Battlefield Hardline is almost here, and it’s looking in much better shape than Battlefield 4 was at launch. Dead Space developer Visceral Games has taken the Battlefield formula, given it a fresh cops and robbers coat of paint, and refined a lot of the mechanics that have been bugging us for years. That said, you don’t necessarily need to alter your well honed Battlefield skills, but with a plethora of new game modes, abilities and gear options being introduced.
With maps built to hold 64 players not to mention a litany of land and air vehicles it can be pretty crazy trying to find your feet. But take it slow and you’ll pick up the ropes. This isn’t Call Of Duty or Titanfall; Battlefield is all about working to the objectives, taking it slow and steady and using dominating team tactics to find victory. Get some friends together, join a squad and prepare to enter one of the most chaotic games to ever.
PLAY THE OBJECTIVE
An impressive K/D ratio is certainly something to shout about, if you’re playing a different game franchise. Do you want the Battlepacks, ranks, and dollar bills to buy any weapons you want and make your friends jealous? Then play the objective.Capture Control Points, Hotwire those vehicles and get that loot to the chopper. If you want to play TDM, go play TDM, but if you’re in an objective-based game mode of which there are many playing the objective will always grant more lucrative rewards.
PLAY IN SQUADS
Whether you’re with friends or playing solo, try to jump into full squads as often as you can. Not only will you be able to spawn directly on your team-mates more often than not you’ll get straight into a firefight but you’ll be able to quickly earn EXP by playing specifically to your class role. Drop ammo, heal up your team, or repair your vehicles; helping your squad out will give you bonus rewards. Oh, and don’t forget to Spot approaching enemies with RB it can be the difference between life and death.
FORGET BATTLEFIELD 4
This might be easier said than done, but it’s time to give Battlefield Hardline itself a chance to succeed. Visceral has done an outstanding job making Battlefield Hardline feel like more than an overbearing expansion pack to Battlefield 4, so give it a chance before you let some of these bad vibes surrounding DICE bring you down. While many mechanics and weapons might feel familiar, you’ll need to adapt your strategies to the new cops and robbers aesthetic if you want to secure victory.
STOP RUNNING
Battlefield is not COD. Obvious, right? Wrong. It’s shocking how so many players approach the two similarly, then complain when they start getting massively pwned. There might be 63 other players around you, but slow and steady wins the game and lets you score easy headshots. If you attempt to ADS your weapon after sprinting, you’ll notice it takes a split second longer. Be brisk, use those Halo strafing skills, and settle in behind cover if it gets hairy.
FIRING LINES
It’s tough to get into the Battlefield flow, so keep this under consideration if you’re packing an assault rifle, carbine or sniper: aim in front of a moving target. Those that do choose to run everywhere can avoid a lot gunfire with raw speed, but will be slow to react due to the ADS penalty discussed above. Instead of meeting your opponent head on, assume a crouched position, aim slightly ahead of the fleeing enemy and fire in short, head-aligned, bursts.
TRUST NO-ONE
By its very nature, Battlefield Hardline is a team-based game. That said, when it comes to vehicles, trust no-one. Unless you’re in a squad with friends; getting in/on cars, bikes and helicopters with randoms can be the quickest way to earn a cheap death. For every incredible chopper pilot you might encounter, there are ten idiots who career into bridges.
CHECK YOUR BATTLEPACKS
Battlepacks have changed slightly, and for the better. In fact, you’ll want to open these up as soon as you get them. If you’re a Battlefield newbie, it can be easy enough to overlook them, we sure did once upon a time, but this is the quickest and easiest way to unlock new weapon customisations. Better still, you’ll be given a voucher letting you choose which weapon to fit your new stock or scope to.
BUY WEAPONS, QUICKLY
Both the Operator and Mechanic classes start their multiplayer careers with an RO933 Carbine. To be frank, it’s pretty useless. Once you nail 20 perps you’ll be able to attach a scope, making it deadly up close, but there’s little you can do about the wild recoil. Play the objective, play in your squad and get as much cash as you can quickly. You really won’t regret it.
