PAX 2012 Medal Of Honor: Warfighter Community Event

Before I get into the “meat & potatoes” of Medal Of Honor: Warfighter, and my experience with the game during the PAX 2012 Medal Of Honor: Warfighter Community Event…I should give you a little background intel about myself.

I am not just a fan of the Medal Of Honor franchise. I am a battle hardened veteran of almost every Medal Of Honor battle space” ever made available to me from the fine folks at Electronic Arts.

I was part of the team that destroyed “Railgun Greta” (I always thought that would be a great name for a band). I was there with the French Resistance, when they put a stop to the V-1 menace. I survived the horror of “Panzerknacker Unleashed“. I experienced the tragedy & triumph, of both D-Day & Pearl Harbor.

And of course, I was there when Mother, Preacher, Voodoo, & Dusty all said goodbye, to one of their own.

But enough about me, let’s talk about Medal Of Honor: Warfighter. I just thought that it was important for you to know as you read this, that the opinions expressed here, are not those of some casual gaming blog writer, or some detached industry media guy who could really care less about the game.

These are the opinions of a guy who knows this franchise, and has come to expect a certain something when he plays Medal Of Honor.

Flash forward to Seattle, Washington. The “Jet City“.  Friday, 31 August, 2012. Westin Hotel. 1900 hours.

20 or so Medal Of Honor community members fill the lobby, and you can feel the sheer anticipation pulsing throughout the room.

After signing in, we are finally led upstairs to a huge meeting room filled with food, fun, & fireteams.

As we started the gameplay portion of the evening I was instantly caught off guard, by just how good the game looks.

I play Battlefield 3, so I know what the Frostbite 2 can do. But you could immediately tell that Danger Close has a firm grasp on the engine’s real capabilities.

The second thing that I noticed was the sound design. It was even a topic later in the night, during a Q&A session with the DEV team.

The ambient audio in general is superb. But the gunfire in particular, is simply stunning. Each weapon has it’s own distinct sonic personality. You can almost “feel” the difference between weapons, based solely on how each one sounds.

With regard to the essentials, Warfighter’s basic gunplay and control interface, remain relatively unchanged from the game’s predecessor. All in all, to this point, I’m feeling pretty optimistic about everything I’ve experienced so far.

But, keep in mind that 2010’s Medal Of Honor was a hybrid endeavor. With Danger Close developing the Singleplayer mode (on a heavily modified version of the Unreal Engine 3), and DICE (EA Digital Illusions CE) developing the Multiplayer mode on the Frostbite 1.5 engine.

In fact, that may have been the only thing wrong with the 2010 iteration. You could tell that the two modes were somehow related, but were also distant cousins at best.

So, as I blazed my way into Warfighter’s Multiplayer mode, I was a bit apprehensive about what I might find.

However, I’m happy to report that I was pleasantly surprised to find that Danger Close had re-imagined the Multiplayer mode, and has aptly transplanted it’s DNA into the mode’s fabric.

Unlike 2010’s game, you can tell that Danger Close developed this mode. It didn’t seem like I was playing someone else’s version of Medal Of Honor. The HUD, and player icons were well thought out, and unique. I didn’t notice the usual visual clutter on the screen like you see in some shooters. And thanks to the technology of the Frostbite 2, player movement was smooth, and very natural.

The Spec Ops mode was interesting, though I rarely found myself using it. It gives you a very quick “IR” peek at your environment when you need to amp up your situational awareness a bit. Some players may complain about it, but as I mentioned, it’s not something you can “lean on” during the course of the game. It really is something that you’d only use if you find yourself in a “tight spot“.

There is also a “suppression” effect that occurs when you find yourself taking enemy fire. It’s similar to the Battlefield 3 suppression mechanic, but is toned down enough to distract & disorient you, more than it disables you. I like the execution of the effect overall, and I think most players will agree.

Other elements from the 2010 game make a return to Medal Of Honor: Warfighter. Offensive & Defensive Support Actions are back, and have been tweaked a bit.

They seem more useful and balanced, but must be used strategically in order to achieve any real results. I also love the way a player must think before he deploys one of these actions. For instance, if you launch a UAV (Unmanned Aerial Vehicle). Your player actually stops, and literally “launches” the UAV by hand. If you call in an A-10 “air strike”, your player must again stop, and actually “lase” the target for tasking. It makes the player vulnerable, which means you have to use discretion when deploying any of the support actions.

I also love the revised melee mechanic. At one point, I jumped off a raised position to engage an unsuspecting foe below, dispatching him with a well placed tomahawk. If I could have, I would have “high-fived” myself.

And although we only played on two maps during the event (Somalia & Sarejevo). It seemed like we played on 3 or 4 different maps, due in large part to the unique map design Danger Close implemented. Depending on which game mode we played, we’d find ourselves fighting on a different portion of the overall map.

