Battlefield Bad Company 2 is the latest addition to EA/DICE’s Battlefield franchise, released earlier this month. It is the sequel to Battlefield Bad Company. It features several online modes as well as a short single-player campaign (which I admittedly didn’t finish).

This review will cover the multiplayer modes for the PC version of the game.

The Good

The game features some of the best graphical effects I’ve seen and it really makes me appreciate my recently upgraded system. Something that also stands out about this game is the ability to alter the environment, from cutting down trees to collapsing entire buildings.

There are 4 game modes: Rush (attack/defend), Conquest (territory control), Squad Rush (smaller version of Rush), and Squad Deathmatch. I prefer Rush since is has the most defined objective and focused action. Teams are broken into squads of four to promote teamwork, along with point incentives for helping your squad. You also have the ability to spawn on other squad members which further promotes teamwork. I really like what they have done in this area.

The class breakup is simplified from previous Battlefield games, with only four choices: Assault, Medic, Engineer and Recon. Each class has several categories of customization for weapons, devices, and other perks.

Though they play a smaller role that other Battlefield games, the vehicles are nice. There are the usual tanks, armored vehicles, helicopters, cars, boats, as well a some new additions. These include ATVs, jet skis, and a UAV you can control remotely which is pretty cool.

The ranking system is also more refined with progress and awards shown on loading screens. You get points for everything you do in game that aids the team. These points go towards upgrades and your overall rank. The unlock system is a nice way to ease the learning curve of the game, since you start with the basic loadout and unlock more choices.

The Bad

While the gameplay is awesome, there are a few major flaws that I hope get addressed in future patches. My biggest complaint in the team balance issues. It is very common to see teams become incredibly unbalanced and the game makes it difficult to rectify since team switching is restricted. The games tries to put players on the same team and squad as their friends, which tends to be the source of the unbalances.

Another annoyance is the friends system, which barely works and is very limited. These issues can probably be easily fixed by patches, so I hope they do soon.

Conclusion

This game is awesome. If you like first-person shooters, I highly recommend this game. Also, some may like to know that this game supports dedicated servers.

If you have played this, please comment with your opinions.

Filed under: Game Reviews, Reviews by StevoTVR
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The Hurt Locker follows an Explosive Ordinance Disposal team in the Iraq war in 2004. They have the extremely dangerous job of disarming bombs in the middle of a war zone. The movie follows the team of three, led by SSG William James, as they go on several missions of investigating and diffusing IEDs.

The Good

This movie seemed to aim at being a realistic depiction of the situation, almost like a documentary, and I think it accomplished that pretty well. This isn’t one of those Hollywood action movies where people survive nearby explosions and just walk away.

There was plenty of suspense where danger could be lurking anywhere. Every civilian is a potential insurgent waiting to remotely detonate the bomb two inches in front of the main character’s face. You really get a feel of just how dangerous his job is.

The Bad

The plot was pretty flat with not much of a climax to speak of. Some viewers may be disappointed by the slow pace and lack of action. If action is what you’re looking for, this movie may not be what you expect.

Conclusion

Overall, this is an excellent war thriller and I’d highly recommend it. There was a perfect balance of suspense and action, and a refreshingly realistic take on events. I thoroughly enjoyed this movie.

Filed under: Movie Reviews, Reviews by StevoTVR
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Sometimes I stop to think about the universe as we know it. What is it and what does it mean? The reality is that no one can possibly claim to know the answer. We can only see what we see, and even then we may not know what we are seeing. Basically, we will never know the truth but we can ponder the possibilities.

The first thing I want to know is how much space does the universe contain? Either it is unlimited or there is a limit (duh). It’s easy to believe that it is unlimited, since it is hard to imagine a limit to space. What would be beyond the end? How can there be nothing? Or maybe the limit is there but constantly changing, so there is virtually no limit.

