Team Work

No game has offered me a more rewarding multiplayer team-orientated experience than Battlefield 3. Considering the number of games that I’ve played online over my seven years of Xbox Live, that’s a terrific accolade.

So you can probably see why I didn’t understand why a few people on my friends list weren’t impressed with it – I was thoroughly confused. Then I made the genuine mistake of playing with random players, just a quick match to see where the game took me and it suddenly all made sense. If you’re not playing with communicative and active team players, this game is worse than bad, it’s depressing.

If you’re a regular Battlefield 3 player, you know that getting stuck on the opposing team when everyone else in your Xbox Live party is working together is a miserable experience. Jumping into a tank or a helicopter only to find the person piloting it is not part of your squad is considered as stealing a vehicle. I can hear it in people’s voices when they realise they’re on “the wrong side”, it’s like realising you’ve gone to the wrong cinema to watch a movie with friends.

Our very own Simon Allen tweeted that he thought the game was appalling and that he was going to trade it in as soon as possible. I was so shocked that I asked him to play with some of our regulars before he did so. I think everyone should experience the game in the environment under which it was designed before making a judgement.

Outside of Battlefield 3, I’ve come to realise that just playing in the same game with friends isn’t enough. I’ve got a big enough friends list to mean there’s segments that don’t play the same game the same way I do and it changes my experience completely. Before Battlefield 3, I spent most of my time playing Call of Duty and whilst the Xbox Live parties playing Ground War are sociable, it’s more like being down the pub with friends.

Now don’t get me wrong, I love spending time online hurling hot lead mindlessly whilst catching up (just ask Duncan and Laura) but it doesn’t give me the same sense of achievement. The reason is that whether our team wins or loses, we only really care about our personal KDRs. When we win a game of Battlefield 3, it’s because everyone played their part. I start enjoying the fact we won before the scoreboard comes up and that feeling is extremely addictive, just ask Tony.

So this is a plea to all those who’ve bought Battlefield 3 and haven’t yet taken an active, communicative role in a game they’ve had with friends – just do it. If you can only find one other person to play with, form up as a fire team and work together. When I first started playing the game it depressed me but now I might as well glue my drive shut.