Will BFBC2 rescue the PC FPS community from the malaise it’s in after the MW2 fiasco or will it simply make things worse?

The goal we set for this cast was to determine whether DICE deserves some of the negative feedback they’ve recently received from the community or whether we truly are getting what they have been promising us all along.

Lack of a console, modding tools and private dedicated servers have made people questioning whether the PC hardcore community is an endangered species.

To help us resolve whether BFBC2 will be simply a MW2-style console port, or will it be a full-fledged PC game that will capture our attention for years is long-time Battlefield admin

John aka Jag-Five-O from thecompanyhub.com

and Battlefield competitive gamer and caster

Martin aka “nkm” from TeamRush http://www.teamrusheu.com.

Among the topics discussed in today's cast:

 
1. The Beta: It begins on the 28th of Jan and ends on the 25th of FEb. We'll be playing the Port Valdez map, 32 player servers, Game mode will be Rush. It's Russian versus American teams in Alaska. We have Main Battle Tanks, Quad bikes and mobile AA in the snow.

- How do I get to participate in the Beta? Why is it a closed Beta?
- Will EA get Steam to push out Beta keys?
- Has the closed Beta pissed off the community?


2. It appears that DICE has a narrow definition of what a dedicated server is.

EA will not be distributing dedicated server software to the general public. Meaning that the only dedicated servers will be officially sanctioned ones...and if past practice is any indication...they are quite pricey...$1500/yr is a dollar figure I have heard bandied about.

The Battlefield Blog states: "There are many factors for why we have decided this with the biggest factor being security and integrity of our game & Dedicated Servers."

- Will clans be able to host their own servers?
- How will the EA dedi server system work?
- Is piracy the real reason to block public dedi servers?
- Will the system have matchmaking?
- Is this any different from past BF practice?
- Is it a deal breaker for the community? Has DICE gone back on their word?


3. DICE producer Gordon Van Dyke said there would probably not be any mod tools available day one of release. Part of this was due to the fact that BFBC2 is using the new Frostbite engine and creating ModTools was a bit beyond their reach at the moment.

News from DICE this past week has made it official. No mod tools

- What does this mean? No Custom maps?
- How is this different than past BF games?


4. According to DICE dev Johan Anderson, who tweeted the words “No Console” a few days ago in response to a pointed question, Bad Company 2 will apparently not have a means to direct input client-side commands into the game. Basically, this would have been similar to the ~ command in CoD.

EA stated this on their official forums "We have not removed a console from BC2. The simple reason is that BC1 and BC2 never have had an in-game console. Which also means that the game won't be possible to hack in this regard.”

- Why the anger? Is it just CoD guys making all this noise?
- What does NOT having a console mean to the average player?

5. With respect to the competitive community. They had a wishlist of things they wanted with BFBC2:

- an objective game mode similar to S&D...
- the ability to mod the game...
- First person spectate mode...
- Battlerecorder....

...did they get any of them?

- Will BFBC2 allow hardcore competitive tournaments and online competitive gaming?
- What will happen to the BF competitive community?

6. How has DICE been as a dev during this release?

7. With MW2 and possibly now BFBC2 not meeting some of the hardcore communities bare minimums, is FPS on PC truly dead?

8. Is this game a console port?

9. Has all the recent BFBC2 news been a deal breaker for you? Will you be buying it?

10. Some are talking about BFBC2 being an MW2 killer. Will BFBC2 be anywhere near MW2 in popularity, either in PC or console sales....how do you see it?

Comments