Sarajevo, is set at the Kosovo Olympic Stadium. What was once a proud structure that represented something glorious, is now just a shell of rubble & untamed vegetation after years of civil unrest in the region.

I can’t put into words how dense, and cluttered the terrain is on this map. Be advised, there won’t be any “Run & Gun” here kids. To properly navigate this AO, you almost have to “move & shoot” the “Tier 1” way. I think the saying goes…”slow is steady, and steady is fast“.

A “bombed out” bobsled track snakes it’s way throughout most of the map, and provides hundreds of vantage points from which to engage the enemy. In addition to the many man-made structures that litter the map, rocky perches and natural terrain also provide players with a plethora of tactical options.

The three game modes we experienced were “Sector Control“, “Hot Spot“, and an e-sport game mode called “Homerun“.

SECTOR CONTROL-
This mode is exactly what is sounds like. It’s very similar to Battlefield 3‘s “Conquest” mode.
Players must capture & defend designated “nav points” on the map, to push the enemy back and ultimately control the AO.
It should also be noted that because of the nature of the game modes we played, the infantry combat is fierce at times, and will really test a team’s ability to work together & communicate. In other words…team work is essential.

HOT SPOT-
Next up is “Hot Spot“, my personal favorite of the three game modes we saw during the event.
In this mode, players are tasked with either planting or defusing a bomb that will destroy a designated tactical target if it isn’t defused in time. The cool thing is that you don’t choose where to plant the bomb if you’re attacking, HQ does. Similarly, players on the defending team will have 2 or 3 “potential” target sites to defend, but won’t know which site is actually being attacked, until the bomb is planted. It makes for a mad scramble at times. And the fire fights that ensue are epic to say the least.

HOMERUN-
Finally, we come to the “e-sport” game mode that was named by the Medal Of Honor community at-large. Homerun is a fast paced, no respawn, “Capture The Flag” game mode, that almost always comes down to a “last man standing” scenario. The fact that you only get one life per round (10 rounds in all), cranks up the stakes considerably, and was the only game mode that evoked cheers from the community players in the room. It sucked to die, but it was actually fun to watch the match unfold from the “dead lobby“.

Overall, I’m glad that Danger Close seems to understand the importance of innovation with regard to the Multiplayer mode. The Fireteam feature alone, proves that they are at least conscious about getting players to work together to achieve the objective.

But with that being said…there is one aspect of the Multiplayer mode that I’m concerned about.

Honestly, I’m still a little skeptical about the clan support options that we’ll see with Medal Of Honor: Warfighter. When asked about it, we were told that clan management would take place via Battlelog (like Battlefield 3). I firmly believe that developers have neglected the demographic of players who prefer a “team first” gaming experience. Most Multiplayer shooter titles today, seem to have forgotten those of us who want to be part of a team. A group of like minded gamers, who share a real collective identity. We want the ability to create and manage private matches, and to manage our clan down to the last shooter. We want the ability to achieve an actual online presence. But sadly, most titles focus on the individual. A players rank or KDR seem to be more important than the greater good of the team these days, which I think promotes a selfish “me first” type of dynamic. We’ll see how Danger Close chooses to handle this, but I’m not 100% sold on the idea of using Battlelog to manage my clan.

After all, most of us already have a “friends list“.

Regardless, I’ve got my fingers crossed. All I know is that for about six and half hours in Seattle, I was Tier 1. Danger Close has clearly found it’s identity, and has put it’s stamp on the franchise. And without question, I left Seattle with an excitement I haven’t felt in a while. Medal Of Honor: Warfighter seems to have everything a grizzled Medal Of Honor veteran like me would expect, or want.

We’ll find out soon enough if that’s enough to compete in a somewhat crowded genre/market. Medal Of Honor: Warfighter from Electronic Arts & Danger Close (PC, PS3, & Xbox) goes loud, on October 23rd.

Until then shooters. Watch those corners….and Stay frosty.

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Battlefield: 3 Faces Lawsuit Over Game Promotion…

Story by: CritiKiL
Electronic Arts is facing a class-action lawsuit over a recent Battlefield 3 promotion. Legal firm Edelson McGuire has filed a complaint against the studio on behalf of customers who were promised a free copy of Battlefield 1943 when they purchased the PS3 version of the game. EA later changed the terms of the promotion, announcing via Twitter that those who preordered Battlefield 3 on the Sony console would receive early access to DLC expansion packs instead. In the filing of the lawsuit, it alleges that EA “misled and profited from thousands of their customers by making a promise that they could not, and never intended, to keep.”

According to the lawyers, all that those signed up to the class action want out of EA is the free copy of 1943 that they were originally promised. The customers affected are said to only be seeking their free copy of Battlefield 1943, reports Kotaku.Battlefield 3 was released for Xbox 360, PS3 and PC in October. The game sold almost 2 million copies in its first month in the US alone. EA as of yet, has not responded to these allegations.

