Battlefield 2

Battlefield 2
Battlefield 2 box cover
Developer(s)	Digital Illusions CE
Publisher(s)	EA Games
Engine	Battlefield 2 Engine
Platform(s)	Windows XP only
Release	June 21, 2005 () June 24, 2005 (, )
Genre(s)	First-person shooter
Mode(s)	Single player, Multiplayer, Conquest, Co-op

Battlefield 2 (abbreviated to BF2) is a computer game where players fight in a modern battlefield using contemporary firearms and vehicles. BF2 represents a first-person shooter with some strategy elements.

BF2 was developed by Digital Illusions CE (DICE) with a custom engine for gameplay, physics, and graphics. BF2 is published by Electronic Arts as the third game of the Battlefield series, released in late June of 2005.

The PC version of BF2 includes a single-player mode with three difficulty levels and a multi-player mode via the Internet or a LAN. Both player modes use the same maps and use Battlefield's conquest game mode. Single-player mode allows 15 computer controlled players, while Internet mode allows up to 64 players.

The game received an average score of 90% from reviewers and topped the PC game sales charts from June to August 2005. Battlefield 2 is often compared with the popular Desert Combat mod for Battlefield 1942. Both games take place in modern times and, after the acquisition of Desert Combat developer Trauma Studios by Digital Illusions CE, developers that worked on Desert Combat went to work on Battlefield 2.

A console branded version also exists (for Xbox, Xbox 360 and PS2), named Battlefield 2: Modern Combat, although the game differs quite considerably in execution, content, and gameplay from the PC version.

Story and background

The game portrays a hypothetical war in the near future between three powerful factions: the United States Marines Corps (USMC), China's People's Liberation Army (PLA), and the fictional Middle Eastern Coalition (MEC). The battles, however, only feature USMC versus MEC and USMC versus China; the MEC and China are presumably allied or neutral, as they are never seen attacking each other. As well, the European Union (EU) is never seen attacking the United States in one of the game's Booster packs, and is therefore most likely fighting alongside the United States against these two powers. There is little background to the war aside from what can be gleaned from map briefings, and certain questions, such as why mutually assured destruction did not prevent the countries from attacking each other and if any of the countries retaliated using weapons of mass destruction, remain unanswered.

Unlike Battlefield 1942, the armies use modern weaponry: the Marines use well-known American weaponry such as the M1 Abrams tank and the M4 Carbine assault rifle, the Chinese use a mixture of Chinese-made copies of Soviet weapons like the Type 56, and their own latest modern weaponry, such as the QBZ-95, while the Middle Eastern Coalition uses a mix of old Soviet weapons and newer, more advanced arms from the Russian Federation, like the AK-101.

Battlefield 2 was originally scheduled to be released on March 20, 2005, but was delayed until June 21, 2005 for North America, and June 24, 2005 for Europe and Australia.

Gameplay

The ultimate objective of "Conquest" (Battlefield 2's only official game mode) is to reduce the opposing team's "tickets", an indicator of how many respawns are available to that team. Once a team's ticket count reaches zero, the other team wins the round. Alternatively, it is possible to win a round by capturing all the flags, thereby depriving the other team of spawn points. This is known as "cap-out". Team can speed up the loss of the other team's tickets by capturing "flags". These are spawn points for the team that controls them. Tickets will decline by one for every player on that team being "killed", but if more than certain number of flags are captured (depending on the map), then the opposing team's tickets will start declining over time, in addition to their players being "killed".

The various infantry classes and vehicles provide a variety of methods to attack and counter the opposing team's forces, and in this way, the gameplay resembles a complex game of rock, paper, scissors. This balance is still not quite perfect, for example there is no way for infantry to counter air power, but the patches for the game are being made to address the various issues.

Infantry classes

File:Bf2.jpg

Battlefield 2 screenshot, showing, from left to right, the Medic, Support, Spec Ops, and Anti-Tank classes, on the map Gulf of Oman.

