Making The BF Series Great Again Will Take a Big Jump By DICE/EA!

I have been playing the Battle Series since BF1942 first came out in September 2002. The biggest problem I have as do many others is lack of new Ranked Server Content, and the non stop DICE/EA Bashing. While They do deserve it, and I have been one of the worst this does not move us or DICE/EA in the right direction. So I wrote the following article hopping that DICE/EA would stumble across it and maybe take notice and see the advanages for the Community & themselves. Of course Booster Pack sales would not work if they did do something like this, however I think overall sales of the main titles, and increased longevity of the game would more than make up for it. As of this date It's a little late in the life of BF2  for more booster packs.

Anyway, here is the article along with a section I wrote on OPK to prove a point.  Who knows maybe this will help.



Making the BattleField Series Great Again!

The Battlefield series Can Be Great Again, but it will take Major Changes!
August 16th 2006 - by Bama


I am not a big supporter of the BF2 Ranking and Stat System. I feel that it takes away from the Team aspect of the game play, however I also believe that no matter what, this is not going to change. BF2 is stuck with this Rank/Stat System, and the BF2 Mod Community will soon die because of it. This slow death of the Mod Community perceived or not by players, EA/DICE, and even the Mod Community is very, very real. The problem we all face is player mentality with the Rank/Stat System, and every Mod, no matter how good have a direct and unfair competitor in the this System. It does not matter if you are for the Rank/Stat System or not. What does matter is that the vas majority do love their Stats, and while they may play a new Mod they will be back for their stat fix in short order. The very talented BF2 Mod Community is most definitely adversely effected by the Rank/Stat System with this Player mentality regardless if they will admit it or not. Another problem is after 14 months of BF2 we have a bunch of worn-out, and very stale Maps. These levels have been played so much that they have become very boring. The BF2 Community has been supplied with only one new ranked map in 14 months "Wake_Island", and one more coming with the 1.4 patch "Road_To_Jalalabad", which will also get old and stale quickly. Yet even with very little new content for the Ranked/Stat server System these players will continue to play these old and boring maps just to get their Rank & stat fix, but in fewer numbers with each passing day. 


The Downside is that much sooner rather than later the BF2 Mod Community will dissolve, blown to the winds, and the BF2142 Mod Community may never be born. Why? Simple logic, if after thousands of man hours of hard and enthusiastic work their great creation i.e. Modification, no matter how good it might be, is not played then all of the Gaming Communities suffer. Even the Gamming Industry it self will suffer down the road as great potential Game designers have left the marketplace. All because of their disappointing experience with an unfair completive advantage by this Rank/Stat System. However there is hope because there is an answer to this problem, but can DICE/EA see it?


An example of a Very Good BF2 Mod.
Myself along with some of my Clan Brothers recently played the Mod called Operation PeaceKeeper .15 "OPK" for the first time, and I was really taken aback by this great modification. OPK beats any Mod I have seen to date even the original BF2 it self. This German Mod Team really outdid themselves in every aspect of this Mod, Overall design and input of new personal weapons, Vehicles, Vehicle Physics, and skins of all types. If I had to pick just one thing this Mod team excelled at it would be the seven custom maps that were provided with OPK. Literally pieces of art, these maps are out of this world, and the very best I have ever seen. While the eye candy abounds the low poly count playability, and balance is fantastic. Six of the sever maps come in 16, 32 and 64 player versions. Even the 64 player versions while filled with very high detail, and all kinds of new renderings seem to have no graphics lag at all. The thought which has gone into these seven maps shows a superior level of skill than I have seen to date, and this includes DICE. Upon release of OPK .15 servers running the mod were as high as 300 plus for several nights, but by day 5 they are down to 50 servers. Remember Player mentality and the Rank/Stat System. Operation PeaceKeeper is just one example of many new and exciting Mods expected to be released soon. I sincerely hope all this talent was not in vain. 


As I stated above there is an answer to this problem, which will benefit everyone, the mod community, the players, and of course DICE/EA. The answer does require that DICE/EA step up to the plate and except the fact that there are some modifications that equal or surpass the original BF2, and through what ever process DICE/EA wants to apply each mod presented should be tested, reviewed, and the mods that qualify allowed to be placed on Ranked Status. Approved Ranked Mods would only be allowed on DICE/EA Approved Ranked servers. This would have several very positive effects, the first would be to re-establish respect & strong support for DICE/EA within the entire BF2 Community, and any EA published game in the future. Secondly it would totally rejuvenate the Mod Community giving them something to shoot for and even creating a higher level of quality output. Thirdly, it would increase play on every Ranked server on-line, and even bring back many players who left in discus over the last year for what ever reason. Finely, and I'm sure would be top on the DICE/EA list, would be many new sales of BF2, and BF2142. The open beta of the 1.4 patch and the up coming open beta of BF2142 does show sweet signs that DICE/EA are trying to move in the right direction. I think that by it self the open beta is just to little to late, but if they couple the open betas with allowing approved modification to be placed on approved ranked servers then DICE/EA will have created something great. Simply put, not stepping up and moving innovatively forward will relegate BF2 to just another mundane, and buggy FPS that can cause the loss of many future dollars in product sales for DICE/EA.

In conclusion:

1) A few modifications to be considered, OPK, Desert Conflict, POE2, Rising Conflicts, and there are many more.
2) Possibly expanding ModLight to aid in Mod selection should work beautifully.
3) What ever decisions are made to make the Battlefield series great again DICE/EA must to do it quickly!
4) We Pray that this article will not be in vain!




Thank You For Taking The Time To Read This.