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So Far, Nothing Beats Battlefield: 3…

Story by: CritiKiL

The war for the military FPS game of the year has begun, and Battlefield 3 has fired the first shots.  The attention to detail and care that DICE has put into its Frostbite 2 engine shows (which is ‘also’ incorporated in NFS: The Run racing game!), and leaves gamers with a highly polished and addictive shooter.

In the campaign mode you’re in the shoes of Henry Blackburn, a Staff Sergeant in the United States Marine Corps who’s being interrogated and as he tells his side of the story, you play through ‘his’ events and end up playing as a few different characters watching the story unfold from their individual perspectives (much like the Call of Duty franchise). It is clear that DICE tried too hard to capture the Call of Duty audience, but overall it owns up to having it’s on individuality. That’s what Battlefield is all about though, watching tanks battle and etc. But there’s a scene  that’s a skydiving mission and that is Awesome.  The Co-Op mode is not bad either.

However, it is the Multiplayer mode which steals the Show! It reminds me of the Socom we used to love but now hate. Don’t miss it at all. The squad based combat encourages teamwork and coordination. We have the choice of four classes; Assault, Engineer, Recon, and Support. Each class has its own set of abilities that aid the team. The Assault class can drop med kits to heal your comrades, the Engineer can repair damaged vehicles, the Recon class can spot targets and mark them, and with Support you can replenish your teammates’ ammo.  There are also a variety of customization options for each class with dozens of primary weapons and secondary weapons to choose from, and camouflages to earn for your soldier. Unlocking new weapons, attachments, camouflage, vehicle upgrades are dependent on your performance and how well you work with your team. We’re just not awarded for kill, but assists help us unlock equipment and weapons. Unlocking new items to customize our character is the heart of the multiplayer, and these rewards will keep you coming back for more.

So, if you’re looking for a deep multiplayer experience where working as a team is encouraged, Battlefield 3 is the game you have waited for. The campaign mode is nice, but the multiplayer is so fun and addictive that you can easily overlook the campaign’s shortcoming. Battlefield 3 will have your attention for months on end with its sharp graphics, amazing sound effects and team-based multiplayer. DICE once again shows that it knows how to make an enjoyable multiplayer experience.

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Oh Yea ~ Battlefield: 3 Has ‘Jets’!

Story by: CritiKiL
Watch this intense 64-player vehicle warfare, which includes…”Jets”! The video below is from the beautiful Battlefield 3 multiplayer map Caspian Border and it also marks the premier of jet gameplay as played at GamesCom 2011. The map: Caspian Border, is a multi-faceted, vehicle heavy map that exemplifies classic Battlefield gameplay. Yes, ‘Jets’ are Back! Check the video out for yourselves, and leave us a comment on what you think!
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Battlefield: 3 ~ Return of the Dog Tag, Now even Better!

Story by: CritiKiL

Dog tags have always been a part of Battlefield, acting as a personal calling card for every soldier on the field, and these little emblems will be making a return this fall in Battlefield 3. After the launch of Battlefield 1942, the development team received physical dog tags from DICE as a token of appreciation. The team was so tickled by the gesture, they made sure dog tags have been a part of the in-game experience, becoming a part of the franchise since Battlefield 2142.

Your dog tag is your personal business card in Battlefield 3 – it’s what you dangle in front of an enemy you’ve taken down, and you can also collect the dog tags from your enemies as trophies, adding an extra bit of bragging rights to the festivities. “When we introduced dog tags in Battlefield 2142, we immediately knew we’d turned the knife duel into something new and very personal,” says Alan Kertz, Senior Multiplayer Designer at DICE. “Now players could have a record of their humiliation takedowns, and players were striving to protect their neck.”

With that in mind, DICE wanted to make sure dog tags in Battlefield 3 were even more personal, bringing an extra weight to them. You’ll be able to choose a design that goes with an in-game stat that gets tracked dynamically. “Dog tags in Battlefield 3 go beyond just having your name on them,” explains Kertz. “We have hundreds of dog tags that can be your personal calling card. Every time you kill an enemy, they see your tags. It’s your calling card – it’s your place to brag, and dynamic tags can show off how great you are with a knife, a jet, or even show off your personal play style.”

The only way to get a dog tag from your adversary is by performing one of the new, brutal knife takedowns. That not all – you’ll have to take out your target from behind. That’s right – you’ll have to employ some stealth and sneak up on your enemy and put them out of their misery before they realize you were even there, making for some well-deserved bragging rights. Now that these dog tags are highly customized for your own play style, it helps make things that much more personal, so the only way to gain one is to get the jump on your opponent. Yes, these dog tags may demand a bit more than usual to collect them, but that just makes it a greater insult when you take one from your foe.