Battlefield 2 has seven classes per team, up from Battlefield 1942's five, and Battlefield Vietnam's four. The classes are:

• Assault troops carry an assault rifle with an attached grenade launcher. An unlockable weapon, the G3A3, lacks a grenade launcher, therefore the player is instead equipped with Frag Grenades. The Assault class can also throw a single smoke grenade to cover friendly forces. When equipped with the unlockable F2000, 3 Flashbang grenades replace the Smoke Grenade. Assault soldiers are equipped with body armor and perform well in most all-out combat situations, capable of holding their own against infantry and transport vehicles.
• Snipers pick enemies off from long range with a sniper rifle, and can plant Claymore anti-personnel mines. Snipers wear a ghillie suit which camouflages their figure amongst tall grass or bushes, although it is less useful in urban combat. Sniper hits are less damaging than in real life due to balancing reasons, requiring a direct hit to the head with any rifle for a one shot kill of a completely healthy target.
• Spec Ops are the only class which carry 5 sticky C-4 explosive charges that can be used to destroy commander assets, bridges, vehicles, and even other soldiers. These charges have a small blast radius in order to avoid killing surrounding teammates. They also carry an accurate, though comparatively weak carbine or submachine gun.
• Engineers have a "magic wrench," which allows them to repair damaged vehicles and strategic locations, such as artillery, bridges and UAV trailers. The wrench can also be used to disarm friendly and enemy AT mines and claymores, the latter only if approached from behind. Disarmed AT mines can be re-used, but disarmed claymores disappear, being unable to be reused by the engineer. Engineers can repair their own transport if they ride in a seat that allows them to use their personal weapons. An engineer in a vehicle also repairs any friendly vehicles in close proximity, regardless of whether or not he is in a seat where he can accesss his wrench. They can also deploy anti-vehicle mines, one of which can destroy any enemy vehicle which travels over it and defend themselves with an extremely powerful but short-ranged shotgun (the upgrade weapon: the H&K MP7 is a SMG capable of a much longer range & more accurate if used properly).
• Medics are armed with a standard assault rifle, resembling the Assault kit's default weapon but without the grenade launcher. They have the ability to heal teammates by either holding their medic bag in hand (thus healing all friendly infantry, mounted or dismounted, within a 5-10m radius) or by tossing medpacks which instantly restore a teammate to full health (this option is temporarily limited by the medic's current amount of bags, however). Medics can also revive "critically wounded" teammates to full health with a defibrillator, however, if the teammate was killed instantly, as is the case if he was blown up inside a vehicle, taken heavy or continuous damage after being wounded (going off the course and getting wounded there, for example), or directly hit by artillery, the medic cannot revive them. The defibrillator can also be used to zap enemy soldiers. Whether the knife or defibrillator is more effective in close combat varies per player preference. The advantage of the defibrillator is that it has a slightly longer attack range while the knife has a shorter attack animation and no need to recharge after each use, during which time, if the player misses, the enemy could notice and/or kill the player. Medics also have the ability to convert any vehicle they are travelling in into an ambulance, healing any player near to or inside the vehicle, including themselves.
• Support troops wield a light machine gun that can provide heavy covering fire, and replenish allies' supplies with ammunition packs (despite having 4 packs instead of 3, they are temporarily limited like First Aid for Medics). Like Assault, this class has body armor. Support soldiers have essentially infinite ammunition, as once they run out all they need to do is equip their ammo bag to automatically replenish themselves. Ammo bags, like Medic bags and Engineer wrenches, are inexhaustible, though they do require some recharge time after extended use. A support soldier in a vehicle is useful as a rolling ammo resupply.
• Anti-tank soldiers have body armor, and both a submachine gun and short-range, wire-guided anti-tank rockets, which destroy lighter vehicles in one hit and can damage heavily armored tanks and APCs. With careful targeting, the rockets can also damage or destroy helicopters, although jets remain practically invulnerable to any ground fire which is not heat-seeking. The anti-tank projectile has a near non-existent blast radius (less than a meter) and deals very little splash damage. A carefully placed anti-tank rocket can be used as a one-hit-kill weapon against infantry opponents (but only if it is a direct hit).

