Another example is the new laser attachment. Like the flashlights, laser pointers will provide the player with certain benefits (a momentary blinding effect if pointed at another player, and increased hip-fire accuracy) but will also reveal their location.
Prone is the new crouch! Missing from the Bad Company titles, the prone position (belly crawl) is back. This is employed by campers, sure, but in a game where everyone is rushing forward in a spawn-die-repeat fashion it helps to be able to respawn with a squadmate who has masterfully taken cover by lying down behind a desk or in a bush. He may not be racking up a 30-kill score or running the bomb in, but he’ll get points for holding down a tactical position.
The map that was made available for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 beta participants was called Metro. It takes place in Paris. Just like in the Bad Company games, overtaking two positions in the first section opens the second section, and so on. The three sections consist of an open park (perfect for snipers and open-ground tactics), the underground Metro station (where taclights, fast reflexes, and communication are key), and finally a street overlooked by two buildings opposite each other - and can be occupied - and a glass-covered showroom ripe for overwatch positions. The capture locations are nestled in a corner storefront and next to an abandoned public bus. You can imagine the last-ditch scramble if the match makes it to stage three.
I enjoyed the gameplay, overall, despite the major changes from Bad Company 2. Enjoyment notwithstanding, I did experience a lot of bugs and glitches. Furthermore, the visuals suffered - the biggest offender was by far the texture pop-in. As I understand it, though, the beta was comprised of very unpolished code. If the online lag, animation hiccups, and texture kinks are worked out in the build that hits store shelves next week...then this could very well be my favorite Battlefield yet.
