Gamers undecided on Battlefield Play4Free novelty

April 6th, 2011

Battlefield Play4Free launched this week, the latest in a growing line of full-fledged freemium games. How is it?

It's a lot like Battlefield 2 (graphics and all) with unlockable abilities, says Anthony Valva of PC Gamer. 

"Many of the abilities BF players take for granted are tucked away in talent trees," he observes. "What to throw a grenade? Talent point. Want to hold more than one grenade? Place an additional talent point in the grenade talent slot. Want to know which direction you are taking fire from? Talent point. Want to go prone? Sorry, that isn’t even in the game."

Valva goes on to say, "This shift from a shooter mentality to an MMO mentality is going to be a tough transition for gamers to make." At the same time, he praises the gameplay when considering the price of admission. 

"Gripes aside, it’s important to remember that this is a full-featured Battlefield game that is absolutely free to play. I can complain all I want that it isn’t perfect, but I didn’t have to spend a cent to play this. Considering everything that’s offered in BFP4F, it’s an incredible deal. I may not personally like the talent tree design (and I imagine quite a few shooter-purists will feel the same), but I have to admit that it does dangle a lot of enticing carrots in front of me."

Player reactions to the game have so fare been mixed. "No thanks," said Funktapus at PC Gamer. "Meh, I think I’ll pass," added Enad. "I really don’t want Micro Transitions to become popular. They say it's free, but if you wan’t to stand a chance in Multiplayer you must buy buy buy!” Echoed Mac, "I hate 'pay to win' games."

At the same time, many praised the game in initial remarks. "Lots of hate for a solid free game," said Megazell. "I played this with 3 buddies the other night and it was great. I’m personally not into military FPS anymore, but it looks like this is going to be a mainstay for my friends and I from time to time."

Said chrisjr, "You guys are all hating on the micro transactions without out understanding how their implemented. There is NO pay to win. As long as you play somewhat regularly, you have the exact same chances as some one who pays money."

Krayzie Bone had this to say: "This is the best FREE online shooter out there. it’s head and shoulders above the rest. It’s very well balanced even without buying anything. I give it two thumbs up for being free, well made, and fun."

Have you played Battlefield Play4Free? What do you think?