Weapons

Main article: List of weapons in Battlefield 2

Battlefield 2 uses a number of different real-world weapons, however, they do not always perform the same as their real-world counterparts. Weapons are organized according to country and kit, and special unlockable weapons can be used by any country - however, the player must obtain a certain rank to spawn one or more of them. It is possible for a player of any rank to use unlocks by picking them up off dead soldiers.

All classes carry a basic pistol (the pistols of Spec Ops and Sniper classes are suppressed), combat knife and hand grenades, with the exception of Anti-Tank, which forgoes the grenades in order to accommodate a shoulder-mounted rocket launcher, and Assault, which is equipped with a grenade launcher on their default kit weapons. After enough points are earned, players can unlock alternate weapons for each class. For instance, snipers may choose the bulletproof glass-piercing M95 sniper rifle (firing .50 BMG ammunition), and Spec Ops can use a H&K G36C carbine.

Different classes are able to sprint for different lengths of time than others, and have different amounts of body armour. Support and Assault classes have heavy body armour and can sprint for 8 seconds. The Anti-Tank class has heavy body armour as well and can sprint for 9 seconds. All other classes can sprint for 10 seconds, but have no armor protection.

Locational damage is a returning feature of the game, meaning that certain bodyparts on infantry classes (like the head) are weaker than others. Despite the fact locational damage is implemented, the damage model itself remains very unrealistic. For example, a 7.62x51mm Nato bullet will deal significantly more damage (95) than a 7.62x54R bullet (45). Apart from that, weapon potrayal also remains questionable, with recoil close to non existent on some rifles and accuracy on a carbine variant with shorter barrel higher compared to that of the standard variant with a barrel nearly twice as long. Infantry classes can also be momentarily stunned by nearby explosions (by flashbang, grenade, a nearby tank firing, or artillery), temporarily resulting in blurred vision, hearing loss, and slower movement.

Vehicles

File:Abramsbf2.JPG

An M1 Abrams in Battlefield 2.

Main article: List of vehicles in Battlefield 2

The various forces still use the trademark feature of the Battlefield series - the large stable of vehicles that any player, regardless of faction, specialty or experience, can climb into and control. There are many different types of vehicles playable in Battlefield 2. They are all based on real-life vehicles used by the militaries of different countries. However, certain vehicles are incorrectly portrayed. For example, in reality the USMC Desert Patrol Vehicle (DPV) is only used by the Navy SEALs.

All pilotable vehicles take damage from guns, missiles, rough terrain and crashes, and catch fire and explode when they become submerged in water (with the exception of the APCs and RIBs). All vehicles have a damage meter which is lowered with successive damage, and can be replenished by a supply crate or Engineer kit. Helicopters and jets can also be repaired by returning to a friendly helipad or airstrip. Once a vehicle reaches a certain damage level (2.5 bars), it catches on fire and its damage meter automatically lowers until it explodes or is repaired to a safe level (if a hit lowers the damage meter to zero before this, the vehicle explodes instantly). Unlike Battlefield 1942, there are no ground vehicle repair pads. This means that the only methods of repair are via engineer, or the comparatively slow supply drop. This is to necessitate a stronger, more urgent team dynamic, and in a way breaks the sense of dominance tanks had in previous games in the series. All aircraft and helicopters explode or are severely damaged if they crash into any terrain object at a high enough speed, even trees or poles. Being damaged does not affect the vehicles' performance, albeit making them more vulnerable to destruction and causing them to spout black or grey smoke. If a player is standing close enough to a vehicle when it explodes, they will take damage or be killed by the explosion, depending on the size of the vehicle and type of projectile used. Standing next to its charred wreckage when it explodes a second time will also cause some damage, and even kill other players, in which case the player who destroyed the vehicle, either an enemy or from the same team, will be given credit for the kill.

Features

Even though Battlefield 2 is a sequel to Battlefield 1942, there are many changes to the popular gameplay of the original. Many of these new gameplay features were added to the game with teamwork and collaboration in mind. The upgraded game engine includes improved physics, dynamic lighting, and more realistic material penetration.

Squads

Players are able to form themselves into two-to-six-man squads, for better versatility and survivability on the battlefield. Members of a squad have the added ability to communicate to players within their squad via Voice-over IP (VoIP), a method of voice communication integrated into BF2.

