(I’m going to preface this review by stating that I’ve never been a fan of online multiplayer in the Modern Warfare franchise. I realize this entry is supposed to focus on Battlefield 3 but it’s hard to talk about one without bringing up the other. I’ve always likened multiplayer in the Call of Duty games to fighting in a fish bowl or a hamster cage. There’s too many campers, the maps are too small, and don’t even get me started about the kill streaks. And while I understand they’ll always be millions of people who favor this franchise over Battlefield I thought I’d be better to get this out of the way sooner rather than later.)

Battlefield 3 is a game whose development is almost as legendary as its final product. In the year leading up to its release the constant bickering between the CEOs of EA and Activision made for scintillating entertainment as well as the petty legal squabbles that followed. Similarly, Battlefield 3 led to the creation of EA’s much touted Origin platform in an effort to directly compete with direct-to-download service Steam. When the open beta was finally released on September 29, 2011 it was played by over 8 million users in the 11 days it was available. The game’s also notable for having one of the largest advertising budgets for a video game prior to release (over $100 million).

I’ll say this up front. Nobody bought Battlefield 3 for the first player campaign. It’s the online multiplayer that everyone remembers. Battlefield 3 did nothing short of redefining the first player shooter in terms of realism and depth. This is easily the most realistic battlefield simulator ever created to date. The use of vehicles (which include jets, helicopters, tanks, and humvees) not only allows players to travel across maps quickly with ease but also adds a new level of strategy to combat. The ranking system is also impressive with its cornucopia of perks, accessories, new weapons, and uniforms to incentivize the player to keep playing. The variety of expansive maps are as fun to play as they are to look at, and the brilliance of having self-destructive environments ensures that no two levels end the same way they begin. But personally it’s the conquest mode that makes the game a perfect blend of capture the flag and team deathmatch, and the 64-player multiplayer is truly something to behold.

I could laud over this game for hours but really there’s nothing to be said about Battlefield 3 that hasn’t been said already. According to EA, the game garnered 3 million pre-orders and a total of 5 million copies sold in its first week of release, making it the largest first-person shooter launch in EA history, much to the critical acclaim of fans and critics.

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