Battlefield 1
- Oct 30, 2016
- 9 min read
After what has felt like an entire generation of first-person shooters being based exclusively in modern and futuristic settings, Battlefield 1 takes us back to the time when World War-themed shooters were the standard. It feels fresh, and stands firm in the face of its competition. A short and sweet campaign that feels close and personal, and a range of multiplayer modes that lovers of this genre can sink their teeth into make Battlefield 1 one of the best shooters of 2016.
Return to the Great War
Battlefield 1 brings gamers back to the heat of the action of World War 1, and does so fantastically. The campaigns of first-person shooters are often criticised for being shallow, and developers of games within these genres are often accused of putting multiplayer above of all else (Call of Duty), or even forgoing a single-player campaign altogether (the original Titanfall).
It seems like EA understand now that gamers are still happy to see a single-player mode as part of first-person shooters, even if it is a case of coming for the campaign, staying for the multiplayer. Battlefield 1's campaign surprised me. It surprised me very much.
The single-player mode is split into 5 'War Stories.' Each War Story focuses on a different set of characters, in different locations to one-another, and also seems to focus on one particular gameplay mechanic. For example, the first War Story focuses on tank combat, whereas the second's main focus was aerial encounters. Because each one is completely independent from the others, it feels like a generous checkpoint system, like a book with short chapters. They're not long, either, with the shortest one taking roughly 45 minutes to complete, and the longer ones about an hour and a half. And because each one focuses on a different mechanic, they almost feel like tutorials, too. The campaign was short and sweet; there wasn't so much I felt bogged down, nor was their so little I wanted more. It was, in my opinion, the perfect length.
The characters feel like they've been written, not just picked from a book of clichés. With backgrounds and stories that tell the horrors of war through their words, I began to really empathise with them. I'm a fan of history. I love reading and watching documentaries about all sorts of historical themes, with war being one of my biggest interests. At times, playing through Battlefield 1 felt similar to watching somebody recount the nightmares that they personally faced. It's true that it's only at times, but I can honestly say I've never been more interested in the story (or stories in this case) of a world war-themed first-person shooter.
The Draw of War
Beginning the first War Story, which focuses on tank combat, as previously mentioned, I was bored within the first two chapters. For me, tank combat, with its sluggish movement and periodically awkward manoeuvring, bored me. I was worried that the rest of the campaign was going to be equally as dull, but I was pleasantly surprised - and then some.
Halfway through the first story, you're out of the tank, tasked with infiltrating a nearby village to obtain some sparkplugs. It's up to you if you want to run in, shoot everyone and run back out, sparkplugs in tow, but there's another way: a way which I found far more exciting. Sneaking over to a nearby windmill, I climbed to the top, found a (conveniently placed) sniper rifle and began to pick off my enemies. So glad was I to be out of the tank that it was such a shame when that chapter ended, and I was stuffed back in.
But from there on out, the campaign glowed. It was fantastic. Aerial combat in particular is amazing, and quickly became my favourite, just as it did in DICE's release of last year, Star Wars: Battlefront. Flying through the air, blasting the woodwork of my enemies' planes away, swerving past missiles, and even taking down a zeppelin make the aerial combat so thrilling. In fact, the entirety of the second War Story is brilliant. And the third - and fourth - and fifth!
Minus the groggy tank warfare in the first War Story, the campaign overall is spectacular. And to make it even better are the graphics and excellent sound design.
Running on the highly impressive Frostbite engine, Battlefield 1 is as close as you're going to get to photo-realistic graphics (at least on consoles). Without a doubt some of the finest scenery and particle effects in recent games. The bright burn of an orange glow as a zeppelin crashes into the town below, or the eruption of earth and dirt as a grenade creates a crater, the work done by the environment artists is applauded.
The sound design is also impressive. When you're lucky enough for a bullet to miss you, you can really hear the crunch and crack as it enters the wall or wooden barrier behind you. The zipping sound of a bullet ripping through the air as machine gun fire tears through flesh gives you a (weirdly) satisfying feeling. The boom of a grenade as it flushes out a room of rivals, sometimes even taking some of the wall with it, is the reason specialist headsets were made - you've got to hear that in the best possible quality.
We Fight Side-By-Side
As with the vast majority of modern, AAA first-person shooters, multiplayer is of huge importance, and Battlefield 1's is almost perfect.
If I'm honest, I'm more of a single-player gamer. I don't really play online very often, and when I do, it's incredibly rare that I'll play a competitive game. I far prefer playing alongside people, my friends, for instance, than facing off against an online stranger, or strangers. It's just my preference.
Battlefield 1's multiplayer is something I did somewhat enjoy, however. There are a number of modes to play through, with even more being added in the future, so it's going to be hard to find something that doesn't interest you at all.
As always, it's the large-scale warfare that people come to Battlefield for. Giant maps housing up to 64 players as they fight for supremacy, be it with tanks, aeroplanes, boats, or simply on-foot. There are three modes that revolve around this idea, only slightly differing from one-another: Conquest, Operations and Domination, though the latter one is capped at 32 players.
In Conquest you'll be fighting for control of key objectives. But just when you think your team is about to win, a Behemoth, a massive, seemingly indestructible vehicle will appear to help close the gap. The type of Behemoth that appears will differ depending on the map. One map may bring in a giant zeppelin, whereas another will introduce the train, whilst yet another with sail in a giant warship. Bringing down the large zeppelin was a sight to see. As it plunged into the streets below, buildings, cars, and players, too, were wiped out with it.