The squad leader is tasked with providing objectives to his squad members (such as moving, attacking, defending, repairing an objective) which will appear on their interface as waypoints or coloured smoke markers. The squad leader is also the only person in the team that has full access to the T menu, which consists of the ability to request orders, artillery, UAV support, and supply/vehicle drops from the commander, as well as the only player that is able to communicate directly to the commander via VoIP.

The members of the squad have the option of "spawning" on their squad leader instead of the flag. This can present considerable advantage, for as long as the squad leader is alive, the squad members can keep spawning on him and continue their attack until their objective is achieved.

A maximum of nine squads per side is allowed. Players may be invited to join a squad, and if they accept, they are then moved into that squad. Squads can be locked so that people can only join if they have been invited. Squad members, not leaders, have a minimal T key menu for requesting orders, artillery, and a supply/vehicle drop.

Commo rose

File:BF2-commo-rose.jpg

An activated commo rose replaces the crosshair in the center of the screen.

Players can send preset messages to their teams by way of an in-game popup menu (called a "Commo Rose"). By pressing the Q or T keys, the crosshair is replaced with a "rose" with radio commands arranged in a circle. There are two radio sections; global radio, controlled by the Q key (spotted, need medic, need backup, follow me, etc.) and squad radio, controlled by the T key, which allows squad members to send requests to their squad leader. The squad leader receives an expanded list of squad radio commands, and can give orders to their squad or make requests to the commander.

If a menu is activated while aiming at an object such as a tank and "spotted" is clicked, it recognizes the tank and sends out an "enemy armor spotted" radio message. Units spotted this way are displayed on teammates' mini-maps for several seconds. This function can be overridden by holding the right mouse button, which shows a list of the types of enemies that can be spotted.

Commanders

The Team Commander position is an exclusive role in the team that is assigned via player application according to online rankings. The Commander plays the strategic role of a battlefield commander, assigning objectives to squad leaders and providing artillery, satellite scan, RQ-1 Predator UAV reconnaissance, supply and vehicle drops. When Patch 1.3 was released, vehicle drops were frequently used as "cartillery," as commanders dropped them on top of waiting infantry (killing them on contact), vehicles, such as tanks, jets and helicopters, to which the falling vehicle damaged significantly or destroyed, and enemy commander assets, which could also be destroyed with a well-placed vehicle drop. DICE stated that it is working to fix this problem in Patch 1.4. The Team Commander is like any other soldier on the battlefield in that he chooses a kit, spawns in, can die, etc. The Commander can resign at any time and become a regular soldier, letting others apply for the commander position. If players feel that their current commander is not doing a good job of commanding, there is an option to vote for a mutiny. If an overwhelming majority of teammates vote "yes," the mutiny succeeds and the Commander will be forced to relinquish his role as commander and become a lone wolf.

Commanders do gain points from flag captures, kills or teamwork in addition to points earned from artillery kills. Commanders also earn points equal to the average accrued when his allied team members earn points. The commander that wins the game earns double his calculated points when the game round ends.

Minimap

The minimap shows a white triangle at its centerpoint, representing the player's field of view. It will show the location of nearby friendly units, as well as any spotted enemies. Minimap also displays the kit of nearby players if that kit is requested (i.e. if a medic is requested, a red cross will appear as an icon for nearby medics). Commander abilities (artillery, UAV, vehicle and supply drop) are displayed on the minimap.

Global ranking

Main article: Table of ranks in Battlefield 2

A log of all players' activities, kills, weapon usage, and other achievements on "official" ranked servers is kept, and organised into a ranking system. Rankings are based on USMC military ranks, ranging from Private all the way to General. Once a player's global points reach a certain level they will gain a rank, giving them precedence when applying for the team commander position. These ranks become harder to achieve the higher up the hierarchy.

