The first gameplay footage of Battlefield 3 is out and oodalolly has it gotten me excited to see more. There are a few improvements to gameplay that can already be seen in the few seconds that were revealed in the trailer. Do you see what I see?
Single Player Campaign
The first scenes show a soldier walking out of an APC from the first-person perspective and a military commander presumably briefing a mission on a map laid out on a table. Dice has already mentioned that Battlefield 3 would feature a single player mode, but unless the multiplayer is a lot more in depth than I think it is, these scenes (and the rest of the trailer) are most likely from the single player campaign. Dice has also mentioned that the single player campaign will be taking place in a variety of locations and, already, the Kurdistan level looks fantastic with amazing indoor and outdoor scenes that look like they are taken right out of a live-action movie.
Destructible Environments
The Frostebite 2 engine is supposed to be a huge step up from the Bad Company games. It’s supposed give players the ability to interact with an even more destructible environment. At one point in the trailer, soldiers are crawling (hell yea, prone!) behind cover while bullets are ricocheting off of walls taking chunks off with them. Hopefully, this is displaying the player’s (and enemy’s) ability to chip away at walls and buildings using gunfire to disintegrate cover. This, in addition to the complete destruction of the environment with explosives, would give the gameplay completely new considerations in terms of taking cover. In other words, don’t stay behind that wall too long or there will not be a wall there to hide behind.
Breach Doors
Well, it looks like there is more than one way to open a door other than cutting it down with a knife. Battlefield 3 is looks like its is taking a more realistic approach and possibly giving the player the ability to bash doors in. Granted, this might just be a set piece from the single player campaign but how awesome would it be to take this feature and use it in the multiplayer. Breaching and clearing buildings would be the ultimate in squad teamwork and communication, which would probably only be possible with a coordinated group of friends or clan and never with random players online. But hey, it would be awesome nonetheless.
In-Game Legs
One of the biggest peeves about most shooters, even recent ones, is that you are never able to see your own body when you look down. It is something small, but I think it adds a lot to the immersion of the game when you know you are not just a floating head bobbing around with an arsenal of weapons. Battlefield 3 has added player’s bodies into the game! Nice little touch.
Drag the Injured
It may be a little unclear, but there is an instance in the trailer where it looks like the player is dragging the body of another soldier. According to the official Battlefield 3 website, the ability to drag fallen comrades is in the game.
Feel the Battle — Feel the impact of bullets and explosions, drag your fallen comrades into safety, and mount your weapon on almost any part of the terrain.
Whether this will be a feature in multiplayer mode and what benefits it could have during a multiplayer game is anyone’s guess — especially if the medic class still has the ability to revive in an instant. Who knows, maybe that has changed.
Those are the minor features I could pick out from the new gameplay trailer and I’m sure that there are a million more. If you noticed anything particularly exciting, let us know in the comments below.
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