Battlefield 2
Encyclopedia
Battlefield 2 is a computer game by the Swedish
developer Digital Illusions CE (DICE). During development, Trauma Studios
contributed to the development of the game after it was acquired by DICE. Battlefield 2 was published by Electronic Arts
and is the third full game in the Battlefield series, released on June 21, 2005 in North America
for Microsoft Windows
. The latest version is v1.50, which was released on September 1, 2009 and added the content of the Euro Force and Armored Fury booster packs, as well as the Highway Tampa and Operation Blue Pearl maps.
Players fight in a modern battlefield, using modern weapon systems
. Battlefield 2 is a first-person shooter
with some strategy
and RPG
elements. The single player features missions that involve clashes between US Marines, China and the fictional Middle Eastern Coalition. The multiplayer aspect of the game allows players to organize into squads that come under the leadership of a single commander to promote teamwork.
The story takes place in the early 21st century during a fictional world war between various power blocs: China
, the European Union
(playable as of the 1.50 patch), the fictional Middle Eastern Coalition (MEC), Russia
(playable only in the Special Forces expansion) and the United States
. In-game, the European Union and the United States fight China and the MEC. It is known that in the game's story, the EU and the US are allies and the EU has negotiated a peace deal with Russia but it is unknown if China and the MEC are allies. The game takes place in different fronts, as the Middle East and China are being invaded by US and EU forces, and the United States is being invaded by Chinese and MEC forces.
Battlefield 2 is essentially a multiplayer game
played via the Internet
or on a local area network
. A single-player mode with three difficulty levels is included. Both player modes use the same maps and use Battlefield's conquest
game mode. Single-player mode allows 16 computer controlled players
while Internet mode allows up to 64 players. Players can choose to play as the United States Marine Corps
, the People's Liberation Army
, or the "Middle Eastern Coalition". Additional factions are playable through the expansion packs, such as the European Union
. Progress in the game is made via promotions which allow additional weapons to be unlocked. By playing the game on ranked servers, players are able to add to their global player statistics. These statistics are used to award promotions and other achievements.
A console branded version also exists for the Xbox
, Xbox 360
and PlayStation 2
, named Battlefield 2: Modern Combat
. Although they both share the same name and setting, they differ considerably in execution, content, and gameplay.
In Battlefield 2, players are divided into two opposing teams (which factions they represent is dependent upon the map). The key objective in Battlefield 2 is to reduce the opposing teams tickets. Tickets represent an army's ability to reinforce their position on the battlefield; each team has only a limited supply of tickets, and each casualty on the battlefield reduces the number of available tickets. Control points represent key points on the map, and are represented by flags. Control points are Battlefield 2s spawn points, and one team possessing a significant majority of the control points causes the other teams tickets to gradually decrease, regardless of casualties. A round ends when one team's tickets gone, the round's timer ends, or if at any point a team holds no control points, and has no soldiers alive on the battlefield (meaning they are not present in any way on the battlefield).
Battlefield 2s two game modes are Conquest and Cooperative. The only difference between the two modes is that Cooperative includes computer controlled players
, whilst Conquest allows only human players. Results from Cooperative mode do not count toward global player statistics.
Players are able to choose a class at the start of a match, or between dying and respawn once the match has begun or when they have died. Players can also change their class by picking up a "kit" from the body of an incapacitated soldier, friendly or otherwise. Hence, an Assault soldier can become a Medic if they come across a fallen Medic. Player classes are divided in Heavy (with reduced damage done to the torso, but lower stamina) and Light (with standard multipliers, but higher stamina, thus able to sprint for a longer time).
Within the infantry class, there are three support classes with special abilities. The Engineer can repair with his wrench, the Medic can revive with his defibrillator paddles and heal, the Support can resupply ammunition with his ammunition bags. These special abilities are helpful to other players. When one of the these three classes occupies a vehicle, nearby personnel and vehicles can be replenished, repaired or healed by being in close proximity.
In contrast to Battlefield 1942, Battlefield 2 has only one purely water-based vehicle, the rigid-inflatable boat
; however, the BTR-90
, the MEC APC
, can travel in water as well as the LAV-25 and the WZ 551
, the USMC and PLA equivalents, respectively. The developers tried to design the game so that every vehicle would be weak to another type of vehicle, intending to create a situation similar to a game of rock-paper-scissors
. For example, mobile anti-air was intended to effectively destroy helicopters, but are vulnerable against opposing tanks. Included within this relationship are stationary defenses such as light machine guns and anti-aircraft/TOW emplacements. The availability and number of certain vehicles are dependent on the map and its size as well as control points captured. Also, more vehicles become available to be used on the maps of expansion/booster packs. (see Maps). The USS Essex
is the only naval ship featured in BF2, featuring two spawn points and aircraft spawn points, and is not drivable or destroyable, except for its Phalanx
turrets.
, there are many changes to the popular gameplay of the original. Many of these new gameplay features were added to the game with teamwork and collaboration in mind. The new game engine includes improved physics, dynamic lighting, and more realistic material penetration.
letter) for identification. Members of a squad have the ability to communicate with one another via Battlefield 2s integrated Voice-over IP (VoIP) system.
Squad leaders may assign their squad a variety of objectives (for example, moving to or attacking a specific location). Orders may also be given by the team's commander. Squad leaders are able to issue requests for commander assets (such as artillery fire) and have a direct VoIP channel to the commander.
Members of a squad may spawn
near their squad leader, provided that the leader is not dead (or incapacitated), and that the team holds at least one control point. This feature allows squads to more quickly regroup after taking casualties.
position is an exclusive role played by one member of each team. Any member of a team may apply for the position, but priority is given to players of higher rank
.
The commander alone has access to the "commander screen", an interface similar to that of a real-time strategy
game. This allows the commander an overview of the battlefield as a whole, or zoom in and view parts of the map in real-time. The commander also has control of the various commander assets, which include artillery strikes, vehicle and supply drops, and UAV's. They can deploy them to assist their team. The commander can communicate with squads either by sending orders, or via VoIP voice communication. These tools allow the commander to strategically coordinate their forces on the battlefield.
A commander may resign at any point, freeing the position for other members of their team; they may also be forcibly removed by a successful mutiny
vote conducted by their team (provided the server
allows mutiny votes).