Awards and unlockable weapons

One can earn awards (ribbons, badges, and medals) for certain tasks accomplished. Badges and ribbons are the easiest to obtain, and medals are much harder, requiring dedication and prolonged play. As players ascend through the ranks they will gain the ability to unlock certain weapons. For each rank gained after the rank of private first class, a player will be granted the ability to unlock one of seven unlockable weapons, one for each class. Players who have the Special Forces expansion have the option to unlock another 7 weapons, and can unlock a total of 2 weapons after each promotion. The ranking system and unlockables can be used on all servers which allow them, but only "official" (ranked) servers record and send back stats.

A detailed list of the awards can be found at Battlefield 2 Awards.

Battlefield recorder

A built-in game recorder records battles for subsequent replay. These files can be downloaded off a server which supports BattleRecorder directly after their respective game. Recorded battle files are around 1MB in size and are played within the Battlefield 2 engine. Camera angles can be changed (free roaming & selected player), as well as the speed, though it cannot be rewound. Files can be exported to AVI format. The Battlefield Recorder has enabled the creation of various machinima films.

Maps

Main article: List of maps in Battlefield 2

BF2 originally shipped with 12 maps, with Wake Island 2007 being added from the 1.03 patch onwards, and Road to Jalalabad being added from the 1.4 patch onward. Depending on the number of people the server is configured to accommodate, the scope and objectives of maps change. However, servers can be set up support more or less than the map is designed for(EX. 64 players on a 16-man map or 56 on a 64-man map)

Single-player mode only allows access to a selection of the 16 player version maps, and several maps are not available at all for single-player, such as the "Kubra Dam" map.

Reception

Battlefield 2 has sold 2,250,000 copies worldwide, as of July 2006.

The game gained widespread approval from critics, receiving an aggregate score of 91% from 55 reviews, including five stars out of five from large reviewing organizations Yahoo! Games, Gamespy, and Computer Gaming World. PC Gamer awarded it 94%, stating, "Its finely tuned maps and balanced gameplay prove that you CAN improve on perfection", later on PC Gamer gave it its Game of the Year award.

Some of the lower scores were reactions to the large amount of bugs and glitches in the initial release. For example, Gaming Nexus (who awarded the game an 8.7 out of 10) reported, "I’ve had many cool experiences playing it and a lot of 'did I just see that' moments but all of that is crapped on by the bugs and quirks in the game." (These problems have been mostly addressed in the post-release patches; however, new, sometimes more severe problems have materialized in their place.) In reaction to the BF2 community's outrage at some areas of gameplay, EA and DICE have added free content such as maps in some patches. They have also started to use a system of open beta patches to better the overall testing of new patches. Games Radar approved of the game, awarding a 90%, but added a disclaimer that the gaming experience is best "if your machine is up to it". (See System requirements)

Awards

E3 2005 Game Critics Awards: Best Online Multiplayer

PC Gamer: 2005 Game of the Year

Demo

A demo is available for download from major game sites featuring a single map (Gulf of Oman) for both single-player and multi-player. The 16-person version of the map has a time limit of 10 minutes; the 32-person version has a time limit of 12 minutes. The 64-person version is unavailable in the demo, though up to 64 players can still play on the 32-person map. EA Games shut down all of its demo servers on November 28th, 2005. However, demo client and demo server software are still available for download from BF2 website should players and server operators wish to host the game themselves .

Some aspects of gameplay, such as jet combat, are markedly different in the demo compared with the current game. This is due to changes made in recent patches. The demo does not feature rankings.

Official system requirements

• Windows XP (32-bit) with Admin rights
• 1.7 GHz Intel Celeron D / Pentium 4 or AMD Athlon XP/ Sempron or greater
• 512 MB of RAM or more
• 8x or faster CD/DVD drive
• 2.3 GB free hard drive space or more
• Video: DirectX 9.0c compatible, must have 128 MB or more memory and one of the following chipsets:
  • NVIDIA GeForce FX 5700 or greater
  • ATI Radeon 8500 or greater
• Sound: DirectX 9.0c compatible (Sound Blaster X-Fi series recommended)
• Multiplayer requires 1 set of discs per PC and a broadband (Cable, DSL, or a faster) connection.

Patches

There have been a number of patches made available since the release of Battlefield 2.

• Patch Update Version 1.01 (officially released on July 6, 2005) was the first patch released for Battlefield 2. However, this patch was later recalled due to numerous bugs (specifically with the menu/browser) on July 8, 2005..

