Battlefield 2: What do you think after playing the demo?

[bweir13]

This Demo is awesome. Keep in mind that I've never played BF1942 and come from a Joint Operations TR and Escalation squad. Most of our teammates are fairly impressed, and given the few bugs (not balance issues!) we could see, this game is going to be a ringer for teamplay and squad-based warfare. I can't see many lone-rangers getting very far, which is fine IMHO. The graphics are a 9 of 10. Set at High, on 1600x1200 res, I'm getting anywhere from 70-100 fps. My relevant specs are as follows:

P4 3.0 Ghz
1 Gb RAM
X800XT AIW
2x 36Gb Raptors in Raid 0

***Which means that you don't need to upgrage to a $2000 system to play the game at full res.

***Also, upgrading to Catalyst 5.6 seemed to eliminate (at least it appears to have,,,) the lockups from the server browser and login. Just make sure to update your video drivers, guys. And don't try to play with "integrated graphics" then complain about the visual quality or lack thereof.

 

[XamediX]

Quick comment on demos and so-called "public betas". Since these are using almost exclusively as marketing tools, it makes the most business sense to make these things as polished as humanly possible. ....

I've seen the bug reports in this thread and elsewhere, but more disturbing to me are the posts of "Well, remember when BF1942 came out?" and "It is just a demo remember". It's totally sad to see gamers just brainwashed into accepting mediocre product. As a consumer you should expect the game to be right when it hits shelves, and not a year or two later when the patches finally get it right.

That being said, if there are this many problems with a simple demo I'd be really worried about the final product which according to almost any quality assurance extrapolation techniques would show there are many, many problems in the final version. I'd stay away from BF2 until there are some assurances that these problems are fixed.

AMEN. you hyped up !!!!!!s are talking real crazy. This is DICE"s 3rd try at making the same game again! Same meaning.... more or less the same game. It should NOT be ok for them release a buggy ass demo like this. My system doesnt run well at all with this and even restarts my pc. Thats unacceptable. cs:source in beta form(haha it still is) ran better than this. No way should i hear someone say jus wait for the patches before the game even releases. Thats pathetic, IMHO.

I was hyped to play this game too cause i never played 1942 but i played alot of BF:V and loved it. After hearing so many people say how much bf:v sucked i REALLY got hyped to play BF2. But After spending hours to tweak my system and install this driver and tweak that setting... my pc restarted when i finally got fast framerates. i'm def not buying this game.

SYSTEM: XP3000+, 1gig PC3200, Audigy Gamer, 6800NU(77.30), DX9.0c

POSITIVE:
The 77.30 drivers that came with it makes CS:S run about 10% faster. THNX!
Forced me to get GTA: SA, GREAT GAME!

Why does everyone hate on CS:S?

 

[Bo_Bice]

Why does everyone hate on CS:S?

there are only 2 reasons to hate CS. 1. because its popular and people think its cool to be different and 2 because people get schooled at it.

But about the demo, I think its all that and a bag of chips. no huge bugs I've found except some issues with controls, and the server browser.

 

[Tricky]

Ya, most people don't like CS because it takes actual skill to play. You can't just start up and be A+ #1 Fantastic!

As for the demo, I really liked it. I liked it alot more than Desert Combat but then again I never really got into DC....only played it at LAN parties.

Anyone else having joystick problems? It seems the demo doesn't see mine because no where in the configuration screen do I see where to set it. Odd thing is a buddy of mine has the same exact joystick (MS Sidewinder Precision 2) and his works just fine. Maybe I missed a checkbox or something to turn it on. *shrug*

 

[jgoewert]

I was going to come in and lambast Dice for allowing a maximum resolution of 1152x860 or something strange like that, barely above 1024x768 75Hz. Especially since I run on an LCD that is native at 1280x1024 60Hz.

Though now that I've seen people run it at higher resolutions and a few people with the same problem as me, it fixes one of the biggest "flaws" in the game.

I've seen other people ask the same question, but how the heck do you set the resolution? I'm guessing I'm going to have to go configuration file diving when I get home to fix mine.

nVidia 6800 GT w/ drivers included with Demo -> DVI Out -> 1280x1024 60Ghz Native LCD

 

[Lord Talibano]

It's amazing.
It has game of the year written all over it.
I'd say 70% of the ppl that are BF fans in these forums but are saying they don't like it is cause this game puts a beating on their hardware.

