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Battlefield 1943
Platform: Playstation 3
Release Date: July 9, 2009
By: CapnMattBossy

When talking about multiplayer only games, only one series really sticks out and that is the Battlefield series. Throughout the years, we have seen locations from 1942, Vietnam, Modern Combat, and 2142. It is time once again to hit the trenches and gear up in land, air, and sea in Battlefield 1943.

The first thing you will notice before even playing Battlefield 1943 is that it is download only. The second thing you will notice is that it is only $14.99. The last thing you will notice before playing the game is that it is only 535 mb. That is smaller than most demos out there.

Once hopping in game, you will notice that the game plays and feels almost identical to Battlefield: Bad Company. You have three classes too choose from; riflemen which has rifle grenades, infantry which has the ability to repair vehicles, and scout which has C4 to blow up tanks and anything else that comes in your way. On every map your team will have access to jeeps, tanks, boats, and planes. The only game mode available is Conquest which is holding strategic points on the map. The more points you have, your team’s “life bar” stays full. Once one team’s “life bar” drains completely, the game is over. As of right now the game has three maps. A fourth map and a new game mode will unlock once the community hits 43 million kills. The new game mode is called Air Superiority which basically is strictly dog fights.

You might think that since the whole game is only 535 mb that the graphics will be very toned down but that is not the case. In fact, if you didn’t know that the game was download only, you would think that it is a disc based game. The game looks almost identical to its predecessor Battlefield: Bad Company. Battlefield 1943 runs on the Frostbite engine which was made for Battlefield: Bad Company. You will see some lower resolution here and there but since the game is only $14.99, you can easily over look it.

If you don’t know what the Frostbite engine is, in short terms it basically means 99% of the environment is destructible. I wish I could say that is true, but some fixtures such as towers, bunkers, and some housing don’t want to blow apart. You would think that after shooting a tank shell into a sniper tower that it would collapse right?

The only issue I really had with the game is that the mics don’t work at all. When joining a squad, the mics work fine, but once the game loads they stop working. DICE seems to be working on the issue because the past few days the mics seem to be working a little better. LAG hasn’t been an issue at all. The game runs very smooth even with 24 players in the game.

If you are fans of the Battlefield series then Battlefield 1943 will not disappoint you. Heck if you love action games in general Battlefield 1943 is a must own.

Gameplay- 9… From land, air, and sea, what can go wrong? Some fixtures can’t be blown up.

Sound- 9… Everything sounds pretty much dead on. It is very cool when you can hear a tank creeping up behind you.

Graphics- 8.5… DICE really put a lot of time recreating Battlefield 1942 and it shows. Occasionally you will notice pop in textures.

Replay- 9.5… You will find yourself playing this till Battlefield: Bad Company 2 comes out. Overall (Not Average)- 8.8/10