• Patch Update Version 1.02 (officially released on July 15, 2005) resolved the memory error caused by Patch 1.01.

• Patch Update Version 1.03 (officially released on October 4, 2005) resolved, tweaked, and added new content and numerous changes to Battlefield 2 with the addition of a map called Wake Island 2007.

• Patch Update Version 1.12 (officially released on November 22, 2005) accommodated the release of Battlefield 2: Special Forces. There were only few undocumented changes for the original.

• Patch Update Version 1.2 (officially released on February 14, 2006) attempted (unsuccessfully in some cases) to fix several game exploits and gameplay/balance issues, and added two new unlockable weapons (the L96A1 and the P90) and nine new ranks (1st Lieutenant up to General). Patch 1.20 also readied clients for the new Euro Force booster pack. It also made the claymore mine have a longer trip range and made it unrealistically indestructible, which was very ill received by the majority of the community.

• Patch Update Version 1.21 (officially released on March 9, 2006) was a quick-fix to address several bugs and other issues that were introduced with patch 1.20. The patch was followed by the release of the Euro Force Booster pack on March 14, 2006.

• Patch Update Version 1.3 (officially released on May 23, 2006) was one of the major updates to Battlefield 2. This patch introduced a new gameplay mode known as Co-op and reduced the time and difficulty for many of awards requirements. Vehicle drops (later called "cartillery" by community members after the manner in which it was exploited) were added. This patch has also been criticized for introducing a number of new glitches and bugs, one of the most prevalent being servers and clients crashing more than usual.

• Beta Patch Update Version 1.4 (BETA 1 released on July 7, 2006) allowed all Battlefield 2 players to test and provide feedback of this next Battlefield 2 patch. This version introduces a new map called Road To Jalalabad, new gameplay mode: infantry-only, and various fixes and tweaks.

• Beta Patch Update Version 1.4 (BETA 2 released on July 14, 2006) fixed bugs previously reported in Beta 1, tweaked properties of the infantry-only gameplay mode, and updated the map, Road to Jalalabad.

Official expansion packs

Battlefield 2: Special Forces

Battlefield 2: Special Forces Expansion Pack
Battlefield 2 Special Forces box cover
Developer(s)	Digital Illusions CE: Canada
Publisher(s)	EA Games
Designer(s)	Dice
Engine	Battlefield 2 Engine
Platform(s)	Windows XP only
Release	November 21, 2005 (SG) November 22, 2005 (NA) November 24, 2005 (JP) November 25, 2005 (EU), (AU)
Genre(s)	First-person shooter
Mode(s)	Single player, multiplayer

Battlefield 2: Special Forces is an official expansion pack for the computer game Battlefield 2. It includes six new armies (compared to just three in Battlefield 2): U.S. Navy SEALs, British SAS, Russian Spetsnaz and MEC Special Forces, a Russian Rebel group and a Middle-Eastern Insurgent faction. These last two armies are apparently inspired by, respectively, Chechen rebels and insurgents in Iraq, but not named as such in the game. There are ten new vehicles, twelve new weapons, and eight new maps.

This expansion pack is available for purchase via EA's content delivery service, known as EA Downloader, in addition to retail copies. The expansion pack also includes new awards that players can earn, such as badges, ribbons and medals. The day of release of the expansion pack, EA/Dice released a new patch (version 1.12) which fixed a few bugs but mostly added art assets for the original Battlefield 2 game to support the new weapons from the expansion.