 

[JayD]

It's amazing.
It has game of the year written all over it.
I'd say 70% of the ppl that are BF fans in these forums but are saying they don't like it is cause this game puts a beating on their hardware.

Agreed.

 

[arentol]

I really enjoyed playing the game this weekend.

One thing I noticed was that the larger servers (32+) with no time limits made it VERY hard for one individual to have a serious impact on the game (unlike BF42 where, on many maps, one person doing the right thing at the right time could usually decide the entire game). However, what I did find was that 1 SQUAD could have a huge impact, especially when getting good orders from the commander. Obviously this may be different if everyone starts using squads effectively, but for now I guarantee that on almost any public server if one side forms up multiple squads and the commander gives them good orders that side will never lose.

I also noticed the timelimit, on all size maps, made it much easier for one person to decide the game. For instance, on a full 32 player game, which I joined 2 minutes into the game, I alone managed to take 2 of the USMC's 3 points in a row (killing 8 guys in the process) and helped get the 3rd (some people on my side ended up taking it shortly after I died). Since we were spread so thin the points weren't being reinforced very well and we probably would have lost them soon enough, but by the time we lost control of just one the game was already almost over, and the USMC had lost a ton of tickets so we easily won.

I think the impact of the squad play has yet to be truly seen. I really think it will change the game alot in comparison to the older BF games, and once everyone starts exploiting it properly the game will take on entirely new dimensions...

Imagine if you had 32 players on your side grouped up in 4 squads of 6 as well as a commander, some pilots, a sniper, and a special forces sabateur (who would all solo/duo).

You could have 1 squad using a tank and APC to take a point (at the commanders direction), all loaded up inside.... When they engage armor the AT guy could jump out of the APC and you would have 3 people shooting the enemy armor at one time.... Instant kill. Then they hop back in and roll on to the command point and take over and repair vehicles and hold (assisting other squads if needed though since they are very mobile).

You could then have a full squad load up in a helicopter and parachute into another command point and then have an attack helicopter team support them against armor and air attacks.

Then you could have 2 more squads in the remaining vehicles guarding your original command points, and maybe even running specific patrol routes to ensure no one breaks through to your back-lines.

Meanwhile the sniper would get to high ground where he could help with 2 points at once and cover them both. The special forces guy would try to destroy the enemies artillery, and the pilots would keep the enemies air forces in check.

What is currently happening is a hodge-podge of the above, with one or two squads actually working together and kicking ass, while a bunch of individuals run around soloing and (usually) not accomplishing much. I think even on non-team servers squads will come into play big-time once the game goes live and a higher percentage of people are aware of them. Then it will become a pretty fascinating game I think.

 

[NIVO]

I know the keymapping issues are already being talked about, but I have to chime in on this. Until this issue is resolved for input and having all your functions set properly the way YOU want/need them, everything else is trivial. Gameplay is #1, and if you cant move right, who cares how pretty it is. I have never played using the default W S A D, remapping for every game I ve ever played. I personally will refrain from buying the game until I see what others say of the retail, if patches come quickly, etc etc. It also couldnt hurt to implement a bug fix patch for the demo, as many demos in the past have released fixes. We would all be much more appreciative I beleive, if we could play it like it was meant to be played.

 

[JayD]

... if we could play it like it was meant to be played.

Did I hear an nVidia plug in there?

 

[s10010001]

if we could play it like it was meant to be played.

no pun intended right?

 

[[LYL]Homer]

Where the hell is the 1680x1050 support!

 

[weebling1]

lovin it

Iron sites, squad grouping, alt. weapons, single/auto fire select (easy to out gun-fight autos at range and often close-in )


bad side:
noob squads, noob commanders, Voip is tinny at best (but just use TSorVent) NERFED snipers (please! one hit from a Barrett DOESNT drop ya? the good side of that is you can snipe the sniper w/ your std issue weapon)
and SHADOWS wtf? are there 3 suns spinning in the sky???

noted bug:
west beach flag was taken, had our flag on the pole, but showed opponents icon in HUD and MINI : /

Tricky "Anyone else having joystick problems?":
did you try in the 'options' 'controls' area mapping each aspect in the secondary slot?
the game doesnt see anything natively, ya gotta TELL it what ya want
(and note RIGHT first, then LEFT _/me flys into ground again DOH!)


cya in game {pdX}snoh

 

[ranger0900]

Where the hell is the 1680x1050 support!

yea!! Will someone please explain to me how you guys are playing at 1900x1600...bc I am sure not able to ?!?!? tried the whole change the target on the exe. trick and it didn't work.