Although the commander does not gain points by normal methods (kills, flag captures, etc.), their score is doubled at the end of the round if their team wins.
s and ribbons
are the easiest to obtain, while medal
s are usually much harder, requiring more extensive play. As players ascend through the ranks they will gain the ability to unlock certain weapons. Each time a player is promoted to an eligible rank, they are given the opportunity to unlock one of seven unlockable weapons, one for each class, which they may subsequently use in place of the standard weapon for the given class. Players with the Special Forces expansion are granted an additional seven unlockable weapons. Unlockable weapons include the G36C, SCAR-L, G3
, Heckler & Koch MP7
, F2000, FN P-90, G36E, L85A1, L96A1, Barrett M95
, MG36 and several others. The FN P-90 and L96A1 were released in Patch 1.2 to complete the missing Tier Two Sniper and Anti-Tank unlocks and also to coincide with the release of the Euro Force Booster Pack which featured them as default weapons of the European Union. Ranks and unlockables apply to all servers which allow them, but only "official" (ranked) servers record and send back stats.
format. The Battlefield Recorder has facilitated the creation of various machinima
.
Usage of the PunkBuster
service is mandatory for all official ranked Battlefield 2 servers, but optional for unranked servers.
. MEC is present in Middle East theaters such as Gulf of Oman
and Zatar Wetlands. The BF2 series including the expansion and booster packs puts the map count at 29 maps.
Battlefield 2 maps have 3 variations, each suited for a certain number of players. Each map has 16, 32, and 64 player-suggested variations in which the area of battlefield or playing field is relatively small, medium, and large, respectively. The only exceptions to this are Wake Island
2007, which is locked at 64-player size and the Euro Force maps, Operation Smokescreen, Great Wall, and Taraba Quarry, which have no 64-player size. 32 and 64 player maps are unavailable to offline players from retailers, but an option is given to download 64 Single player AI bot mods. Other contrasts between these variations other than the size are the number and position of control points and availability of vehicles. As a result, the gameplay of the map is different depending on the variation.
Patch 1.03, released on October 4, 2005, added an updated version of Wake Island, originally from Battlefield 1942. September 5, 2006, Patch 1.4 added the map 'Road to Jalalabad.' June 6, 2007, EA officially released a beta map, Highway Tampa. June 18, 2007, the final version was released. Both versions of the map are ranked Battlefield 2 maps. It is a large map with rolling terrain and favors armored warfare. Versions of Highway Tampa and Wake Island also were released for Battlefield 2142
.
A version of the much anticipated 1.5 patch was released as a beta on 21 April 2009, and then released as a 'final release' on 1 September 2009. It contained a number of fixes for Vista users, as well as a new map, 'Operation Blue Pearl'. It is rumoured to be the final update for the game - the Armored Fury and Euro Force booster packs are also free to play with this version.
The game received universal acclaim from critics, garnering an aggregate score of 91% from 55 reviews on Metacritic
. It received five stars out of five from publications Yahoo! Games
, GameSpy
, X-Play
and Computer Gaming World
. PC Gamer
awarded it 94%, stating, "Its finely tuned maps and balanced gameplay prove that you can improve on perfection," and honored it as Game of the Year. GameSpot
rated the game 9.3 out of 10 claiming that "when you experience Battlefield 2 like it's meant to be played, with everyone working together and using real-time voice chat, the game quickly becomes unlike anything else that you've played before.it is the best game in the world to date-ign"
Some of the lower scores were reactions to the large amount of bugs
and glitch
es in the initial release, including crash to desktop bugs and network problems. For example, Gaming Nexus (who awarded the game an 8.7 out of 10) reported, "I’ve had many cool experiences playing it and a lot of 'did I just see that' moments but all of that is crapped on by the bugs and quirks in the game.". Many players have complained that bugs have remained unfixed or were replaced with worse bugs due to poorly tested game patches. For example, patch 1.3 resulted in continuous disconnections with a message of "There is a problem with your connection" (attributed to a problem with leaving the VOIP option on). As of 1.41, most of the fatal errors (crash-to-desktop, "There is a problem with your connection" display) have been fixed, and only a few browser and server problems remain. The official 1.5 patch still has the rank advance, delayed bullet collision detection (ducking behind walls has bullet penetrate through the surface) and VOIP bugs (controversially, the most of obvious and consistent problems in previous versions). Additionally the patch disabled the AI commander, removing the ability to call in artillery, supplies, etc. while not playing as the commander. The 1.5 patch was seen as a simple 'free' add-on for the two upgrade packs, removal of the necessity of having the CD/DVD in the drive, but with no bug fixes - this patch was much anticipated, which would have fixed many of the bugs present in the previous versions. It is the final update for the game.
Games Radar approved of the game, awarding a 90%, but added a disclaimer that the gaming experience is best "if your machine is up to it". GameSpot's review agreed with the high system requirements noting that "the load times are one of the biggest gripes that we have, as you will spend quite a bit of time waiting for a game to start up, even on high-end machines...also a bit demanding in the hardware department."
Ranked servers have to be hosted by an approved hosting company where as all of the statistics and points that are accumulated on that server are recorded via a main bank of EA servers, thereby counting towards the player's global statistics. Because of this many of the server settings such as time limits and player tickets are locked to certain settings to enable a level playing field while the players are accumulating their statistics. To share the cost of a ranked server, many players get together and chip in on a monthly basis to pay for it, at times naming after their gaming clan.
An unranked server, on the other hand, can be hosted by anybody on any private server thereby potentially being free to host. The settings on unranked servers can be changed for many features, such as respawn time, amount of damages, etc. The downside to a unranked server, which is a major factor for most players, is that the statistics and points accumulated are not recorded toward the player's global statistics. Because of this, and the fact that most unranked servers do not show up in the game's search engine, most of the player's are attracted to ranked servers.
Recently, several modders in the gaming community have found a way to have privately ranked servers. These servers have their own master server that records player statistics and functions similar to EA's master servers for global ranking and statistics. However, the players rank and statistics are only available on that specific group of servers.
This private ranking system can work with co-op mode servers where all the human players can play on the same team against computer controlled opponents. It can also work with servers that run one of the many mods of the Battlefield 2 game such as Project Reality or Allied Intent Xtended (AIX). This eliminated much of the "downside" that was part of servers for co-op mode or servers running mods of the game.
shut down all of its demo servers on November 28, 2005. However, demo client and demo server software are still available for download from BF2 website should players and server operators wish to host the game themselves. Many players still game on these demo servers, with a community numbering at least 100 at a time, a low peak.