Domination is a smaller, yet more focused, version of Conquest. Being capped at 32 players rather than 64 means that it becomes more about strategic objectives rather than all-out warfare. This is the mode to play if you want something more to do than wipe out the enemy, but you don't necessarily want to play a specifically objective-based mode, like some of the later types.
Operations is the game mode for people that have time to kill - and I don't mean just 10 or 15 minutes. I'm talking an hour, more than an hour. Operations is similar in scale to Conquest, offering accommodation for up to 64 players, but differs slightly in its objectives. As an Attacker, your task is to storm the enemy defensive positions using everything at your disposal - horses, cars, tanks, boats, planes, a huge array of weapons - with the intention of capturing all sectors: at which point the Attackers have won. As a Defender, your job will be to lay waste to the Attackers until enough of their battalion has been killed off.
What I really enjoyed about Operations is the fact that losing a sector doesn't mean the team has lost. And even if it does begin to look like the enemy team has the upper-hand, Behemoths are once again present to help turn the tide of war.
Besides the large-scale warfare modes of Conquest, Domination and Operations, there are other modes which are more objective-focused.
Rush is a mode that I found interesting, but nowhere near as enjoyable as any of the others once I had played them all. Once again, the players are split in Attackers and Defenders. The Attackers' aim is to destroy the enemies' telegraph poles, which the enemy can use to call in artillery strikes, and will win once they have destroyed them all. The Defender's job is prevent this from happening, and so long as at least one telegraph pole remains standing by the the time the timer has run out, or they have run out the Attackers' reinforcements, they will emerge victorious. It was fun for a couple of matches, but I got bored very quickly after that.
War Pigeons is similar to the popular mode Capture the Flag. In this game, enemy teams will have to rush towards a messenger pigeon, and the first team to reach and successfully send a message will be able to call in an artillery strike on the opposition. Again, much like Rush, it's fun for a couple of matches, but it leaves you itching to return to something more intense, such as Conquest or Operations.
Lastly, Team Deathmatch is also present. They couldn't really leave it out, could they? If you've ever played a first-person shooter, you know what this is. If you haven't, Team Deathmatch is simply two teams fighting it out, with the first team to kill a certain amount of enemies crowned as the victors.
The Spoils of War
Though playing Battlefield 1 could be considered a reward in itself, there are a number of progression systems and collectables that frequently benefit you throughout your time with the game.
Codex Cards will be the first of these systems that most players encounter. Very similar to the Grimoire cards in Destiny, Codex Cards offer additional backstory and education of World War I to the player through unlockable cards. There are various ways and means to unlock these, from killing a certain amount of enemies with a particular gun, completing a number of objectives, or simply progressing through the game's campaign. They're an interesting read that reveal a lot of details of World War I, so if you're into history (like me) it's cool to give them a glance over.
Field Manuals are also collectables, these ones, however, exclusive to the campaign. Outside of being merely collectables, Field Manuals don't offer much, except for a number of multiplayer-based cosmetics.
In a more traditional focus, an XP system is also present. At the end of each multiplayer match you will earn a certain amount of XP, depending on how well you performed in the last fight. Battlefield 1 does things slightly differently to other first-person shooters, however. In addition to levelling up your overall player rank, individual classes (of which there are 4 to choose from) will each be levelled up in accordance to how much you used them in the last match. This helps to reward specific playstyles, as by focusing purely on one class you won't have to wait as long for that particular gun you've been eyeing.
A faster way of earning XP is to unlock Medals. Medals are awarded based on certain challenge objectives being satisfied. For example, one medal may require you to kill enemies with a specific gun, revive teammates and destroy enemy vehicles before unlocking. There are 34 Medals in total, and each can be unlocked 100 times, meaning there's a lot of XP up for grabs.
As well as earning XP and Medal progression, the end of each match may also bring a Battlepack with it. Battlepacks are handed out randomly, and contain cosmetics that you can apply to your guns. If you want to unlock a lot of Battlepacks then you're going to have to play online a lot, but there is another way of doing so.
Puzzle Pieces can also be found in Battlepacks, in place of a weapon skin, and are typically found in the higher tiers. Once 5 Puzzle Pieces have been collected you'll unlock one of two melee skins currently available.
If you open a Battlepack and its contents are of no interest to you, then you're able to trade in the items unlocked for Scraps. Scraps can then, in turn, be used to purchase more Battlepacks. There are three tiers for you to choose from: Regular, Enhanced and Superior, which each contain an incrementally higher chance of scoring rarer items, so saving up those Scraps for the Superior Battlepack is something I advise.
My Verdict
Battlefield 1 represents big studios listening to bored gamers, and by offering something vastly different to its main competitor, Battlefield 1 stands tall, fresh in the face of seemingly stale competition. The majority of the campaign was superb, and I was genuinely surprised by just how much I enjoyed chapters 2 - 5. The War Stories feel close and personal, and the sheer excitement that comes with something so simple as storming the beach once again is unmatched in other games of this genre.
Battlefield 1's online modes offers some of the best multiplayer action available, even if some of its modes are a bit dull in comparison to the rest. Conquest and Operations are what really set Battlefield 1 apart from its peers, but whilst they are so good, modes like Rush and War Pigeons tend to bore you once you've played the others.
The level progression system of its online component is one I really enjoy. Being rewarded for playing the way I want to play is something I'd never say no to, and it urged me on to not only perfect my preferred class, but also to try out some of the others, to see what I could unlock for them.
9/10
Battlefield 1 is available on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC.
Reviewed on PlayStation 4.
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