new features like the much-touted
Levolution send the intensity level
soaring to impressive new heights.
Having maps that evolve as you
wage war on them has been a
Battlefield staple since Bad Company,
but the scale of the destructibility has
never been quite so imposing as it is
here. Siege of Shanghai’s crumbling
skyscraper that was so heavily
featured in BF4’s marketing push is
obviously a particularly memorable
exercise in Levolution, but other maps
feature everything from a collapsing
dam wall to an aircraft carrier that
ploughs into an island. It’s not only the
physical destruction that’s pertinent
either – environmental effects
dramatically alter the nature of maps
as well. Flood Zone’s waters rise as
the map progresses, forcing the use
of boats, while Paracel Storm’s calm
seas become violent when a powerful
storm rolls in.
Even without the spectacle of
Levolution, most of the maps are
masterfully designed (with a few
painful exceptions, as with any
game), offering up a pleasing mix
of opportunity for everything from
the large-scale warfare of the
64-player matches that have become
synonymous with Battlefield, to more
intimate skirmishes between much
38 The OverClocker Issue 27 | 2013
smaller numbers of players. Maps
are also once again destructible on a
less significant scale, many of them
littered with smaller buildings and
foliage that can be torn to pieces.
As usual, there’s a wide variety of
vehicles with which to toy around on
both land and sea, as well as in the air.
There’s a definite focus on improving
water-borne vehicular combat, with
all-new heavily armed boats to use to
pummel the enemy along with small,
nippy craft useful for zipping around
more water-centric maps. And while
we’re on the subject, for the first time
players are now able to draw their
secondary weapon while swimming
so that they’re not completely
defenseless in the water. You’re also
able to dive below the surface of the
water to hide from enemies.
There are a couple of new
game modes to enjoy in BF4, and
Obliteration is the standout mode.
Obliteration sees a single bomb spawn
between the two opposing teams,
and each team must vie for control of
it in order to deliver the bomb to key
enemy points to destroy them. It’s a
heavily mobile mode and the frontline
is constantly shifting, keeping the
fighting strongly concentrated around
the bomb. The intensity of it suits
Battlefield perfectly.