Some aspects of gameplay, such as jet combat, are markedly different in the demo compared with the current game. This is due to changes made in recent patches. The demo does not feature rankings, apart from on a couple of servers.
The focus of the development was infantry-based combat as opposed to vehicle-centric combat from the original. As such, most of the additional content in the expansion pack can only be used by or for infantry.
British SAS
Russian Spetsnaz
Players play in eight maps (six of which can be played in singleplayer) with ten more vehicles such as the AH-64D Apache and Mi-35 Hind, though all jets have been removed. In addition to these new contents, players have access to new equipment such as night vision goggles
, tear gas, gas masks, zip lines and grappling hooks which can alter gameplay. There are eight more small arms weapons available such as the G36K/E
and FN SCAR L/H
and several weapons from the original are replaced. The expansion offers more awards in the form of badges, ribbons, and medals that players can earn. Finally, many of the weapons from the expansion may be used in the original Battlefield 2.
Booster packs add a significant amount of content to the game, but are different from expansion packs because they are intended to add to the original gameplay and not stand on their own (such as Special Forces does). The booster packs include new maps, vehicles, and a new European Union
faction.
The two booster packs were included free of charge in the 1.50 update released on September 1, 2009.
army, armed with new weapons and vehicles from the various countries of the EU. It is available for purchase online at the Electronic Arts
download service, or as part of the retail Booster Pack Collection. It was scheduled for release in February, but was delayed due to a substantial number of new bugs caused by the release of patch
1.2. It features a whole new army, 4 new vehicles, 3 new maps, and 7 new weapons such as the L85A2 with AG36
GL, the FAMAS
, the HK53, the HK21,and the Benelli M4. Some of the vehicles for the EU military include the Challenger 2, Eurocopter Tiger
, Leopard 2A6 and the Eurofighter.
The maps include 'The Great Wall of China', against the People's Liberation Army
of China, where the EU army is trying to gain a strong foothold in northern China, to reinforce their American allies in the south later on. 'Operation Smoke Screen' features the EU army fighting the MEC in the Middle East for precious oil fields, and the third map, 'Taraba Quarry', where the EU army is trying to reinforce American positions in the south. Mindful of the European plans, the MEC tries to stall the EU, where the Europeans must confront their enemies because that route is the only possible path along that side of the Caspian Sea.
helicopters that operate as a mobile UAV. The booster pack has the USMC defending U.S. soil from invasions from the PLA and MEC. Operation Midnight Sun features the Chinese landing at the Alaskan port Valdez
where they are trying to secure much needed fuel from the pipeline. Operation Road Rage is a MEC vs. USMC map, where the MEC are using US Highways to transport units to industrial areas. Operation Harvest sees the United States trying to stall the MEC en route to the capital from the northwest, being blocked in a Pennsylvania Dutch farm, while waiting for reinforcements. New vehicles include Attack or Close Air Support aircraft such as the A-10 Thunderbolt II
, Su-39 and the Nanchang Q-5
as well as new light utility helicopters such as OH-6 Little Bird
, EC-635 and the Z-11. As well as the addition of new helicopters and planes, DICE also added the Muscle Car
and Semi Truck
. However, the proposed AV-8B Harrier was cut from the add-on due to balancing issues.
, Eve of Destruction 2, and Point of Existence
.
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
developer Digital Illusions CE (DICE). During development, Trauma Studios
Trauma Studios
Trauma Studios was an American computer game developer company founded in 2003. They were best known for having created Desert Combat, a mod for Battlefield 1942....
contributed to the development of the game after it was acquired by DICE. Battlefield 2 was published by Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
and is the third full game in the Battlefield series, released on June 21, 2005 in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
for Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows
Microsoft Windows is a series of operating systems produced by Microsoft.Microsoft introduced an operating environment named Windows on November 20, 1985 as an add-on to MS-DOS in response to the growing interest in graphical user interfaces . Microsoft Windows came to dominate the world's personal...
. The latest version is v1.50, which was released on September 1, 2009 and added the content of the Euro Force and Armored Fury booster packs, as well as the Highway Tampa and Operation Blue Pearl maps.
Players fight in a modern battlefield, using modern weapon systems
Weapon
A weapon, arm, or armament is a tool or instrument used with the aim of causing damage or harm to living beings or artificial structures or systems...
. Battlefield 2 is a first-person shooter
First-person shooter
First-person shooter is a video game genre that centers the gameplay on gun and projectile weapon-based combat through first-person perspective; i.e., the player experiences the action through the eyes of a protagonist. Generally speaking, the first-person shooter shares common traits with other...
with some strategy
Military tactics
Military tactics, the science and art of organizing an army or an air force, are the techniques for using weapons or military units in combination for engaging and defeating an enemy in battle. Changes in philosophy and technology over time have been reflected in changes to military tactics. In...
and RPG
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
elements. The single player features missions that involve clashes between US Marines, China and the fictional Middle Eastern Coalition. The multiplayer aspect of the game allows players to organize into squads that come under the leadership of a single commander to promote teamwork.
The story takes place in the early 21st century during a fictional world war between various power blocs: China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
(playable as of the 1.50 patch), the fictional Middle Eastern Coalition (MEC), Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
(playable only in the Special Forces expansion) and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. In-game, the European Union and the United States fight China and the MEC. It is known that in the game's story, the EU and the US are allies and the EU has negotiated a peace deal with Russia but it is unknown if China and the MEC are allies. The game takes place in different fronts, as the Middle East and China are being invaded by US and EU forces, and the United States is being invaded by Chinese and MEC forces.
Gameplay
Multiplayer game
A multiplayer video game is one which more than one person can play in the same game environment at the same time. Unlike most other games, computer and video games are often single-player activities that put the player against preprogrammed challenges and/or AI-controlled opponents, which often...
played via the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
or on a local area network
Local area network
A local area network is a computer network that interconnects computers in a limited area such as a home, school, computer laboratory, or office building...
. A single-player mode with three difficulty levels is included. Both player modes use the same maps and use Battlefield's conquest
Conquest (gametype)
Conquest is a gametype used mainly by Electronic Arts and Digital Illusions CE's Battlefield franchise. To win a game of Conquest, the teams in the game must capture pre-determined spawnpoints labeled by flags...
game mode. Single-player mode allows 16 computer controlled players
Computer game bot
A bot, most prominently in the first-person shooter types , is a type of weak AI expert system software which for each instance of the program controls a player in deathmatch, team deathmatch and/or cooperative human player. Computer bots may play against other bots and/or human players in unison,...
while Internet mode allows up to 64 players. Players can choose to play as the United States Marine Corps
United States Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps is a branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for providing power projection from the sea, using the mobility of the United States Navy to deliver combined-arms task forces rapidly. It is one of seven uniformed services of the United States...