A recurring thought that I have is that the universe is just part of one layer of infinite layers of realities. Maybe the universe we live in is just a tiny particle of a much larger universe, which is in turn a particle of a larger universe, and so on. If this is the case, then every particle of every atom in this universe is itself an entire universe. In short this is an infinite recursion.

Think about that. Every one of those billion trillion gazillion atoms in your body might contain a bunch of universes. But don’t think too hard about this or your head might explode…

Filed under: Commentary by StevoTVR
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I do a lot of programming as a freelancer, mostly PHP and JavaScript for Web based projects. I know these two languages very well, but that’s all I really know. I’ve had a lot of spare time lately, so I decided it would be a good time to learn something new.

First I had to decide what language to go with. Some options I considered were Java, Ruby, C, and C++. I decided to go with C++ since it seemed widely used and different from what I know. So I’m starting with the C++ Language Tutorial.

Now I don’t really know what I’ll be doing with this new knowledge, but I’m sure it will come to some use…

Filed under: Personal by StevoTVR
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Icons from: Icon Library » Heartquake Prevention icon set

Filed under: General by StevoTVR
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Why is it that whenever there is a computer in a show or movie, it has to make all kinds of beeping sounds? It seems to be most common in science fiction and action where things are supposed to be “high tech.” So why does high tech have to mean annoying?

It’s not just the sounds that come from the high tech devices, there’s usually a variety of blinking lights and flashy interface to go with it. The strange thing is that none of these things seem to make the device more efficient to use, and actually seem to make them less useful.

The worst example of this trend is the show CSI: Miami, which is a science-based police drama (but it usually ends up with lab technicians engaging in shootouts). They use computers with ridiculously flashy interfaces and transparent screens. For example:

How do they work with those screens all day? Why would you make a screen transparent? Don’t you usually want to see what’s on the screen and not what’s behind it? Weird.

Filed under: Commentary by StevoTVR
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Well it’s been 2010 for five days now, so I think it’s about time for a post. The new decade came with a surprising announcement. So here’s a short post about that and stuff…

If you pay any attention, you know that my favorite band without question is Soundgarden. Unfortunately they have been broken up since ’97, so by the time I discovered the band there was no chance of seeing them live or anything. Whenever asked, the frontman Chris Cornell always said they would never get back together.

So you can imagine my amazement to see this tweet on New Year’s Eve. I just hope that it’s true, and I’m looking forward to more news about this potential reunion.

So Happy New year everyone! I’ll close with this:

Filed under: General, Music Reviews, Reviews by StevoTVR
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Delicious!

As of January 1st, the use of trans fats by restaurants will be banned in California. That’s right, restaurants are being forced to change their long established ingredients. Most have already made the move to alternative oils, so the only real difference is that it’s official now.

Trans fats are a byproduct of hydrogenation, which is a process used to make oils thicker. Trans fats are unhealthy because they raise LDL (bad) cholesterol and lowering HDL (good) cholesterol. They are also believed to have all kinds of other harmful effects.

I think it’s kind of silly, however, to make a law banning trans fats outright. No one goes to fast food restaurants for their health benefits, but many go because the food tastes good. Most people are well aware of the unhealthiness of good food. It should be left to the restaurants to give the customers what they want. Some can decide to advertise their trans fat-free products for customers that are interested.

I, for one, enjoy a good unhealthy meal every once in a while. I generally eat healthy foods, but I still enjoy the option of eating tastier foods. I’m not sure how much difference the trans fat alternatives make in flavor, but if it makes it worse I don’t want it. I just hope they never ban salt…

Maybe it’s time for people to learn to deep fry their own food and hopefully not set their house or skin on fire…

Filed under: Commentary by StevoTVR
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If you read my post titled Evil Whale Masterminds you know my opinion on “global warming.” Well here’s a video that I think sums up the whole thing pretty well.

John Coleman is a meteorologist, founder of the Weather Channel, and a global warming skeptic. Here’s what he has to say:

Filed under: Commentary by StevoTVR
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Filed under: General by StevoTVR
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