Battlefield 2 on the PC never failed to be an addictive and compelling experience. Whether you had the most future-proof hardware or a creaking dinosaur of yesteryear, it didn't matter. Accompanying a small fraternity of friends to camp out at the nearest soon-to-be Black Hawk was an adventure in and of itself, and that's not to mention the firefights, the bombing runs, and the occasional yet hilarious team kill. Its console counterpart, however, was something different entirely. To the dismay of battle-hardened mouse clickers everywhere, Modern Combat failed hit the target, just barely perforating its edges [Perhaps it's because I never played the PC version, but as you can see from the Modern Combat review, I loved it! Ed]. Plastic weaponry, reduced scale and a general lack of graphical polish contributed to a more 'arcadey' feel. This may have gone largely unnoticed for those new to the series, but it proved to be an outright disappointment for hardcore fans. It also reiterated a commonly shared ideal; translating a PC franchise to home consoles usually produces less than spectacular results. By no means was Modern Combat a bad game; it just wasn't a great one either.

It's for this reason that I entered the Battlefield: Bad Company Beta with minimal expectations. After downloading the beta, I eagerly attempted to join a game - any game - in the hope that my doubts and low expectations would be proven wrong. Soon, several minutes had passed, as each time I was greeted by disconnects or other connection errors. However, this is a beta, a game still under development, and a popular public beta at that. It was probably a little unreasonable to expect that everything would flow smoothly, although I have every right to demand that in the final release.

After returning to the beta sometime later, I began to play on Oasis (one of the two maps available), a valley-like, Middle Eastern themed map that's blanketed with sand, trees and foliage, and populated by sporadically placed vehicles, buildings and the occasional actual oasis. I soon noticed the contrast between the wider, open areas and the more claustrophobic, tighter areas between groups of buildings. With terrain height being considerably erratic in places, I discovered that the ground would sometimes dip and rise enough to avoid enemy scopes and that sticking to these areas was best, as strolling out into open sight will more than likely get you killed. When not in the heat of the battle zone, clusters of structures and terrain spikes act as static body armour - a means of staying alive - but when exchanging fire, running and gunning between these buildings is the only means of taking cover and the key to avoiding the respawn timer.

On Oasis, following the objectives marker on the HUD usually brings you to concrete of some kind, and this is where the structure deformation comes into play. Almost any building, whether it's a house, barracks or bunker, can be ripped a new one or two - given enough firepower. Playing a game of hide and seek with hostile bullets has been given a new dimension; instead of scrambling around a building to find the front door, you can simply make your own. The same can be said for enemy strongholds; you don't have to go around the perimeter - now you can simply plough through it. The trade off of course is that a building that you're using for cover can soon be reduced to piles of nicely rendered bricks and mortar, meaning that you'll have to rethink strategies and that rarely are you truly safe from attack.

Now, place a few pennies in a box, seal the box and place the box and several others in strategically specific positions in a war-heavy, battle-scarred environment. Grab some weapons, maybe a shotgun and a sniper rifle, a few vehicles - a tank, perhaps a helicopter. Recruit twenty-four players, twelve per team, wind-up and let go. This may not be the best description of Bad Company's Gold Rush mode, but it's certainly the most accurate. Each side must duke it out to either attack or defend a number of containers that contain gold, no less. Meanwhile, in true Battlefield fashion, a bar representing reinforcements degrades gradually for every death that each team incurs. Though not radically different from previous titles, it doesn't really have to be, given that it's always worked so well.

One aspect I do have a quarrel with however is the supposedly destructible environments. Slamming a grenade into the side of a building always produces exactly the same results for that particular area of wall. It may be twice, three times or a thousand; the outcome always seems to be the same. Each time the same gaping hole appears, leaving me to imagine how much fun a truly dynamic and deformable environment would really be. Buildings aren't entirely vulnerable either; unleashing a barrage of projectiles upon a structure won't collapse it entirely, though it may leave it a little worse for wear. Honestly, the destructible environments don't meet expectations and digging a hole in the ground isn't really possible either; a noticeable indent appears, though not significant enough to provide any benefit in battle. We can only hope that some of the problems found with this mechanic are fixed before release. Trees and foliage peppered with bullets will submit, crashing to the ground leaving an open, unoccupied space, which is a nice addition because every tree mowed down is one less place for a sniper or sneaky foe to hide.

Battlefield 2: Modern Combat followed a through-the-scope, tunnel vision method of gunplay, but Bad Company has instead opted for a Call of Duty style, down the barrel aim mechanic and from my time with the game, is much improved as a result. This is the case for assault rifles and most rapid-fire weaponry, while sniper rifles, as you'd expect, utilise scope vision. The left trigger aim function is specific to the type of weapon. Unfortunately, this feels marred by an overly keen auto-aim and the same clumsy, oversized reticule when firing from the hip. Searching the options menu revealed a few handy toggles, one being aim assist for those daring enough not to use it. And if you can't tell already, the reticule, whilst a minor issue, is one that I highly dislike and possibly one of the biggest factors in the 'arcadey' feel exclusive to console iterations. Despite this, weapons are still fun, visceral and deliver a great sense of power upon impact.

The weapons of war in the Battlefield series have always provided the booms, the bangs and the even bigger bangs that brought Battlefield much to closer to being, well, a battlefield. Bad Company is no different; from playing the beta, the vehicles are as you'd expect. Tanks, helicopters, boats and jeeps are present, all rendered with painstaking attention to detail, and all of them handle surprisingly well, making them a lot of fun to use, particularly on Oasis, a vehicle-orientated map thanks to its crossing roads and manoeuvrable terrain. As a method of transportation and speed, vehicles aren't as much of a necessity; it seems the army has recently taught its soldiers how to sprint.

Bad Company runs on the advertised 'Frostbite' engine, and the game looks good, sporting some impressive lighting effects and realistic, believable weapon and character models. Still, this realistic, grittier visual style isn't reflected in the gameplay; enemy soldiers can still take a bullet or two and pumping lead into other players for what felt like forever was the only way to take them down. This can be relieved by tapping the right trigger for a more accurate and precise shot, but it's by no means ideal.

Even at this beta stage, Battlefield: Bad Company seems to being developing well. The visuals, the audio, and just about everything else is satisfying, creating a solid, entertaining multiplayer component that, if not by a large margin, seems superior to its console predecessor. The destructible environments aren't quite as dynamic as I hoped but they should still provide some tactical depth. Destroying the majority of a structure might infrequently catch a sniper with their pants down or a camper who's got nothing better to do than hang around for passing victims. It's safe to assume that some features have yet to be revealed but presumably the core gameplay will remain same. More than two-dozen players wouldn't have hurt and the weapons still feel slightly oversized and bulky, although these are relatively minor complaints. Despite a few issues, the beta provides a glimpse into Battlefield: Bad Company that shows real potential for greatness, but we'll have to leave the jury out on that one until we get our hands on the full game.

Previewed by Adam Meadows for AceGamez (All Rights Reserved).