, the People's Liberation Army
People's Liberation Army
The People's Liberation Army is the unified military organization of all land, sea, strategic missile and air forces of the People's Republic of China. The PLA was established on August 1, 1927 — celebrated annually as "PLA Day" — as the military arm of the Communist Party of China...
, or the "Middle Eastern Coalition". Additional factions are playable through the expansion packs, such as the European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
. Progress in the game is made via promotions which allow additional weapons to be unlocked. By playing the game on ranked servers, players are able to add to their global player statistics. These statistics are used to award promotions and other achievements.
A console branded version also exists for the Xbox
Xbox
The Xbox is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Microsoft. It was released on November 15, 2001 in North America, February 22, 2002 in Japan, and March 14, 2002 in Australia and Europe and is the predecessor to the Xbox 360. It was Microsoft's first foray into the gaming console...
, Xbox 360
Xbox 360
The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles...
and PlayStation 2
PlayStation 2
The PlayStation 2 is a sixth-generation video game console manufactured by Sony as part of the PlayStation series. Its development was announced in March 1999 and it was first released on March 4, 2000, in Japan...
, named Battlefield 2: Modern Combat
Battlefield 2: Modern Combat
Battlefield 2: Modern Combat is a first-person shooter video game in the Battlefield series, developed by Digital Illusions CE. Modern Combat is the first Battlefield game for video game consoles....
. Although they both share the same name and setting, they differ considerably in execution, content, and gameplay.
In Battlefield 2, players are divided into two opposing teams (which factions they represent is dependent upon the map). The key objective in Battlefield 2 is to reduce the opposing teams tickets. Tickets represent an army's ability to reinforce their position on the battlefield; each team has only a limited supply of tickets, and each casualty on the battlefield reduces the number of available tickets. Control points represent key points on the map, and are represented by flags. Control points are Battlefield 2s spawn points, and one team possessing a significant majority of the control points causes the other teams tickets to gradually decrease, regardless of casualties. A round ends when one team's tickets gone, the round's timer ends, or if at any point a team holds no control points, and has no soldiers alive on the battlefield (meaning they are not present in any way on the battlefield).
Battlefield 2s two game modes are Conquest and Cooperative. The only difference between the two modes is that Cooperative includes computer controlled players
Computer game bot
A bot, most prominently in the first-person shooter types , is a type of weak AI expert system software which for each instance of the program controls a player in deathmatch, team deathmatch and/or cooperative human player. Computer bots may play against other bots and/or human players in unison,...
, whilst Conquest allows only human players. Results from Cooperative mode do not count toward global player statistics.
Infantry classes
In Battlefield 2, as with previous Battlefield titles, players are able to select from a variety of infantry classes. Each class of soldier is equipped with different weaponry appropriate to their role in the battle. Assault soldiers, for example, are general-purpose infantry with grenade-launcher equipped assault-rifles and extra armor, Medics carry first-aid equipment such as a field defibrillator, and Anti-Tank troopers are equipped with missiles which are effective against heavy armor.Players are able to choose a class at the start of a match, or between dying and respawn once the match has begun or when they have died. Players can also change their class by picking up a "kit" from the body of an incapacitated soldier, friendly or otherwise. Hence, an Assault soldier can become a Medic if they come across a fallen Medic. Player classes are divided in Heavy (with reduced damage done to the torso, but lower stamina) and Light (with standard multipliers, but higher stamina, thus able to sprint for a longer time).
Within the infantry class, there are three support classes with special abilities. The Engineer can repair with his wrench, the Medic can revive with his defibrillator paddles and heal, the Support can resupply ammunition with his ammunition bags. These special abilities are helpful to other players. When one of the these three classes occupies a vehicle, nearby personnel and vehicles can be replenished, repaired or healed by being in close proximity.
Vehicles
The various forces still use the trademark feature of the Battlefield series - the large stable of vehicles that any player can climb into and control. There are many different types of vehicles playable in Battlefield 2, all based on real-life vehicles used by the militaries of different countries.In contrast to Battlefield 1942, Battlefield 2 has only one purely water-based vehicle, the rigid-inflatable boat
Rigid-hulled inflatable boat
A rigid-hulled inflatable boat, or rigid-inflatable boat is a light-weight but high-performance and high-capacity boat constructed with a solid, shaped hull and flexible tubes at the gunwale. The design is stable and seaworthy...
; however, the BTR-90
BTR-90
BTR-90 is an 8×8 wheeled armoured personnel carrier developed in Russia, designed in 1993 and first shown publicly in 1994. It is a larger version of the BTR-80 vehicle, fitted with a BMP-2 turret...
, the MEC APC
Armoured personnel carrier
An armoured personnel carrier is an armoured fighting vehicle designed to transport infantry to the battlefield.APCs are usually armed with only a machine gun although variants carry recoilless rifles, anti-tank guided missiles , or mortars...
, can travel in water as well as the LAV-25 and the WZ 551
WZ551
The WZ551 is a Chinese wheeled armored personnel carrier. It is actually consisted of two families of vehicles with official designations in the People's Liberation Army as Type 90 and Type 92. Roughly 600 WZ551s are in service with the PLA, where they are used by light mechanized infantry units...
, the USMC and PLA equivalents, respectively. The developers tried to design the game so that every vehicle would be weak to another type of vehicle, intending to create a situation similar to a game of rock-paper-scissors
Rock, Paper, Scissors
Rock-paper-scissors is a hand game played by two people. The game is also known as roshambo, or another ordering of the three items ....
