(This is an old review reprint. This was also my first game given free to me as a journalist) Publisher: EA Developer: DICE Year of Release: 2009 Platforms: PS3, XBLA...

(This is an old review reprint. This was also my first game given free to me as a journalist)

Publisher: EA
Developer: DICE
Year of Release: 2009
Platforms: PS3, XBLA

For many gamers, Wake Island feels like a second home. We first fought over it back in 2001 (in BF1942), we returned again to fight in BF2, we went into the future to battle over its sand blasted shores in BF2142 and now we get to play it again in EA’s new downloadable version of Battlefield, Battlefield 1943.

Taking us back once again to World War 2, 1943 features three maps from 1942, updated and in the Frostbite engine, featured in last year’s hit game Bad Company. This of course brings a whole new destruction system to the game allowing tanks to crash through buildings, bombs to rip tree lines apart and rifle grenades to create cover to hide in. The updated engine also brings the Pacific theatre graphics into the modern day as well as producing some of the best sound effects ever featured in a Battlefield game.

For those of you who have never yet fought over the airfield on Wake, I’ll explain the game mode, conquest. On each map there are a series of flags each side fights to capture. Holding the flags stops a counter from draining automatically and gives you somewhere to spawn both men and vehicles. Players score for capturing points and killing other players (which drains the counter). Games end when the counter is depleted or when the time runs out.

1943 does change the formula slightly. The game now rewards players for defence kills, kills that avenge or save another player or headshots and also give outs stamps on top of that. The major change though for most 1942 players is the drastic change to the class system. No longer do we have the five classes of the original, instead only having three (Rifleman, Infantry and Scout). These classes take the roles of multiple classes, an example is the Infantry class that can repair vehicles, carry an AT weapon and also act as a close combat infantry trooper. This limitation helps to keep the game focused on just pure combat, instead of requiring a 6 man squad, each with the different roles. This change also affects the rest of the gameplay. The game effectively has unlimited ammo for every weapon only requiring a short reload time between each “magazine”. This removes any need for ammo points or guys with ammo bags meaning everyone is shooting each other, as opposed to standing around with an ammo bags.

There are a couple of issues with it, especially on 360. Connecting into the game works most of the time, but every so often there are connection issues leaving you unable to play. This was worse at release then now, but they are still there. Additionally, there are some slight texture issues, as well as black “crack” appearing during gameplay. On a non-technical side, the ranking up system from all the games after BF2 is in this one, but is next to useless as there are no unlocks to gain.  And of course we can’t excuse the players from acting like they always do in Battlefield, so expect many players to not act as a team, and steal all the boats from the carriers. One final failing is unique to 360 users – because it’s a multiplayer only game, you have to have a gold account to play it.

One final comment to make is the Coral Sea challenge which was used during the first few weeks of release to drum up some inter-console warfare. This was a competition to unlock the new mode Air Superiority and the map for it, Coral Sea. This challenge, to get 43 million community kills on each platform, was finished within a matter of weeks. The mode is quite good but really requires you to know how to fly the planes and dogfight successfully.

Overall BF1943 is almost the perfect version of Battlefield if you want a quick pickup and play. Its cheap, quick to play and a big nostalgia hit back to BF1942. However, if you are looking for a game that has a bit more depth to it, Bad Company and the upcoming Bad Company 2 have a much better multiplayer set up and of course the addition of a singleplayer mode.