HOW DO I GET HIGH RES??

 

[[Tripod]MajorPayne]

To force it to a custom resolution, go into your target line of the SHORTCUT on your desktop and edit it to say:

"E:\Program Files\EA GAMES\Battlefield 2 Demo\BF2.exe" +menu 1 +fullscreen 1 +szx 1280 +szy 1024

(I put mine on 1280x1024 because that's my LCD's native resolution, but just replace the 1280 and the 1024 with whatever numbers you want to run, and click Apply. Should be good to go.

EDIT: Oh...wait...I see you tried that. Shame on me for not reading well enough....

I don't know what to tell you. Perhaps you're using a funny resolution that it doesn't like. You can always try it with a more standard resolution (1280x1024, 1600x1200, etc...) and see if it works, and make sure that if you're an Nvidia man that you have the drivers that come with the demo installed. I think the catalyst 5.1s (???) are the drivers for ATI cards that are best, but I'm not 100% on that one. Ask around.

 

[Sheldog23]

I use the tweak above for my LCD at 1280x1024 using the 5.6's on an x800pro and it plays great so far.

I think the impact of the squad play has yet to be truly seen. I really think it will change the game alot in comparison to the older BF games, and once everyone starts exploiting it properly the game will take on entirely new dimensions...

Imagine if you had 32 players on your side grouped up in 4 squads of 6 as well as a commander, some pilots, a sniper, and a special forces sabateur (who would all solo/duo)...

What is currently happening is a hodge-podge of the above, with one or two squads actually working together and kicking ass, while a bunch of individuals run around soloing and (usually) not accomplishing much....

Well said. I have been playing this game pretty much hodge podging it myself and just now seeing people effectivly use the commander and sqaud functions. I think once people understand and use them it will totally change the game. I myself didn't even know they existed till I saw it happening. A manual or something telling noobs (myself included) how to utilize these features will be very helpful.

 

[s10010001]

im sure CLANs will use it pretty well..

At DREAMLAN were forming, the DreamCompany, I know we are allready useing the squads like mad, they work great. And DREAMLAN-Master has been a bad dude with the commander mode and his atrillery...

 

[ranger0900]

thanks... finally got the hi-res to work

typo was casuing it not to work.

One thing I have noticed is the lack of use of the Microphone, except by clans. Which leads me to conclude that the clan warefare is going to be awesome!

 

[Some Llama]

Why does everyone hate on CS:S?

because they took a perfectly balanced game, messed up the hitboxes, introduced new bugs, make you pay for it, and completely disabled all anti-cheat efforts.

 

[QuakerOatz]

I'm completely addicted to this demo and think from a single map demo, it will easily outrank BF42 and BFV as a full game.

Alos the fact that I can run at 1024 with high settings on my old 9800 pro makes me want to kiss a Swede.

Thanks Dice!

PS: Will be upgrading video card as soon as next gen comes out and the Radeon 850 prices drop.

Any tips on an upgrade from the 9800 pro? I'm considering either a 800xl or a 6800gt. The 800xl seems cheaper and faster, is this the case?

 

[legcramp]

well, the Xl is cheaper on the pci-E platform, but not faster, as in faster at everything...the 6800gt would be better for BF2 anyways..and overall better... but if this is a pci-e platform..x800XL all the way...but since ur on agp...the 6800gt would be better for the money..since the XL cost literally the same as the GT.. but anyways..no more of this... back to the great game!!

 

[Booby McNipples]

Why does everyone hate on CS:S?

Because it's a stupid game and only dum-dums play it.


....and I'm totally kidding! I don't play much CS:S because I've been completely addicted to DC (I really enjoy the aircraft and vehicles) for the last 2 years but when I do play I usually have a lot of fun.