. For example, mobile anti-air was intended to effectively destroy helicopters, but are vulnerable against opposing tanks. Included within this relationship are stationary defenses such as light machine guns and anti-aircraft/TOW emplacements. The availability and number of certain vehicles are dependent on the map and its size as well as control points captured. Also, more vehicles become available to be used on the maps of expansion/booster packs. (see Maps). The USS Essex
USS Essex (LHD-2)
USS Essex is a built at what is now Huntington Ingalls Industries in Pascagoula, Mississippi, and commissioned on 17 October 1992 while moored at North Island NAS beside the Kitty Hawk . It is the fifth ship named for Essex County, Massachusetts...
is the only naval ship featured in BF2, featuring two spawn points and aircraft spawn points, and is not drivable or destroyable, except for its Phalanx
Phalanx CIWS
The Phalanx CIWS is an anti-ship missile defense system. It is a close-in weapon system and was designed and manufactured by the General Dynamics Corporation, Pomona Division...
turrets.
Plot
The story takes place in the early 21st century (in and around 2007) during a fictional world war between various power blocks: China, the European Union (playable as of the 1.50 patch), the fictional Middle Eastern Coalition (MEC), Russia (playable only in the Special Forces expansion) and the United States. In-game, the European Union and the United States fight China and the MEC. It is known that in the game's story, the EU and the US are allies and the EU has negotiated a peace deal with Russia but it is unknown if China and the MEC are allies. The game takes place in different fronts, as the Middle East and China are being invaded by US and EU forces, and the United States is being invaded by Chinese and MEC forces.Features
Even though Battlefield 2 is a sequel to Battlefield 1942Battlefield 1942
Battlefield 1942 is a 3D World War II first-person shooter computer game developed by Swedish company Digital Illusions CE and published by Electronic Arts for Microsoft Windows and Apple Macintosh . The game can be played in singleplayer mode against the computer game AI or in multiplayer mode...
, there are many changes to the popular gameplay of the original. Many of these new gameplay features were added to the game with teamwork and collaboration in mind. The new game engine includes improved physics, dynamic lighting, and more realistic material penetration.
Squads
Players are able to form squads of up to six soldiers in order to more effectively work as a team. Up to nine squads are permitted per team; each squad has a number (automatically assigned) and name (usually a phonetic alphabetNATO phonetic alphabet
The NATO phonetic alphabet, more accurately known as the NATO spelling alphabet and also called the ICAO phonetic or spelling alphabet, the ITU phonetic alphabet, and the international radiotelephony spelling alphabet, is the most widely used spelling alphabet...
letter) for identification. Members of a squad have the ability to communicate with one another via Battlefield 2s integrated Voice-over IP (VoIP) system.
Members of a squad may spawn
Spawning (computer gaming)
In video games, spawning is the live creation of a character or item. Respawning is the recreation of an entity after its death or destruction....
near their squad leader, provided that the leader is not dead (or incapacitated), and that the team holds at least one control point. This feature allows squads to more quickly regroup after taking casualties.
Commander
The commanderCommander
Commander is a naval rank which is also sometimes used as a military title depending on the individual customs of a given military service. Commander is also used as a rank or title in some organizations outside of the armed forces, particularly in police and law enforcement.-Commander as a naval...
position is an exclusive role played by one member of each team. Any member of a team may apply for the position, but priority is given to players of higher rank
United States Marine Corps rank insignia
Marine ranks in descending order, with tables indicating abbreviations in the style used by the United States Marine Corps, pay grades, and rank insignia:-Commissioned Officers:...
.
Real-time strategy
Real-time strategy is a sub-genre of strategy video game which does not progress incrementally in turns. Brett Sperry is credited with coining the term to market Dune II....
game. This allows the commander an overview of the battlefield as a whole, or zoom in and view parts of the map in real-time. The commander also has control of the various commander assets, which include artillery strikes, vehicle and supply drops, and UAV's. They can deploy them to assist their team. The commander can communicate with squads either by sending orders, or via VoIP voice communication. These tools allow the commander to strategically coordinate their forces on the battlefield.
A commander may resign at any point, freeing the position for other members of their team; they may also be forcibly removed by a successful mutiny
Mutiny
Mutiny is a conspiracy among members of a group of similarly situated individuals to openly oppose, change or overthrow an authority to which they are subject...
vote conducted by their team (provided the server
Game server
A game server is a remotely or locally run server used by game clients to play multiplayer video games. Most video games played over the Internet operate via a connection to a game server...
allows mutiny votes).
Although the commander does not gain points by normal methods (kills, flag captures, etc.), their score is doubled at the end of the round if their team wins.
Awards and unlockable weapons
Players can earn awards (ribbons, badges, and medals) for certain in-game accomplishments. BadgeBadge
A badge is a device or fashion accessory, often containing the insignia of an organization, which is presented or displayed to indicate some feat of service, a special accomplishment, a symbol of authority granted by taking an oath , a sign of legitimate employment or student status, or as a simple...
s and ribbons
Ribbon bar
Ribbon bars are small decorations that are worn by military, police, and fire service personnel or by civilians. Ribbon bars are mainly used when wearing either full decoration, or when wearing medals is considered inappropriate or impractical. Each military force has its own rules on what ribbons...
are the easiest to obtain, while medal
Medal
A medal, or medallion, is generally a circular object that has been sculpted, molded, cast, struck, stamped, or some way rendered with an insignia, portrait, or other artistic rendering. A medal may be awarded to a person or organization as a form of recognition for athletic, military, scientific,...
s are usually much harder, requiring more extensive play. As players ascend through the ranks they will gain the ability to unlock certain weapons. Each time a player is promoted to an eligible rank, they are given the opportunity to unlock one of seven unlockable weapons, one for each class, which they may subsequently use in place of the standard weapon for the given class. Players with the Special Forces expansion are granted an additional seven unlockable weapons. Unlockable weapons include the G36C, SCAR-L, G3
Heckler & Koch G3
The G3 is a 7.62mm battle rifle developed in the 1950s by the German armament manufacturer Heckler & Koch GmbH in collaboration with the Spanish state-owned design and development agency CETME ....
, Heckler & Koch MP7
Heckler & Koch MP7
The MP7 is a German submachine gun manufactured by Heckler & Koch and chambered for the 4.6×30mm cartridge. It was designed with the new cartridge to meet NATO requirements published in 1989, as these requirements call for a personal defense weapon class firearm, with a greater ability to defeat...
, F2000, FN P-90, G36E, L85A1, L96A1, Barrett M95
Barrett M95
The Barrett M95 is a bolt-action sniper rifle chambered in .50 BMG , and manufactured by Barrett Firearms Company.-Overview:The M95 is an improved version of the earlier Barrett M90. It is a bolt-action sniper rifle in a bullpup design...