New features

• 6 new forces: US Navy SEALs, British SAS, Russian Spetsnaz, Middle Eastern Coalition Special Forces, Chechnya Rebel Groups, and Insurgents.
• 8 new maps: Devil's Perch, Ghost Town, Iron Gator, Leviathan, Mass Destruction, Night Fight, Surge, and Warlord.
• 10 new vehicles: Apache Longbow, MI-35 Hind, ATV, BMP-3, civilian car, technical, Desert Raider, HMMWV w/ TOW, jet ski, and Forklift.
• Night vision goggles, for use in night scenario maps.
• Crossbow-fired Ziplines are provided to the Special Operations and Sniper classes. They provide rapid movement from high locations to lower locations, that may be impossible to reach otherwise. Once in place, the zipline can be used by anyone. After use, the ziplines can be retrieved and reused by any Special Operations or Sniper class that has already used theirs.
• Grappling hooks are provided to the Assault and Anti-tank classes. They can be thrown onto rooftops to be used to reach places that are impossible to reach by conventional means. Alternatively, they can 'drop a line' while already on a rooftop by tapping the secondary fire key to safely climb down or help others to reach a rooftop. Once in place, the rope can be climbed by anyone. After use, the rope can be retrieved and reused by any Assault or Anti-tank class that has already used theirs.
• Tear gas launchers are provided to the Support class. Once deployed, the tear gas is released and creates a cloud that obscures sight, causes intense blurring of vision, and subjects coughing that can give away a soldier(s) position. Tear gas does not discriminate between hostile and friendly infantry, so players should always be prepared to equip their gas mask to protect themselves.
• Flashbangs replace the smoke grenade used by the Assault class. While flashbangs do not interfere with the sight of enemies at long ranges, anyone caught in the effect radius is blinded temporarily. Players are provided three flashbangs instead of one smoke grenade.
• RPG-7s are part of the new anti-tank weapons usable in Special Forces. They are more powerful than the other anti-tank weapons, but can not be guided in flight. They also do not trigger the lock-on warning when aimed at vehicles due to their lack of detectable guidance systems, making them perfect ambush weapons.
• New special forces weapons, such as FN F2000 and the FN SCAR-L.

Booster packs

Booster packs are additional content released for Battlefield 2 that can be downloaded via the EA Downloader for US$10, £6 or €10. Booster packs do add a significant amount of content to the game, but are different from expansion packs because they are intended to add to the original gameplay and not stand on their own (such as Special Forces does). The booster packs include new maps, vehicles, and a new European Union faction.

Euro Force

Battlefield 2: Euro Force is the first booster pack, and was released on March 14, 2006. The booster pack allows players to play as a new European Union Army, armed with new weapons and vehicles from the various countries of the EU. It is only available for purchase online at the Electronic Arts download service. It was scheduled for release in February, but was delayed due to a substantial amount of new bugs caused by the release of patch 1.2. Euro Force is available to purchase and download (370 MB). It features a whole new army and more than 2 new maps, including; 'The Great Wall of China', against the People's Liberation Army of China.

Armored Fury

Battlefield 2: Armored Fury is the second booster pack released for Battlefield 2 and was released on June 6 2006. It added 3 new maps, as well as two new vehicle classes: attack jets for close air support and reconnaissance helicopters that automatically locate enemies. Operation Midnight Sun features the Chinese landing at the Alaskan port Valdez where they are trying to secure much needed fuel from the pipeline. Operation Road Rage is an MEC vs. USMC map, where the MEC are using US Highways to transport units to industrial areas. Operation Harvest sees the United States trying to stall the MEC on route to the capital from northwest, being blocked in a Pennsylvania Dutch farm, whilst waiting for reinforcements. New vehicles include the A-10 Thunderbolt II (part of the Attack Jet class) and the OH-6 Little Bird (as part of the recon helicopter class). However, the proposed AV-8B Harrier was cut from the addon due to balancing issues..

Easter eggs

Battlefield 2 includes a number of easter eggs:

• Fish boxes: Seen on the Songhua Stalemate and FuShe Pass levels, these boxes appear as any other normal box, with illegible writing on the sides. If explosives such as C4 or Grenades are used on the box, the box will explode and fish will land in the surrounding couple of metres.
• Bear boxes: Similar to the fish boxes, these are seen on the Strike at Karkand, Songhua Stalemate and Sharqi Peninsula levels. Unlike the fish boxes, these boxes are plain, with no writing on them. When destroyed with explosives, teddy bears with hearts on their stomachs fly out.
• Crop circles: In the Zatar Wetlands level the player can fly in a helicopter and can clearly see four small and one large crop circles in a field.
• Coins: On maps, such as Strike at Karkand, there are parking meters on sidewalks. When run over, or destroyed with explosives, coins will occasionally scatter across the area. These coins cannot be picked up. The coins cannot be seen with video quality on the "low" setting.
• References to Battlefield 1942: In some levels, like Ghost Town of the Special Forces Expansion Pack, there are posters for the Arabic version of Battlefield 1942. On the Wake Island 2007 map, three old crashed Japanese aircraft, WW2 Zero fighters, can be seen covered in plant growth, and another underwater.
• Warning sticker: In the driver's seat of an FAV, there is a warning sticker on the dashboard, the bottom line of which states "DRINK MORE COLA."
• Blueprint: In the map Gulf of Oman, there is a blueprint of a jet sticking to the side of a crate near the UAV trailer. The blueprint shows the Swedish JAS-39 Gripen.. These blueprints can also be seen on the steel structure on the runway of the MEC airfield in the map Operation Road Rage. This is in reference to Digital Illusions CE: a Swedish game developer.
• Dice Cream: On billboards scattered throughout maps like Mashtuur City and Sharqui Peninsula, there are advertisements for $0.99 "Dice Cream," a type of ice cream, based on the developers (DICE).
• T-shirts: Hanging up on clotheslines are t-shirts with the DICE logo on them.
• Headset: The US Spec Ops kit's headsets have the DICE logo on them.
• Dock tires: Tires on the dock at the River Outpost in Gulf of Oman have Swedish sayings on them.
• Leaping Frog: In Mashtuur City when walking under the small bridge on the west side, a tiny frog will leap into the river causing a small ripple.
• Muscle Car: In the Armored Fury Booster Pack map Midnight Sun, there is a driveable muscle car with the license plate number 2142, a reference to the upcoming game Battlefield 2142.
• Newspaper: In the semi truck in the Armored Fury Booster Pack map Operation Road Rage, if a player looks around the interior of the semi-trailer truck there is a newspaper with a headline that gives a warning about an upcoming ice age, presumably this is the ice age that causes the war in Battlefield 2142
• Billboard: In the Armored Fury Booster Pack map Operation Harvest, as well as Operation Road Rage, there is an billboard with the slogan 'Watch for the future' and a picture of a watch showing the time as '21:42', a reference to Battlefield 2142, as well as a mushroom cloud, hinting that nuclear warfare may have caused the ice age in Battlefield 2142.
• Bumper: On the front bumper of the DPV, there is a painted message saying "Father Oblivion."
• Claymore mines: On the front of the mine the "This side toward the enemy" text is in Swedish, saying "Denna sida mot fienden."
• Stalin: Painted on building walls in maps such as Sharqui Penninsula and Ghost Town is a large likeness of Joseph Stalin.
• Forklift: In the warehouses of the map "Night Flight" there are driveable forklifts.
• Land mines: On the back of the land mine, there are words on it and the last line says panic shot.

Easter egg gallery

• The crop circles in the Zatar Wetlands map
  The crop circles in the Zatar Wetlands map
• The blueprint in the Gulf of Oman map
  The blueprint in the Gulf of Oman map
• The Arabic BF1942 box cover in the Gulf of Oman map
  The Arabic BF1942 box cover in the Gulf of Oman map
• The sticker on the MEC FAV
  The sticker on the MEC FAV
• The location of the sticker
  The location of the sticker
• The muscle car and its license plate
  The muscle car and its license plate
• The billboard ad with the watch, and mushroom cloud. The time on the watch is 2142.
  The billboard ad with the watch, and mushroom cloud. The time on the watch is 2142.
• The T-shirt with the DICE logo on it.
  The T-shirt with the DICE logo on it.

References

www.cky-clan.com for BF2 Stuff.

External links

Official Battlefield 2 website Battlefield 2: Special Forces Website Battlefield 2: Euro Force Website Other Planet Battlefield Total Battlefield 2 Battlefield Files Battlefield 2 Demo BF2Combat Tour of Duty Battlefield 2 Stats Battlefield 2 ranked Stats Formitron Battlefield 2 Stats Battlefield 2 Online Stats Gameslave Battlefield 2 Stats