 

[trickedoutwizard]

There actually was a game before 1942 that emphasized this kind of strategic first person total air and ground war, Starsiege: Tribes, but developer and coporate mismanagement ruined it. Man, what I wouldn't give for a new tribes that didn't suck:/

This demo is good, I don't like feeling like I have to lead every shot but I guess i'm just used to diff types of games.

 

[Forgiven]

It would have been better if I could change controls easier

 

[emiii0]

The only complaints I have relate to the server window. Maybe it's because it's only the demo but you can't add favorites and there is no way to find out what server you are playing on if you forget. Also, the server screen is a bit laggy for me.

 

[jenkins]

I think this game might show some promise...

If I could get the damn thing to work. I'm part of the infamous "crash-to-desktop club." I spent an hour and a half last night trying to get it to work, got new drivers, read a ton of forums looking for answers, tried another set of drivers etc....

My Rig:
Intel D925XCV
Intel 550 3.4
(2) 512 DDR2 533
36gb Raptor
160 gb WD SATA
Vanilla X800XL 256mb

Pretty standard stuff. The only curve ball is the XL, but they should have addressed that already.

 

[jhego]

There actually was a game before 1942 that emphasized this kind of strategic first person total air and ground war, Starsiege: Tribes, but developer and coporate mismanagement ruined it. Man, what I wouldn't give for a new tribes that didn't suck:/

This demo is good, I don't like feeling like I have to lead every shot but I guess i'm just used to diff types of games.

Don't forget Urban Assault.

 

[Sedriss]

When will people realize that this is NOT and i repeat NOT DC. I get tired of seeing "ooo this isnt DC, this doesnt play like DC". Not shit! Its not supposed to be DC 2. My god.

 

[cgrant26]

You choice of poll options are very poor. There's no "it's pretty good, but needs some work" option.

+1

 

[XamediX]

It's amazing.
It has game of the year written all over it.
I'd say 70% of the ppl that are BF fans in these forums but are saying they don't like it is cause this game puts a beating on their hardware.

haha thats exactly the reason why. thanks for listening. if this fbcker could work than i would love to see how it actually plays. I been droolin over this game for awhile.

 

[SuddenDemise]

I think its pretty bad ass..Although it does like previously mentioned beat the shit out of your hardware...I have to play Medium/Low settings with PC in my sig.....But all in all its a bad ass game, I love sniping in this game..Its the most realistic since Americas Army IMO....

BTW CS:S is bad ass as well.....

 

[JEEVES/whohasmyname?]

First night I played it I realy did not like it. There was nothing all the great about it cept for the graphics. But the more I played it the more fun it got. I have found that it is only fun when you are in a squad with people that are actualy wanting to work together. With great comunication between your squad you can actualy play the game on more of a tactical level aposed to the classic rambo'esq play that all other mp games seem to suffer from. And the more I play the more of the little things I notice, my favorite is when a tank fires its main gun near you, you get hit by a concusion wave. I think with the full release this could be a great game.

Yes this game beats my computer like a 2 dollar whore, and it wont even play on my spare computer (P4b 2.4, 1gig ram, gforce 4 ti4600). I guess I will be upgrading my video card to hand down my 9600xt to spare computer. I think we all knew this game would be stretching it to play on older hardware. But when you look at all the next gen games, it seems that upgrading will be ineviatble.

JEEVES

 

[TrueBuckeye]

Yeah, I was getting orders too, and I'd hit page up to accept, but had no clue where "attack this position" was, or "we need reinforcements", because the map is just a bunch of colored dots.

You should see a purple line on the mini-map which leads to your target. An icon will show you what you need to do there (purple shield means defend, etc).

Also, what does the purple smoke indicate?

Your target, see above

What does a UAV do? I know it's like radar.

The commander can send this out and it will show all enemies (other than spec forces) in an area for his entire team to see. This remote recon is excellent to set up as your forces are about to storm a cp.

As commander, it's difficult to know where to drop arty because you only see your guys represented on the radar as far as I can tell.

Use the UAV, Scan, or zoom feature from the command map (Caps Lock, by default) to see where the enemies are, then drop arty. Be sure to account for the near 8 second delay or you will drop them on your own troops heads. That leads to muntiny.

