Early in the game, the cutscenes are pretty straightforward and serve mainly to lay the foundation of the game’s globetrotting story of illegal weapons and paramilitary conflicts. But it’s not long until the sense of humor that the first game was known for creeps back into the experience. At one point, a squadmate begins remarking on being shot at by enemies wearing cowboy hats. When asked why you’re being shot at by cowboys–who haven’t been in a war in a century–your squadmate Haggard replies, “The Dallas Cowboys go to war every Sunday. Sometimes Monday!” Then, there’s the argument in a Bolivian jungle about the best kill scenes from Predator, your spacey helicopter Pilot Flynn who can never seem to get a hang of Tuesdays, and a host of other eccentricities that add a nice sense of levity to what’s otherwise a very mature military shooter.
[ad]

Judging from these first few missions of the campaign, the single-player component of Bad Company 2 is going to be a lot of fun. The environments are varied and impressive to look at, the gunplay is just as solid as ever, and firefights are almost gleefully chaotic thanks to the improved destruction engine. And, above all else, it helps that the game has managed to maintain its sense of humor. You can expect to see Bad Company 2 released on March 2 for PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360.
[ad]
