PC Battlefield 3 Lacks Key FPS Feature

[scott91575]

Everyone's telling me that my main menu is a webpage.

You access single-player from the main menu.

Hence, just as bad as Always On.

That's the way I see it alright, since you can't play Single Player unless you have a net connection to reach the website/webpage.

It's basically Always-On DRM.

I have seen nothing that states that, and it certainly would not be always on. It would be internet at launch, not always on.

I would like to hear specifically that there is no offline mode. Even if single player launches from a browser, there is offline mode for browsers.

 

[DownWind]

And fast startup is better be under 5seconds otherwise it is a bad system. And it better support alt-tabbing without having to wait 5minutes for the damn game to re-render itself.
Just add a damn in game menu -.-

Check, and check. The game launches straight to loading the map from Battlelog.

Though I do agree with the "idiotic DRM" part, but eh, it's a useful DRM as opposed to a stupid, useless one. And it worked for Chrome and IE9, but I've no idea if it'd work on Opera.

 

[Wicky_42]

I'm a big fan of dedicated servers.

... and this move makes me give EA the thumbs-up. Whereas dedicated servers are essential, boy howdy are most ingame server browsers god awful.

Yeah, reading what people who know what they're on about certainly makes it seem like an improvement on their absolutely abysmal server browser that BFBC2 launched with. That said, I am very leery of having such a blatant weakness in being able to run the software - DDOS attacks, server downtime etc etc - especially if it impinges on the ability to launch the single player game. I'm VERY fed up of single player games that require internet connections to play, and I really hope EA hasn't done this here as it could really sully what looks otherwise to be an absolutely fantastic game.

 

[LegionDre]

Hey did anyone else actually check how bfbc2 works for on-line. You can't browse for new servers while your inside a game. perhaps maybe if you have the magical shift tab of steam to browse ingame but straight bfbc2 didn't. Don't be pissed at this, be pissed that it won't be on steam. Pray that origin has similar features as steam. And allows you do have friends and search servers and join them depending on what games you have installed while ingame.

You are lucky this is all they are changing. They could just say "For purposes of streamlining and ease of access for new users online play now has an auto-target function that can't be turned off... SO THAT WE ARE ALL EQUAL BUT DIFFERENT AT THE SAME TIME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[FreakSheet]

Interesting... I want info from EA. How much money in ads do they get from BattleLog? Because in a given day if I switch servers 4 times, and I visit BattleLog 4 times, and EVERYONE that day visits BattleLog an average of 4 times, they could stand to make a killing on ads. That is my theory.

 

[GeorgW]

That settles it then. Can I hear everyone say boycott?

 

[Blackpapa]

Am I the only one who thinks this could be a good thing?

Honestly now, in-game server browsers aren't often given enough attention. In fact they're quite often atrocious, resources being consumed elsewhere.

If the server browser is running in.. well.. a browser then the opportunities are unlimited. Perhaps BF is launched via a command line with args determining target server, in which case we (the players) can develop our own, superior server browser. Better than anything Dice could ever develop in their constraints.

Think clan-stylized browsers, extra features, launch profiles, stat tracking..

And if not there's always a greasemonkey script or twenty.

 

[Loud Hawk]

Don't see the problem, it was like this in the Alpha and that was fine...

 

[stormcrow5]

If i had not been in the alpha for it, i would think this would be a horrible idea, but the battlelog thing actualy worked fantastic. Sure I would like a normal one but if the new way works why not give it a shot

 

[Valiance]

Honestly, what's the big deal? The browser app actually worked ok in the Alpha. Quake Live used a browser app for a server browser and that was fine. If it works with the same functionality I don't see what the problem is.

 

[]DustArma[]

So...

Can the people who know nothing about how it works on account of not being on the alpha just kindly shut the fuck up?

This is beyond ridiculous, EA makes a change that seems weird for PC users, a change that may I add was something that most of the people who are playing the alpha, ie: The people who know what the fuck they are talking about, have actually embraced, AND EVERYONE FLIPS THEIR SHIT ON EA, DESPITE REASSURANCES FROM THE PLAYERS, PEOPLE LIKE YOU, THE PEOPLE WHO ARE IN THE ALPHA THEMSELVES.


Jesus Christ, I get the EA hate, I get that they destroyed Bullfrog, Origin, Westwood, etc, I get that some people don't like the direction Bioware has taken in recent games, hell I might even get that some people hate BF3 being a Origin exclusive and not being on Steam despite the fact that Valve did this themselves with Half-Life 2, a Singleplayer title, back when Steam was in way worse shape than Origin is now.

But that does not justify the ignorance I'm seeing in this thread, the sensationalist news bullshit doesn't help either.


So much for the Escapist being the place for "smarter" discussions, huh.

 

[EvanJO]

Well, there goes my hopes for a competitive scene. I suppose there is no /record or /demo feature either?

Guess I'll just be playing the SP for kicks, not that I'll be paying for it.

 

[thom_cat_]

You can now alt-tab to reach it.
Also: http://forums.electronicarts.co.uk/battlefield-3/poll-29774-what-your-opinion-using-battlelog-server-browser-bf3.html

CLEARLY THERE IS NO ISSUE HERE.

 

[Riobux]

Wait, so the PC version doesn't have it but the console version does? EA is really trying hard to make PC gamers buy Modern Warfare 3, and I for one think it's a kind gesture for them to sabotage their own game to build a friendship between companies of competing "barely-realistic modern day soldier" games.

 

[FinalHeart95]

I wanted to get it for the console anyway, but this is absolute insanity. I really want to defend the game, but this is simply undefendable. How can you expect your players to exit the game to be able to play a new one? This is ridiculous.

To be fair, I could be missing something about how this works, but it just sounds crazy.

 

[bpm195]

Unless this turns out to be not nearly as bad as it sounds, or an in game browser is added: I am not buying Battlefield 3.

I don't throw those words around lightly. This sounds like an offensively cumbersome system.

 

[Alexnader]

That settles it then. Can I hear everyone say boycott?

Mate. http://www.escapistmagazine.com/videos/view/jimquisition/3857-BOYCOTT

This sounds stupid, however a lot of the alpha testers actually didn't mind it. I think it's a little early to call boycott.

The dumbest thing here is that EA/DICE haven't explained this properly. They should release a video demonstrating the system in action rather than just leaving us with "no in game server browser".


I for one am buying this game regardless of this rather stupid development because DICE still retains some of my loyalty and the game looks godamn awesome. No IG server browser may be a barrier to the gameplay but so long as there are dedicated servers it won't actually EFFECT gameplay and that's the primary concern here.

Also to all those people who keep saying "Welp, that's it back to CoD" I'll remind you that there was an actual boycott of Modern Warfare 2 because it didn't have dedicated servers and that fell to pieces because those guys actually liked the game (for some reason). If something like this can really turn you off you probably weren't all that interested in the first place.

 

[rabidmidget]

This doesn't really make me mad, and it probably won't affect me buying the game (although since I can't just wait until a steam sale to get it now, that may or may not happen), but my main question is why?

It's such a awkward way of doing matchmaking that I would expect from a low budget indie dev, not a giant AAA studio.

 

[funksobeefy]

I would feel bad for pc gamers, but they do like to think they are the gaming master race... so suck it haha!

nah, but really what the hell were they thinking? Thats just gonna be a huge waste of time and really just lag everything if your computer is the apex of gaming electronics