Review: Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Onslaught Expansion

Battlefield is a game that truly lives up to its' name. It's melting pot of upgradeable classes, weapons, destructible environments, dazzling sound design and military vehicles creates thrilling, dynamic multiplayer with a heavy emphasis on rewarding tactical team play. No battle ever plays out the same, yet each has the scale and excitement of AAA singleplayer setpieces. It's a very effective and very popular formula and the announcement at E3 that Battlefield BC2 had sold over 5 million copies is testament to that.

What the new Onslaught mode (available as a defacto-timed exclusive on PSN for £7.19/$9.99) offers is something the muddle-paced singleplayer campaign should've, but didn't: the option to pit yourself and your buddies against a tidal wave of very aggressive AI in a selection of re-configured multiplayer maps. There's 4 of you against wave after wave after wave of well-equipped Ruskies out to decimate you and your squad.


Initial impressions are of a harrowing, exhilaratingly intense squad-based affair, with moments punctuated with a dramatic score (at these moments, the game feels like a singleplayer campaign) or the terrifying sound of an assault chopper whirring in to pound your squad into the ground... or maybe it's that moment where you're the last man standing, and your teamates are screaming at you down the mic to stay alive while a tank blows your cover to smithereens. The tightness of teamwork required to outwit the overwhelming numbers and firepower being thrown at you is absolute. Unlike Gears Of War's Horde or UC2's Siege, here you have to push forward through enemy frontlines to capture checkpoints one by one as a co-ordinated team rather than just hole up and survive. The AI is ruthless and unforgiving, and have no qualms about destroying cover to put an RPG between your eyes. If there were ever a better justification for the medic class, you'd be hard-pressed to find it. This feels like a distillation of Battlefield's squad-based warfare in it's purest form.

Niggles are few, but significant. Whether it be the number crunching of the engine being maxed out or poor server stability, the mode is notably prone to server disconnects, which proves even more frustrating than normal as your role feels amplified in these small teams. Dice, patch me up please; my team needs me. That aside, this DLC adds value to an already-awesome multiplayer title.

The Gaymers Verdict: Boyfriend Material
Christopher Parkes