It is hard to review a game like Battlefield 1. There is just so much content in the game. Especially when you group the multiplayer into it that it feels like a person could talk about the game for hours on end. Somehow one still would not cover everything the game has to offer. This review is going to be a little different from the others that I have done. The game is really two different experiences. The single player campaign is different from the multiplayer experience.

Real Life Gamer: Battlefield 1 Review

Title: Battlefield 1
Platform: PS4, Xbox One [Reviewed], PC
Genre: First Person Shooter
Developer: EA DICE
Publisher: EA
Players: Singleplayer, Multiplayer
Rating: M for Mature
Release Date: October 21, 2016
Price: $59.99

Graphics

The graphics and controls are the same in both parts of the game, and they are great. Everything feels very natural and smooth while playing. There is very little chance that a player will hit the wrong button when trying to perform an action. That being said, no one wants to hear about controls or graphics for a game unless they are broken or revolutionary. While the graphics and controls are not revolutionary they do work well.

Single Player

The single player game is broken down into six campaigns called War Stories. In a way, this is good because it lets the player see various theaters of the war. The writers don’t have to give some magical explanation about why one person ended up going all around the world and fought in various campaigns. Especially, since some of them happened at the same time.

Anyway, the game does a good job of separating the campaigns and making each campaign feel unique. A player can see all the campaigns at the selection screen, and choose which one they want to play from the outset.

Each campaign deals with a different aspect of Battlefield 1. While also serving as a type of multiplayer training. For example, one of the campaigns, titled “Friends in High Places”, basically trains a player in flying a plane. This lets you try some missions that vary between dogfights and bombing runs.

Thus allowing players to get used to the controls of the planes before jumping into one in the multiplayer. This is a feature that was needed in the beta. In the beta, you basically were thrown into a cockpit with no instructions at all. This is a welcome addition to the game.

The campaigns are fairly easy, but still challenging enough that you feel like you have to work at completing them. The only complaint about the campaign is that it feels fairly short. It might be a side effect of splitting it into six separate stories, but it feels like you run through it fast. However, not many people play the Battlefield series for the single player. So, it is understandable it’s not a long campaign. Overall though, they still serve as well told stories that are fun to play.

Multiplayer

The multiplayer experience is where the game shines. There are several game modes to play in the multiplayer campaign. Operations take place over several maps where a player is either on offense or defense. The goal is to either capture various points (offense) or kill enough members of the attacking team (defense). The game takes you from map to map during Operations and it all generally matches with historical battles.

The other modes are Conquest (the traditional Battlefield game). Domination (where you capture and hold flags). Rush (attackers destroy telegraphs before defenders can use them to call in artillery strikes). Team Deathmatch, and War Pigeons (where you find pigeons and use them to call in artillery strikes). Each of the various modes play differently and feel unique enough to keep you interested for a long time.

There are the traditional classes (Assault, Support, Medic, and Scout). Players can unlock different weapons using the in-game currency as they level up. At first, it can be frustrating when you are constantly getting shot by people who have weapons you do not have access to. However, the leveling up is fairly quick. So, you get new weapons fairly easily.

Real Life Outlook

As The Real Life Gamer, I try to have a different outlook on games. I like to look at how people in the real world, people with jobs and families, can play the game and if it is good for them.

Battlefield 1 is a good game for people who do not have hours upon hours to play games. The only thing a person needs to be aware of is, depending on the game mode, matches can take about 30 minutes to finish. Make sure you take that into account before starting a match. As long as you aren’t rushing through a match, so you aren’t late to pick up kids from school, then the game is a lot of fun.

I’d say you will see a lot of newer players playing in vehicles at first just to get a feel for the game. I feel that is fine though, because vehicles are what set this game apart from its main competitor.

Pros

-Great graphics and gameplay
-Overall fun game
-Always something new to try

Cons

-Initially confusing menu system
-No bot battles (that I have found anyway) to get used to and memorize the maps

Final Rating

Overall Thoughts: 9 Out of 10 Even after playing the game for almost two weeks, there is still so much to do in the game. It may sound odd when talking about a shooter, but it is true. The game has a lot to offer players, and it always seems that you discover something new while playing. Especially in the multiplayer. There is certainly enough to keep every player coming back for more.