, MG36 and several others. The FN P-90 and L96A1 were released in Patch 1.2 to complete the missing Tier Two Sniper and Anti-Tank unlocks and also to coincide with the release of the Euro Force Booster Pack which featured them as default weapons of the European Union. Ranks and unlockables apply to all servers which allow them, but only "official" (ranked) servers record and send back stats.
Battlefield recorder
A built-in game recorder records battles for subsequent replay. These files can be downloaded from a server which supports BattleRecorder directly after their respective game. Recorded battle files are around 1 to 8 megabytes in size and are played within the Battlefield 2 engine. Camera angles can be changed (free roaming & selected player), as well as the speed, though there is no rewind capability. Files can be exported to AVIAudio Video Interleave
Audio Video Interleave , known by its acronym AVI, is a multimedia container format introduced by Microsoft in November 1992 as part of its Video for Windows technology. AVI files can contain both audio and video data in a file container that allows synchronous audio-with-video playback...
format. The Battlefield Recorder has facilitated the creation of various machinima
Machinima
Machinima is the use of real-time 3D computer graphics rendering engines to create a cinematic production. Most often, video games are used to generate the computer animation...
.
Usage of the PunkBuster
PunkBuster
PunkBuster is a computer program that is designed to detect software used for cheating in online games. It does this by scanning the memory contents of the local machine. A computer identified as using cheats may be banned from connecting to protected servers. The aim of the program is to isolate...
service is mandatory for all official ranked Battlefield 2 servers, but optional for unranked servers.
Maps
Battlefield 2 offers 15 maps for the players to play but shipped with 12. These maps are diverse, ranging from swamps such as Songhua Stalemate, to urban areas such as Strike at Karkand, to an unfinished dam known as Kubra Dam. The USMC is present in all maps and faces against either the MEC or the PLA depending on the map. PLA is present in Far East theaters such as Dragon Valley and Daqing OilfieldsDaqing Field
Daqing Field , formerly called "Taching", is the largest oil field in the People's Republic of China, located between the Songhua river and Nunjiang river in Heilongjiang province....
. MEC is present in Middle East theaters such as Gulf of Oman
Gulf of Oman
The Gulf of Oman or Sea of Oman is a strait that connects the Arabian Sea with the Strait of Hormuz, which then runs to the Persian Gulf. It is generally included as a branch of the Persian Gulf, not as an arm of the Arabian Sea. On the north coast is Pakistan and Iran...
and Zatar Wetlands. The BF2 series including the expansion and booster packs puts the map count at 29 maps.
Wake Island
Wake Island is a coral atoll having a coastline of in the North Pacific Ocean, located about two-thirds of the way from Honolulu west to Guam east. It is an unorganized, unincorporated territory of the United States, administered by the Office of Insular Affairs, U.S. Department of the Interior...
2007, which is locked at 64-player size and the Euro Force maps, Operation Smokescreen, Great Wall, and Taraba Quarry, which have no 64-player size. 32 and 64 player maps are unavailable to offline players from retailers, but an option is given to download 64 Single player AI bot mods. Other contrasts between these variations other than the size are the number and position of control points and availability of vehicles. As a result, the gameplay of the map is different depending on the variation.
Patch 1.03, released on October 4, 2005, added an updated version of Wake Island, originally from Battlefield 1942. September 5, 2006, Patch 1.4 added the map 'Road to Jalalabad.' June 6, 2007, EA officially released a beta map, Highway Tampa. June 18, 2007, the final version was released. Both versions of the map are ranked Battlefield 2 maps. It is a large map with rolling terrain and favors armored warfare. Versions of Highway Tampa and Wake Island also were released for Battlefield 2142
Battlefield 2142
Battlefield 2142 is a first-person shooter video game developed by Digital Illusions CE and produced by Electronic Arts . It is the fourth game in the Battlefield series...
.
A version of the much anticipated 1.5 patch was released as a beta on 21 April 2009, and then released as a 'final release' on 1 September 2009. It contained a number of fixes for Vista users, as well as a new map, 'Operation Blue Pearl'. It is rumoured to be the final update for the game - the Armored Fury and Euro Force booster packs are also free to play with this version.
Reception
Battlefield 2 has sales of over 2,250,000 copies worldwide, as of July 2006.The game received universal acclaim from critics, garnering an aggregate score of 91% from 55 reviews on Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
. It received five stars out of five from publications Yahoo! Games
Yahoo! Games
Yahoo! Games is the section of the Yahoo! website in which Yahoo! users can play games either with other users or by themselves. The games on the website are typically Java applets or quick Flash games, but there are others which require a download. Many of the games that require a download...
, GameSpy
GameSpy
GameSpy Industries, Inc., known simply as GameSpy, is a division of IGN Entertainment, which operates a network of game websites and provides online video game-related services and software. GameSpy dates back to the 1996 release of an internet Quake server search program named QSpy. The current...
, X-Play
X-Play
X-Play is a TV program about video games, known for its reviews and comedy skits...
and Computer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World
Computer Gaming World was a computer game magazine founded in 1981 by Russell Sipe as a bimonthly publication. Early issues were typically 40-50 pages in length, written in a newsletter style, including submissions by game designers such as Joel Billings , Dan Bunten , and Chris Crawford...
. PC Gamer
PC Gamer
PC Gamer is a magazine founded in Britain in 1993 devoted to PC gaming and published monthly by Future Publishing. The magazine has several regional editions, with the UK and US editions becoming the best selling PC games magazines in their respective countries...
awarded it 94%, stating, "Its finely tuned maps and balanced gameplay prove that you can improve on perfection," and honored it as Game of the Year. GameSpot
GameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
rated the game 9.3 out of 10 claiming that "when you experience Battlefield 2 like it's meant to be played, with everyone working together and using real-time voice chat, the game quickly becomes unlike anything else that you've played before.it is the best game in the world to date-ign"
Some of the lower scores were reactions to the large amount of bugs
Software bug
A software bug is the common term used to describe an error, flaw, mistake, failure, or fault in a computer program or system that produces an incorrect or unexpected result, or causes it to behave in unintended ways. Most bugs arise from mistakes and errors made by people in either a program's...
and glitch
Glitch
A glitch is a short-lived fault in a system. It is often used to describe a transient fault that corrects itself, and is therefore difficult to troubleshoot...