Oh yeah, and after you shoot a guy, do you have to go finish him off on the ground, or you'll get less points, or no kill? Or does that happen only if one of his medics actually come and fix him?

You get kill credit the moment he hits the ground. If a medic revives him, then it is just a quick local spawn. It has no effect on your kill credit.

Some experts chime in now please.

I'm no expert, but I hope it'll do.

 

[weebling1]

"The only complaints I have relate to the server window. Maybe it's because it's only the demo but you can't add favorites and there is no way to find out what server you are playing on if you forget. Also, the server screen is a bit laggy for me."

Didnt BF:V retail release the same way? I wonder if EA will ever learn

 

[ScootCo]

This even ran great on my laptop! (3400+ w/ ATI Mobility Radeon)

Had some control issues at home, but those can be worked out.

I'm not one for wargames, usually, but I think I'm going to have to get this and play with some peeps. My usual addiction is MMORPGs, but this looks like it'll be a ton of fun.

"I need a team!"

 

[Torgo]

Fifty Cent Review: My initial impression was that it seemed that it was a total conversion of BF1942. Don't get me wrong, because I loved BF1942. This updated version left me wanting somehow. I played last night on some local beefy 64 player maps. Granted, this stresses the server and the client, but I wanted a good test to show me what the program could do.

Graphically, it does look nice, but when the action heated up, the lag was really noticable. Being around a building seemed to make it worse. Performance shouldn't have been that bad. The shadows and interiors were blocky, misshapen and entirely too dark. It's better on High, but on Medium it was just... ick.

I happened to play MEC almost entirely last night and I swear I want to never hear Arabic again. Yeah, I know that they wanted to go for realism. We did the same thing in Age of Empires 2 where every civilization spoke their native language. However, we did it in a context of "Yeah, you clicked on me?" and "Okay, command understood." In BF2 it's just noise. Noise that makes me want to shove a pencil in each ear and just keep on shoving until the pain stops.

The difference is that I'm not causing these noises and they have absolutely no context to them. I'd much rather have a voice saying "Enemy spotted" while I'm looking down my sniper scope (so I don't have to read the on screen message) rather than learn Arabic to understand what "Akkkkbach (spit) strrenfrcccckkk hocch (gargle) unnnbarchhh" means.

Putting that aside, I did have fun playing once I turned off my speakers. I just don't see a leap forward with this release.

 

[kpedge]

I happened to play MEC almost entirely last night and I swear I want to never hear Arabic again. Yeah, I know that they wanted to go for realism. We did the same thing in Age of Empires 2 where every civilization spoke their native language. However, we did it in a context of "Yeah, you clicked on me?" and "Okay, command understood." In BF2 it's just noise. Noise that makes me want to shove a pencil in each ear and just keep on shoving until the pain stops.

You can change it to all english in sound options- that'll save wear and tear on your pencils.

 

[Ludic]

I happened to play MEC almost entirely last night and I swear I want to never hear Arabic again. Yeah, I know that they wanted to go for realism. We did the same thing in Age of Empires 2 where every civilization spoke their native language. However, we did it in a context of "Yeah, you clicked on me?" and "Okay, command understood." In BF2 it's just noise. Noise that makes me want to shove a pencil in each ear and just keep on shoving until the pain stops.

The difference is that I'm not causing these noises and they have absolutely no context to them. I'd much rather have a voice saying "Enemy spotted" while I'm looking down my sniper scope (so I don't have to read the on screen message) rather than learn Arabic to understand what "Akkkkbach (spit) strrenfrcccckkk hocch (gargle) unnnbarchhh" means.

There is an option that makes all of those voices English, even for MEC. Same as there was in 1942.

 

[Torgo]

You can change it to all english in sound options- that'll save wear and tear on your pencils.

I learned that just as I disconnected and was updating my settings. I might have spotted it sooner if the GUI wasn't so cluttered. The in-game UI isn't so bad, but the Main Menu is a nightmare. I wish the sound was all English by default. I like the idea of realism and accuracy (and it'll save money later for localizations) but fun always has to prevail.

 

[UnlimitedMP]

The sniper scope disappoints me that it only has one mode/cannot adjust it. It doesn't seem very far reaching.