulating as expected. You can count on smooth and reliable graphics for any combat mode. There were certain anomalies with the destruction of buildings as they did not look realistic enough.

Battlefield 4 depends on a color scheme to identify players on the battlefront. One of the best features of Battlefield 4 is the option for color blind players to change the on-screen indicators. They can select between tritanomaly, deuteranomaly, and protanomaly to aid their gaming experience, which is cool.

Great Sound Track As Usual

There is no significant change in the soundtrack of Battlefield 4 and its predecessor. It still goes quiet during times of intense fighting, so you can get clear order and give intense music during a chase. The weapons sound as realistic as possible, and the cars have a 360-audio experience.

The one thing that stood out for me was the sound effect in extreme situations like tsunamis or building destructions. The sound design for these maps elevated the sense of scale and urgency. The audio experience worked perfectly with the visuals.

Impressive Weapons Upgrade

In my review of Battlefield 3, I spent a while breaking down the weapons customization because it was amazing. Now that ‘war chest’ has been expanded with more customizable features. As the occasion deserves, you can now switch most weapons between semi-automatic and automatic fire. This seemingly minor change subtly impacts the gameplay. You are allowed to customize your primary and secondary melee weapons with camouflage skins.

When swimming, you can fire your sidearm and other staple features of the game, such as unlimited sprinting, prone, and vaulting. The vehicles in Battlefield have received a major boost, such as new ZFB-05 armored cars, a Z-10W attack helicopter, and DV-15 Interceptor attack boats for aquatic assault. The jets have been rebalanced and come in two options: ‘ attack’ and ‘stealth.’ Attack jets are used for ground-to-air combat, while stealth jets handle air-to-air combat.

New Interesting Downloadable Content

After the game was released, DICE LA released five downloadable contents with new maps and gameplay. It was available to only premium customers before becoming available to the general public. They include ‘China Rising,’ which included four new maps, ten new assignments, new vehicles, and Air Superiority gameplay. ‘Second Assault’ brings back four beloved maps and includes a Capture the Flag game type.

Naval Strike takes place in four new locations in the South China Sea and includes a new “Carrier Assault mode.” “Dragon’s teeth” also includes four new maps, 11 new assignments, and an assault drone which I enjoyed using. The last pack, named “Final Stand,” acted as a sequel to the in-game war of 2020 and came with four new maps, new weapons, and a hovercraft tank.

The Game Is Buggy

Having played Battlefield 4 on multiple platforms, the game is more buggy than expected, riddled with technical bugs and glitches that sometimes result in crashes. Although the developers have released patches, the user experience has not improved.

Battlefield 4 is altogether a good game. Built on the DNA of Battlefield 1842 and the destruction allure of Battlefield: Bad Company, it brings back commander mode and binds it with the graphics of Battlefield 3. The launch issues aside, DICE was trying to integrate too many parts of previous games to create a new one. This may explain the many bugs and glitches.