es in the initial release, including crash to desktop bugs and network problems. For example, Gaming Nexus (who awarded the game an 8.7 out of 10) reported, "I’ve had many cool experiences playing it and a lot of 'did I just see that' moments but all of that is crapped on by the bugs and quirks in the game.". Many players have complained that bugs have remained unfixed or were replaced with worse bugs due to poorly tested game patches. For example, patch 1.3 resulted in continuous disconnections with a message of "There is a problem with your connection" (attributed to a problem with leaving the VOIP option on). As of 1.41, most of the fatal errors (crash-to-desktop, "There is a problem with your connection" display) have been fixed, and only a few browser and server problems remain. The official 1.5 patch still has the rank advance, delayed bullet collision detection (ducking behind walls has bullet penetrate through the surface) and VOIP bugs (controversially, the most of obvious and consistent problems in previous versions). Additionally the patch disabled the AI commander, removing the ability to call in artillery, supplies, etc. while not playing as the commander. The 1.5 patch was seen as a simple 'free' add-on for the two upgrade packs, removal of the necessity of having the CD/DVD in the drive, but with no bug fixes - this patch was much anticipated, which would have fixed many of the bugs present in the previous versions. It is the final update for the game.
Games Radar approved of the game, awarding a 90%, but added a disclaimer that the gaming experience is best "if your machine is up to it". GameSpot's review agreed with the high system requirements noting that "the load times are one of the biggest gripes that we have, as you will spend quite a bit of time waiting for a game to start up, even on high-end machines...also a bit demanding in the hardware department."
Server Structure
Although EA sponsors a limited amount of servers, most of the games are actually played on private servers sponsored by individuals and/or groups of individuals who finance the hosting with private funds. Either way, there is no charge for the players to play on them. There are two types of servers to note: ranked and unranked.Ranked servers have to be hosted by an approved hosting company where as all of the statistics and points that are accumulated on that server are recorded via a main bank of EA servers, thereby counting towards the player's global statistics. Because of this many of the server settings such as time limits and player tickets are locked to certain settings to enable a level playing field while the players are accumulating their statistics. To share the cost of a ranked server, many players get together and chip in on a monthly basis to pay for it, at times naming after their gaming clan.
An unranked server, on the other hand, can be hosted by anybody on any private server thereby potentially being free to host. The settings on unranked servers can be changed for many features, such as respawn time, amount of damages, etc. The downside to a unranked server, which is a major factor for most players, is that the statistics and points accumulated are not recorded toward the player's global statistics. Because of this, and the fact that most unranked servers do not show up in the game's search engine, most of the player's are attracted to ranked servers.
Recently, several modders in the gaming community have found a way to have privately ranked servers. These servers have their own master server that records player statistics and functions similar to EA's master servers for global ranking and statistics. However, the players rank and statistics are only available on that specific group of servers.
This private ranking system can work with co-op mode servers where all the human players can play on the same team against computer controlled opponents. It can also work with servers that run one of the many mods of the Battlefield 2 game such as Project Reality or Allied Intent Xtended (AIX). This eliminated much of the "downside" that was part of servers for co-op mode or servers running mods of the game.
Demo
A demo is available for download from major game sites featuring a single map (Gulf of Oman) for both single-player and multi-player. If a player owns the retail version, it is possible to play with unlocked weapons in the demo. Having the retail version will also result in a player's current rank being shown in the demo. The 16-person version of the map has a time limit of 10 minutes; the 32-person version has a time limit of 12 minutes. The 64-person version is unavailable in the demo, though up to 64 players can still play on the 32-person map. EA GamesElectronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
shut down all of its demo servers on November 28, 2005. However, demo client and demo server software are still available for download from BF2 website should players and server operators wish to host the game themselves. Many players still game on these demo servers, with a community numbering at least 100 at a time, a low peak.
Some aspects of gameplay, such as jet combat, are markedly different in the demo compared with the current game. This is due to changes made in recent patches. The demo does not feature rankings, apart from on a couple of servers.
Battlefield 2: Special Forces
Battlefield 2s first expansion pack, Special Forces, first began its development sometime during or shortly before the release of the original Battlefield 2 by DICE Canada: Battlefield producer, Mike Doran, commented in August 2005 that "The truth is that work on Battlefield 2: Special Forces began several months ago.". It was officially announced on July 14, 2005 and released on November 21 of the same year.The focus of the development was infantry-based combat as opposed to vehicle-centric combat from the original. As such, most of the additional content in the expansion pack can only be used by or for infantry.
Power Blocs
US Navy SEALsUnited States Navy SEALs
The United States Navy's Sea, Air and Land Teams, commonly known as Navy SEALs, are the U.S. Navy's principal special operations force and a part of the Naval Special Warfare Command as well as the maritime component of the United States Special Operations Command.The acronym is derived from their...
British SAS
Special Air Service
Special Air Service or SAS is a corps of the British Army constituted on 31 May 1950. They are part of the United Kingdom Special Forces and have served as a model for the special forces of many other countries all over the world...
Russian Spetsnaz
Spetsnaz
Spetsnaz, Specnaz tr: Voyska specialnogo naznacheniya; ) is an umbrella term for any special forces in Russian, literally "force of special purpose"...
- MEC Special Forces
- Rebels
- Insurgents
Players play in eight maps (six of which can be played in singleplayer) with ten more vehicles such as the AH-64D Apache and Mi-35 Hind, though all jets have been removed. In addition to these new contents, players have access to new equipment such as night vision goggles
Night vision goggles
A night vision device is an optical instrument that allows images to be produced in levels of light approaching total darkness. They are most often used by the military and law enforcement agencies, but are available to civilian users...
, tear gas, gas masks, zip lines and grappling hooks which can alter gameplay. There are eight more small arms weapons available such as the G36K/E
Heckler & Koch G36
The Heckler & Koch G36 is a 5.56×45mm assault rifle, designed in the early 1990s by Heckler & Koch in Germany as a replacement for the 7.62mm G3 battle rifle. It was accepted into service with the Bundeswehr in 1997, replacing the G3...
and FN SCAR L/H
FN SCAR
The Special Operations Forces Combat Assault Rifle, or SCAR, is a modular rifle made by FN Herstal for the United States Special Operations Command to satisfy the requirements of the SCAR competition. This family of rifles consist of two main types...
and several weapons from the original are replaced. The expansion offers more awards in the form of badges, ribbons, and medals that players can earn. Finally, many of the weapons from the expansion may be used in the original Battlefield 2.
