Battlefield: Hardline

I was very happy that the Battlefield franchise steered away from the War/Military genre and took on a new direction with the Cops and Robbers genre with Battlefield Hardline. I was eagerly looking forward to Battlefield Hardline and once the game came out last Thursday 19 March 2015 I went straight into the nearest store and got my hands on this bad boy. I was very impressed with Battlefield Hardline and it did not disappoint. Battlefield Hardline lived up to its hype before its release.

The single player campaign seemed like I had stepped into an action packed movie similar to Bad Boys and Lethal Weapon that would make producers Jerry Bruckheimer and Joel Silver proud. For the single player campaign you are the honest and hard nosed young Miami Police Detective Nick Mendoza (Nicholas Gonzalez) who is taking on a drug ring as well as investigating links of police corruption. At the start of the game Detective Mendoza is teamed with Detective Carl Stoddard (Travis Willingham) but is later partnered with Detective Khai Minh Dao (Kelly Hu). Mendoza and Khai answer to Captain Julian Dawes (Benito Martinez), a person who is seemingly being groomed for a higher position with the top brass and may or may not have a secret agenda.

Battlefield Hardline is different from previous Battlefield games where the player relies on arrest, stealth, a scanner, and distraction methods rather than relying on shooting and killing countless bad guys. You also have the option of knocking out the bag guys with a baton or even take them down with a taser. You can still shoot the enemy if you cannot arrest them or should you come under fire. It goes without saying that you have a huge arsenal of weapons at your disposal and more weapons are unlocked as the game goes on as well as finding evidence in missions in order to complete cases.

I also liked the previous reference to the Battlefield franchise such as commandeering a turret on a disused military aircraft and an army tank in one mission.

Multiplayer is similar to previous Battlefield games but with a few changes here and there. The various modes including Conquest, Hardwire, Blood Money, Heist, Crosshair, Rescue, and Team Deathmatch. You also get to play with a variety of vehicles including police cars, sedans, motorbikes, armoured vans, and helicopters.

All in all Battlefield Hardline is a worthy entry into the Battlefield franchise and is well worth the money spent. It was good to see the Battlefield franchise take on the cops and robbers genre and it has worked wonders. Perhaps the flagging Call of Duty franchise could benefit from a change in direction.

9/10.

I think this game might be the equivalent to CoD: Ghosts, meaning it's sorely underrated. I know most players didn't find the cops vs robbers aspect of the game amusing and I get it. Recently I've been throwing Hardline's campaign/multiplayer modes on due to the lack of content and change in direction in Battlefield 2042. The multiplayer runs pretty similar to BF4's but with new gadgets, a currency system, and the whole cops/robbers twist. The gameplay however feels just right, almost like butter on a warm pan. New gadgets like zip-lines and grappling hooks opened up new ways of movement and verticality. The grappling hook must've been inspired by R6: Siege and I didn't mind that at all. Hardline uses the same engine BF4 used, Frost Bite 3. The 2 year difference in titles allowed the devs to sharpen up and perfect the movement and visuals used in Hardline. I'm glad they did not number this title. The vibe I get from playing this spinoff resembles something from Miami Vice or GTA Online even. Chasing bad guys down in the LA River, launching firefights in the Florida Everglades, and raiding Hollywood mansions felt surreal when playing. The campaign offered some nice upgrades too. A new stealth system, similar to the Far Cry games, allowed players to complete missions their way. The score/music in the background matched perfectly with what was happening in game, whether it was sneaking through a cartel meth lab or driving down the streets in Miami. Ultimately, I'm finding a lot of fun in this old Battlefield project. In the future, I'd hope to play a new battlefield game that was built like Hardline. Meaning, it took the best aspects of it's previous titles and used it as a foundation.

Battlefield Hardline is another installment of the series, which this time focuses mainly on street clashes between police departments and groups of criminals who, wanting to get rich, commit crimes and escape from justice. The game offers both online and offline modes, which add an interesting variety to the gameplay.

Unfortunately, the offline mode, from which I expected a lot, completely disappointed me. The plot is shallow and predictable, and the characters do not have deeper motivations - they are even exaggerated. The main character, Nicholas Mendoza, is a character who can be found in almost every series, movie or game with a similar theme. He is devoid of depth and presented as a stereotypical "good cop".

Unfortunately, the online mode also does not meet expectations. The game suffers from numerous bugs, and the gameplay itself is too fast and lacks any elements of strategy. Small maps additionally take away the fun of the game, and the whole thing does not meet the standards that players expect from the Battlefield series.

The game had potential, which unfortunately was wasted in a concert way. The campaign is passable, but too short to keep the player engaged for long. The online mode, however, leaves much to be desired.

What a shame this is the last game that came from this amazing studio. That being said, it's a decent romp I suppose though it feels really odd as an entry into the Battlefield franchise. Multiplayer is typical Battlefield but with a "cops and robbers" paint job, the campaign is cliche and often cringe, the episodic format is kinda cool as far as mission structure though. You could do worse for a shooter romp. You can do better too.

A new take on the BF series, definitely fun to play in different modes and break the traditional gameplay. Installing the content takes hours, and you are limited to the 7min prologue when you first set up the game. I've read forums and reviews and apparently there is not much that users (or EA) can do about it but just sit and wait for hours on end. Estimated wait time is around 7.5 hours to install full game. And yes it's 2020 and still no solution for a game that was released more than 4 years ago.

Some cool actors added to the cast, although the story is sometimes a bit predictable and too much cliché if you ask me.

Great fun outside of the traditional with new game modes, but if you are new to the game you better be patient when installing it.