8.3

Battlefield 3: Close Quarters DLC
Available on PC (Reviewed), PS3 & XBox 360

EA and DICE where proud parents to send over code to check out Close Quarters, the new DLC for the Battlefield 3 franchise. After playing around with the game and the modes and battling through the different maps, I say proud they should be.

If you’re a premium member then you would be getting all the DLC as it comes out, ahead of non-Premium members. Some of the DLC that is coming down the pike for Battlefield 3 is expanding the game to just mind blowing maps and extras and tactical situations that just make the game all the more interesting.

The latest DLC “Close Quarters” is one of a few planned DLC packs. This one as the name implies, Close Quarters is the second themed expansion pack for Battlefield 3, and rather than expansive maps, and city fighting, the maps brings opposing forces in close and personal with indoor environments; from single level structures to multi-level structures and garage levels.

With “Close Quarters” you get four new maps and two new game play types and some nifty new weapons.

The two new game modes are Conquest Domination and Gun Master. It is based on Conquest, but things happen a lot faster here. The time goes even faster when more of a team is on a flag. Teams fight over the flags, and as the game progresses the team that has the least flags is in trouble. One respawn ticket is taken away every few seconds. As the other team takes casualties and they have to revive and respawn, this takes away even more respawn tickets. When there are no more respawns that team that is out of them, is the one defeated.

Gun Master is the other game mode. The two teams fight it out in this gun heavy mode. All players start out with the same weapon, and advance during the game, after earning a couple kills the next weapon unlocks for that player. This is displayed by a meter in game and during respawns.

Ah and then of course the maps. All of the maps have been designed to exploit different tactical issues. Some players may not give a hairy hankie and will just continue to try to play as they normally do, and yes they do I have seen it. As they rush head long crazy through the map. Do they take others out even in these new maps? Yes they do. But when a team starts coming together with supporting fire and moving together in mutual support and clearing areas, those other types of players quickly become toast.

That in itself is the real trick; I know the frantic crazy close in battles that these maps had been meant to bring forth. Can you enjoy them without thinking tactical and going deeper into the game? Sure, but oh man, when a team starts clicking and working together it is phenomenal.

Each one of the maps has their own sets of tactical challenges, whether or not the designers meant it to be as tactically challenging as some areas are, I do not know but I applaud them in the designs.

Donya Fortress offers some interesting tactical challenges. With multiple indoor and outdoor levels, small rooms and wide open kill box areas. Some of the lower levels and dark basements are perfect for a tactical light.

Operation 925 is the next map, a multi-level indoor map. Filled with a bottom level parking garage, again darkened areas offer some danger points. The parking level also has cars spaced out that can be utilized for cover. There are board rooms and meeting areas and a front lobby. Long hallways give little cover other than the small offices that you can duck into as needed. Walkways and stairwells also offer up some tactical tension. The stairwells here near the front offer up subtle but nail biting tactical issues. The stairway has a turn between floors. At one point I fell in with a team of other players and as we mounted the stairs each of us stacked up and provided cover for our zones depending on our positions. It was one hell of an experience. With that blind turn, Player one at the top of the line covered our direct front, Number two covered number one and the top row of stairs, and so on. Tail end Charlie covered our backs and a good thing too as an enemy came around the corner and was cut down in short order. We moved on up and continued.

Scrap Metal is the next map. With interior dark warehouse fighting, full of close in places and all sorts of warehouse items for cover. Then also on the roof tops, bright and clear sight lines all around and all the way to another warehouse.

Ziba tower is the next one, with plenty of windows and rooms. This place looks like a swank penthouse or some corporate getaway penthouse. There are plenty of larger rooms and adjoining rooms. Several points of interest on the map offer challenges since there are multiple approaches to many of the areas.

There is some Battlefield 3 players that may not like that Battlefield 3 brought some of these styles of maps to the fray, kind of Call Of Duty Duty looks…DICE has put a lot into the game with the weapons balances and patches over time and has done a darn good job of it. Why not cover the different types of battle a war would bring? The title of the franchise says it all. It is Battlefield…throwing the player different battle situations and environments, just like the real world…only with respawns….

The overall lighting effects in this new set of maps is really well done, with shafts of light in some areas, slow embers from recent burned out husks of cars in another, surrounded by the dark foreboding atmosphere of a underground car park.

Then of course there is the massive destruction that takes place. Walls and items burst and shatter, exploding in a cascade of debris from gunfire and explosions. This tends to make things even more chaotic in a gun battle. It also changes the environment a bit. Furniture, fixtures, walls and windows, almost nothing is spared from damage effects. A plaster wall that a player seeks refuge behind can be blasted and nod this forms holes and large parts of the wall can then be eliminated. You can then fire through the holes because you can now see into other rooms and it offers a lot of tactical and interesting situations as the environment and ever so slight site lines change.

One strange little incident which I have not been able to re-create as of yet, was that I got stuck in some of the environment. I tried jumping in place a few times and just opening up with my weapon. I soon became unstuck…it was odd indeed.

Battlefield 3 Close Quarters does its job well. Expanding on an already excellent game and bringing a different flavor to it. The expanding of the Battlefield and situations keep things fresh and interesting and things look like they can only get better with even more expansions coming down the pike.

For now Battlefield 3 Close Quarters brings even more frantic gun battles and some very welcome tactical challenges for players to overcome and to exploit.

Have fun, play games…

Join the Battle!
Edwin Millheim
Impulse Gamer

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