Official Booster Packs
Booster packs are additional content released for Battlefield 2 that are currently available for free download. The booster packs were later available in retail form as the Booster Pack Collection, containing a DVD which features these packs, as well as being included in "The Complete Collection", containing a DVD with both the original game and all of the expansions/booster packs.Booster packs add a significant amount of content to the game, but are different from expansion packs because they are intended to add to the original gameplay and not stand on their own (such as Special Forces does). The booster packs include new maps, vehicles, and a new European Union
European Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
faction.
The two booster packs were included free of charge in the 1.50 update released on September 1, 2009.
Euro Force
Battlefield 2: Euro Force is the first booster pack, and was released on March 14, 2006. The booster pack allows players to play as a new European UnionEuropean Union
The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 independent member states which are located primarily in Europe. The EU traces its origins from the European Coal and Steel Community and the European Economic Community , formed by six countries in 1958...
army, armed with new weapons and vehicles from the various countries of the EU. It is available for purchase online at the Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts, Inc. is a major American developer, marketer, publisher and distributor of video games. Founded and incorporated on May 28, 1982 by Trip Hawkins, the company was a pioneer of the early home computer games industry and was notable for promoting the designers and programmers...
download service, or as part of the retail Booster Pack Collection. It was scheduled for release in February, but was delayed due to a substantial number of new bugs caused by the release of patch
Patch (computing)
A patch is a piece of software designed to fix problems with, or update a computer program or its supporting data. This includes fixing security vulnerabilities and other bugs, and improving the usability or performance...
1.2. It features a whole new army, 4 new vehicles, 3 new maps, and 7 new weapons such as the L85A2 with AG36
AG36
The AG36 is a single-shot 40 mm grenade launcher which operates on the High-Low System and was designed primarily for installation on the G36 assault rifle, designed by the German weapons manufacturing company Heckler & Koch of Oberndorf am Neckar...
GL, the FAMAS
FAMAS
The FAMAS is a bullpup-styled assault rifle designed and manufactured in France by MAS located in Saint-Étienne, which is now a member of the French government-owned Nexter group...
, the HK53, the HK21,and the Benelli M4. Some of the vehicles for the EU military include the Challenger 2, Eurocopter Tiger
Eurocopter Tiger
The Eurocopter Tiger is an attack helicopter manufactured by Eurocopter. In Germany it is known as the Tiger; in France and Spain it is called the Tigre.-Origins:...
, Leopard 2A6 and the Eurofighter.
The maps include 'The Great Wall of China', against the People's Liberation Army
People's Liberation Army
The People's Liberation Army is the unified military organization of all land, sea, strategic missile and air forces of the People's Republic of China. The PLA was established on August 1, 1927 — celebrated annually as "PLA Day" — as the military arm of the Communist Party of China...
of China, where the EU army is trying to gain a strong foothold in northern China, to reinforce their American allies in the south later on. 'Operation Smoke Screen' features the EU army fighting the MEC in the Middle East for precious oil fields, and the third map, 'Taraba Quarry', where the EU army is trying to reinforce American positions in the south. Mindful of the European plans, the MEC tries to stall the EU, where the Europeans must confront their enemies because that route is the only possible path along that side of the Caspian Sea.
Armored Fury
Battlefield 2: Armored Fury is the second booster pack released for Battlefield 2 and was released on June 6, 2006. It added 3 new maps, as well as two new vehicle classes: attack jets for close air support and reconnaissanceReconnaissance
Reconnaissance is the military term for exploring beyond the area occupied by friendly forces to gain information about enemy forces or features of the environment....
helicopters that operate as a mobile UAV. The booster pack has the USMC defending U.S. soil from invasions from the PLA and MEC. Operation Midnight Sun features the Chinese landing at the Alaskan port Valdez
Valdez, Alaska
Valdez is a city in Valdez-Cordova Census Area in the U.S. state of Alaska. According to 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 4,020. The city is one of the most important ports in Alaska. The port of Valdez was named in 1790 after the Spanish naval officer Antonio Valdés y...
where they are trying to secure much needed fuel from the pipeline. Operation Road Rage is a MEC vs. USMC map, where the MEC are using US Highways to transport units to industrial areas. Operation Harvest sees the United States trying to stall the MEC en route to the capital from the northwest, being blocked in a Pennsylvania Dutch farm, while waiting for reinforcements. New vehicles include Attack or Close Air Support aircraft such as the A-10 Thunderbolt II
A-10 Thunderbolt II
The Fairchild Republic A-10 Thunderbolt II is an American single-seat, twin-engine, straight-wing jet aircraft developed by Fairchild-Republic in the early 1970s. The A-10 was designed for a United States Air Force requirement to provide close air support for ground forces by attacking tanks,...
, Su-39 and the Nanchang Q-5
Nanchang Q-5
The Nanchang Q-5 , also known as the A-5 in its export versions, is a Chinese-built jet ground-attack aircraft based on the Soviet MiG-19. Its main role is close air support.-Design and development:...
as well as new light utility helicopters such as OH-6 Little Bird
Hughes H-6
The Hughes OH-6 Cayuse is a single-engine light helicopter with a four-bladed main rotor used for personnel transport, escort and attack missions, and observation...
, EC-635 and the Z-11. As well as the addition of new helicopters and planes, DICE also added the Muscle Car
Muscle car
Muscle car is a term used to refer to a variety of high-performance automobiles. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines muscle cars as "any of a group of American-made 2-door sports coupes with powerful engines designed for high-performance driving." Usually, a large V8 engine is fitted in a...
and Semi Truck
Semi-trailer truck
A semi-trailer truck, also known as a semi, tractor-trailer, or articulated truck or articulated lorry, is an articulated vehicle consisting of a towing engine , and a semi-trailer A semi-trailer truck, also known as a semi, tractor-trailer, or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) articulated truck...
. However, the proposed AV-8B Harrier was cut from the add-on due to balancing issues.
Mods
Community modders have created a large number of mods since Battlefield 2 was released. Some of these mods are Project RealityProject Reality
Project Reality is an unfinished series of tactical First-person shooter video games which aim to create a realistic combat environment and place great emphasis on teamwork and cooperation...
, Eve of Destruction 2, and Point of Existence
Point of Existence
Point of Existence is a series of total conversion modifications for EA Game's Battlefield series. It began as a modification for the computer game, Battlefield Vietnam. The modification featured content based on a hypothetical conflict between United States and Russian forces in Africa using a...
.