These knife kills look amazing and provide a great new way to prove your prowess on the Battlefield, and thanks to the new ANT animation system, these takedowns add a dynamic visual flair. “ANT technology allows us to make the knife takedown a truly immersive part of the physical Battlefield,” Kertz adds. “Takedowns encourage players to get in there for stealth kills, and makes bringing a knife to a gun fight the risky but rewarding experience it was always meant to be.”

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Battlefield: 3 ~ Awesome New ‘Frostbite 2’ Engine Mechanics!

Story by: CritiKiL

The first thing I’d like to point out about this game is that, ‘No one is Safe‘: New Destruction engine allows you to blow holes in the walls where people will be hiding. As Commentors Sian Welby & Matt Cuttle (from Stockholm, Sweden) explain, The Frostbite 2 Dynamic Engine Animation System allows gameplay such as you’ve never seen ‘or heard’ before! (NOTE: Incidentally, the upcoming game ‘NFS: The Run’ encorporates this same engine!). Prepare to be amazed and drawn into realistic gameplay such as you’ve never experience at this level of Awesomeness. The video below shows Exclusive access to the heart of DICE, allowing us to check under the hood of Battlefield 3 by watching this special video and have a look at the brand new engine – Frostbite 2:

  • Revisit an old favourite from Battlefield 2 — Strike at Karkand and more with Niklas Fegreaus, Lead Designer on Back to Karkand and David Spinnier, one of the original map designers on Battlefield 2 as they talk to us about those maps and how they will evolve in Battlefield 3.
  • Lock and Load with Lead Weapons Designer, Alan Kertz as he discusses the Physical Warfare Pack and his weapon of choice.
  • Lars Gustavsson, Creative Director takes us through the evolution of Battlefield from the original concept drawings for Battlefield 1942 all the way to the upcoming Battlefield 3.
The key Pillars (or strengths) of this New Frostbite 2 Engine totally re-design how we see, hear and experience gameplay…from the ground up. It changes how we visualize, hear, experience and control the game! There are 5 basic principles which were focused on, in the re-animation of gameplay experience and they are:
  1. ANIMATION ~ a new level of FPS realism…
  2. DESTRUCTION ~ annihilate buildings, deminish cover…
  3. AUDIO ~ award-winning immersion and atmosphere…
  4. SCALE ~ huge detailed landscapes, dense urban areas…
  5. RENDERING ~ cinematic image quality, lighting and effects….

For more info, check out this link, but WATCH THIS AWESOME VIDEO First! (below):

http://www.ea.com/uk/battlefield3

 

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Battlefield 3 Looks Gorgeous, Multiplayer Beta Announced

Courtesy Game Informer / EA press conference
by Jeff Marchiafava on June 06, 2011 at 03:55 PM

 

At EA’s press conference, DICE showed off the superior power of Battlefield 3’s Frostbite engine, announced a window for the multiplayer beta, and took a jab at Activision’s Call Of Duty: Elite pay service.

After seeing the live demo for Battlefield 3, it’s no surprise that EA chose to end its press conference with DICE’s upcoming shooter. Before starting the demo, the DICE rep showed off some of the advancements of the Frostbite 2.0 engine. The improvements include better animation (which is particularly evident in player transitions), better destruction (the video showed teaser clips of entire buildings crumbling to pieces), a larger sense of scale, and improved rendering (I’m still not convinced that the smoke animations are being handled in real time; they’re gorgeous). Oh yeah, the audio is improved too, but DICE is already the king in the sound department, so that shouldn’t come as a surprise.

DICE also took the time to mention its new Battlelog initiative, a set of social and stat-tracking tools that will be available online to Battlefield 3 players. The DICE rep stated with a smile that all of Battlelog’s options, which include finding online opponents, managing friends lists, and following your stats and achievements in real time, will be available to players free of charge — a clear shot across the bow at Activision’s recently announced pay service, Call Of Duty: Elite. Whether the two services will truly be comparable remains to be seen, but DICE has always been generous with the amount of statistics it offers players.

As for the actual demo, most of it took place inside of a tank rolling across a desert that appeared to be larger than anything I’ve seen in a Battlefield game yet. Although the tank’s HUD will look familiar to Bad Company 2 players, the demo sold the sense of the player actually being inside of a tank: Several times the player transitioned between different cameras attached to the turret and an overhead drone, and looked on as another passenger loaded giant shells into the barrel. The demo ended in a shower of explosions, and it’s not an exaggeration to say that they were the prettiest explosions I’ve ever seen in a video game.

If you can’t wait to play the game for yourself, the demo also revealed that the multiplayer beta will be available across multiple platforms starting in September; the game is scheduled to be released on October 25. We’ll be bringing you more on Battlefield 3 when we get some hands-on time with the game later this week.

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