I suppose the appropriate thing to do is to provide a spoiler alert before divulging details of the Battlefield 4 campaign. And there it was. But really, is anyone worried that any of the game's plot will be revealed to the detriment of game players? Don't. To be honest, I've played through the campaign twice now and I'm still not really sure what happened because none of it seemed to matter.
To be fair, I will accept my share of the blame for not paying attention. But the game very much runs through the checklist of "what a gamer expects in a military shooter." There is the male camaraderie in an elite unit, frequent use of the f-bomb, a tortured interrogation, exotic locales, a couple of "shocking" decisions to be made, and huge set pieces. The last of which leads to a "thrilling" end of the mission sequence of falling... and falling... and falling.
Really? Before game's end, matters seem more silly than anything. I appreciate the effort of the moment but not the effort, or lack thereof, to create the moment. The thing is, there are only seven total campaign missions and three of them end like that?!
But there are other things, "throwaways" that reek of going through the motions. In the second clip, when the trams falls, you'll note Dima. As best I can recall or retell, Recker (the protagonist and player's character) and Irish get captured by the Chinese. There is the interrogation with first person view of electric shock and when Recker comes to, he finds himself in a cell with Dima -- a scarred fellow with accent, shank, and a plan to escape the prison in the cold mountains by crushing a hole through the decaying, concrete walls of the prison. And so Recker helps Dima, meets up with Irish, joins up with Hanna who didn't really betray you and shoots the group's way to the tram. The "helo" from hell shoots the tram down and Dima dies a free man.
The scene cuts to off-screen dialogue by the ship's commander wondering about the whereabouts of "Tombstone" squad and the next mission finds Irish, Hanna and Recker in a vehicle in a desert, two days later, without food or water in the meantime. Luckily, Hanna and Irish have a chance to talk things over where they develop an increasing amount of respect for the goals they both seek, the pasts through which both struggled, whatever they may be. Nice.
The story seriously continues like this right up to the very end... and end.. and end. Yes, the game has three endings and there are chivos associated with each. Again, Recker, Irish and Hanna find themselves in quite the predicament. Sent out to destroy the enemy warship, Recker, Irish and Hanna must choose how to sink the boat when the explosives malfunction -- the rub being that each choice requires a sacrifice. Both Irish and Hanna want to sacrifice themselves for their own reasons, reasons of which I'm not completely sure. I understand Irish thinks it important for Hanna to help her people through whatever future awaits. Take too long to choose, and the Valkyrie, the ship you went through all the trouble of saving, sinks with Tombstone member Pac aboard.
How it plays out is an option is chosen, a brief voice over recalls happier times, or sadder, and the credits roll. Then, the mission is restarted and the next option is chosen, the chivo earned, and the credits roll. And then the third option is chosen, etc. It does not have to played like that, but why play through the whole thing again? The final campaign mission is fairly short so getting to that fateful moment requires the blasting of a few dozen non-descript enemies.
"Trust is earned." Don't trust Battlefield 4 campaign for anything more than a by-the-book, over-the-top, trite run through the motions that means little but a chance to earn chivos and find collectibles. I guess for me, that's enough.
Posted with Blogsy