The Back to Karkand maps predate the series' PS3's outings, but thanks to Frostbite 2's excesses, the game we're most reminded of is Bad Company 2.
Destructible buildings may not be more plentiful - we haven't gone back and counted - but they are more prominently positioned than those of the on-disc maps, and the results impress. At one point a whole apartment block is chewed to pieces right under us by tankfire. Yikes.
Wake Island offers the least to actually destroy, but is probably the best designed. A curved strip of land enclosing a swimmable bay, the map holds up just as well here as it did in Battlefield 2, as it's easy to navigate without feeling boxed in. The fourth, and least iconic, map is the also slightly watery Sharqi Peninsula.
Besides the maps and a few new guns - unlocked by nailing Assignments or mini-objectives between bouts of whack-the-tank - Back to Karkand packs a fancy new jet (capable of taking off vertically), the DPV buggy and a super-APC that's great for thinning out enemy engineers. The skittish DPV proves entertainingly suicidal, as it attacks vindictive helicopters like mice attract hungry cats.
New mode Conquest Assault plays like a mix of Conquest and Rush - one team starts with all the flags under control, while the other has more spawn tickets and vehicles to play with.
Comments
8 comments so far...
Joe90_Remy700 on 17 Dec '11 said:
love everything about this expansion, bar one thing - in rush the enemy team managing to get BEHIND your spawn. it especially bad when you are attacking - 20+ team deaths without leaving your spawn and unable to wipe out the guilty squad
azz72 on 17 Dec '11 said:
expensive
, hardly they come free with limited edition which was the same price as the standard edition.
bamozzy on 17 Dec '11 said:
I just picked up Battlefield 3: Limited Edition from Sainsbury's for £25. I opted for the PS3 version so that I could get the free Battlefield 1943 too.
I still haven't got to play it yet as I had to wait an over an hour for the update (63 minutes) and then install and wait for the game install. I then needed to wait for over an hour for the Back to Karkland expansion pack and over another hour for the Battlefield 1943 to download (Grrrrrrrrrr - Bloody PSN).
At least I have got through it now so maybe I might get to play it soon.
widgy82 on 18 Dec '11 said:
wake island is much like caspian border, a map which is probly great on pc but jst doesnt work on console cos os lack of players. people quit it straight away or use it as flying practise
jm3811 on 18 Dec '11 said:
That's the main issue (after the lag) in BF3: the story was not a tutorial as it used to be and as it should be in this sort of game. At least for what I've played from it until I got rid of the game to go back to BFBC2.
I still downloaded BtK. Who knows...
Joe90_Remy700 on 24 Dec '11 said:
B2K will get you back into the game. since skyrim i played little else and some friends and i lost interest in bf3, but when this came out it spurred us back into playing and enjoying the game alot more than before. give it another shot, its still awesome despite its nuances
TehSlenderMan on 27 Feb '12 said:
Agree with the review 100% the B2K expansion is probably some of the best DLC content available in a long time! I expect more from you DICE
MrPannekook on 27 Feb '12 said:
Would love to see some new DLC soon! Maybe some snow maps (not the ugly ones from BC2) and give me back my old jets weps from bf2!! AIR BOMBING FTW!!