Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Vietnam Review

Battlefield: Bad Company 2 was a revelation for PC first person shooters. The bigger Battlefield maps with a more streamlined class system and unlocks(which was a common thing with console shooters) made Bad Company 2 a lot more approachable than previous Battlefield games(even if the 32 player count was a drop from the massive 64 players of Battlefield 2). This is certainly reflected by the popularity of Bad Company 2 for the PC with the masses. So it goes without saying, I was pumped that the expansion, Bad Company 2 Vietnam, is now available. Is this a glorified map pack? Read on…



Let’s get this out of the way first, Vietnam doesn’t introduce any new game mode. This is a multiplayer only downloadable expansion. You have the usual stuff from Bad Company 2, the standard Battlefield game mode, Conquest to the excellent Rush mode. If you’re unfamiliar with any of these modes from Bad Company 2, you might want to read my review of Battlefield: Bad Company 2 here.



Battlefield: Bad Company 2 Vietnam brings with it 5 new maps, Phu Bai Valley, Vantage Point, Hill 137, Cao Son Temple(a Battlefield: Vietnam map) and Operation Hastings which is locked for now. Operation Hastings will be unlocked by DICE when everyone(PC, PS3 and XBOX360) has collectively made 69 million team actions. So for now, there are four maps that are playable in both conquest and rush mode.

Vietnam brings new sides(Americans and Vietcong) and completely reworks all the weapons, and vehicles in the maps. You no longer get the newbie friendly red dots and in place of that, all weapons use iron sights(yeah suck it newbies!). It is essentially the same Bad Company 2 multiplayer experience but certain things have changed.



There are trenches in Vietnam, which means the new flamethrower weapon is extremely useful. Unlike in modern warfare which trench warfare has gone extinct, Vietnam did indeed feature some trench warfare. Some of the maps features them in certain chokepoints and capture points. And boy is it fun using your flame thrower to burn up guys there.

Speaking of the maps, these are some of the best designed maps in this series(Bad Company). There are a lot more alternate routes to capture points than in Bad Company 2. And some of the alternate routes have drawbacks to them, like Hill 137’s alternate route to the final capture point is though this cave. You are extremely vulnerable to grenades in here and could loose entire squadrons if the enemy spams grenades in here. Which at times, they do. And it looks kind of a cheesy tactic to constantly spam them into the cave.



Vantage Point is one of those narrow maps in Conquest where there is a capture point near both sides starting point and one more in the middle. Plenty of chokepoint with river crossings and bridges. Phu Bai Valley is a more open map with more variety within it. Not only are the maps fun to play in, but they look stunning. DICE certainly has done some voodoo to make things look pretty. Maybe it’s just the more tropical setting but compared to some of the snow maps in Bad Company 2, this is much more pleasing to the eye.

The villages on the map look authentic from the bamboo huts right down to the terraced rice fields. Although frankly, I’m not sure how authentic terraced rice fields are to Vietnam, does anyone know? There’s some breath taking views like the bombed out final Vietcong base that is totally scorched from napalm and artillery shells in Hill 137. A sight to behold.



DICE has done another top notch job on the audio design for Bad Company 2 Vietnam. Vietnam era music blasts from vehicles ‘as seen on TV’!, like in episodes of NAM Tour of Duty. It gives it that NAM Tour of Duty feel, over the top, rugged, and just wild. It’s not a huge addition, but little things like these really make the whole experience special.  

So the ultimate question is… Is it worth buying this downloadable expansion? If you liked Bad Company 2, it’s a no brainer. Vietnam offers the best maps and a better experience than the vanilla maps. For only about SG$19.90(Singapore Dollars), you get a brand new Bad Company 2 experience, albeit a little limited to the 4 that is unlocked at the moment.


Pros:

• Maps look gorgeous
  
• New weapons and new tactics
  
• Well designed maps
  
• Awesome music in game and vehicles
  
• The audio is top notch as usual from DICE
  
• As in all Battlefield games, team work is very important in this game

Cons:

• No new achievements or pins/medals
  
• Only 4 maps unlocked at the moment

Verdict: Bad Company 2 Goes Back To Vietnam!