UNDERSTANDING SUPPRESSION
Suppression penalties aren’t as drastic in Hardline as they were in BF4. For those out of the loop: while under fire, or in a location that was under heavy fire, your weapon sway and recoil would be drastically increased. The person laying down the suppressing fire would also be granted bonus EXP for keeping the enemies. While you can still ADS just fine while under fire, it’ll be a little tougher.
ONE WORD: TASER
So why would you sacrifice your deadly side arm for a C62 Cew Taser? Well, the Taser is an awesome way to take down an enemy. Not only do you get to watch them writhe in pain from shock and embarrassment from being dispatched by a non-lethal takedown but there’s always a chance you can interrogate your victim. Sure, this leaves you open to a headshot, but a successful interrogation reveals all nearby enemies on the mini-map.
USE THE EQUIPMENT
It’s important to always use your equipment not only does it help your team out, but it’s also a quick way to earn bonus cash quickly. Drop medipacks and ammo boxes as often as possible and, if you can, revive anyone that falls near you. Also, be on the look out for Grapple Hooks and Zip Lines. Not only do these give you new options to travel the map with, but they can give you great access to otherwise unavailable vantage points.
TRY HACKER MODE
Hacker is Hardline’s version of Commander mode in Battlefield 4. As a Hacker, you don’t need to engage in combat to help out instead you can sit back and support from a distance. As the Hacker you can use GPS Spotting to mark enemies, use Trojan Virus Uploads to hack cameras letting you locate objectives and then there’s also Shutdown Protocols that temporarily keep your opponent from capturing bases in Conquest. Tricky but a lot of fun.
HOTWIRE TOP TIPS
Hotwire is Battlefield’s newest and most awesome game mode, pitting both cops and robbers after roaming objective points in search of victory. It’s great fun, but has a bit of a learning curve. You’ll want to follow these hot tips if you want any chance of ruling the roads…
LET’S RIDE
Hotwire is all about controlling moving vehicles to win the round. Stop messing around on foot, jump ina car and start looking to control the VIP vehicles.
MECHANIC’S PARADISE
The Mechanic has the ability to equip a Repair Tool: use it to keep control vehicles active, even after they take damage. Sit in the passenger seat and get to work.
TRACKER DART
Like in BFBC2, the Tracker Dart can be fired ata vehicle it will then be tracked on the minimap, lettinga teammate line up an all important RPG shot.
CRUISE WITH FRIENDS
Get a full squad of four in a car, press in the right thumbstick to lean out of the window and protect your wheels!
SOUND OF THE POLICE
Want to really enjoy Hardline? Press B to cycle through songs on the radio. It has a fantastic library of music to cruise to.
CLASS BREAKDOWN
LIKE PAST BATTLEFIELD GAMES, HARDLINE LETS PLAYERS CHOOSE BETWEEN ONE OF FOUR CLASSES. THESE CAN BE FREELY SWITCHED BETWEEN AFTER YOU DIE, AND CATER TO A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT PLAY STYLES
OPERATOR
The Operator is essentially an assault/medic hybrid. They are always on the front lines, rocking an assault rifle and taking on objectives. They also have the capacity to heal team mates with a medikit and revive downed friends to get them back in action.
MECHANIC
The role of the engineer has never been more important, with modes like Hotwire. The Mechanic packs a Carbine and specialises in repairing and destroying vehicles. The Repair Tool can fix, their RPGs can explode it’s easy to move up the scoreboard as this class.
ENFORCER
If you’re looking to support your Squad by laying heavy suppressing fire and covering movement to objectives, Enforcer is definitely the role for you. The primary weapon focus is LMGs, while difficult to control, they offer unrivalled stopping power.
PROFESSIONAL
If you think camping is a legitimate strategy, go Professional and never look back. As the sniper of the group, expect to use Grappling Hooks to find new vantage points, and patience to wait out your enemies. Just don’t be surprised when they swarm on you with force.
HEIST TOP TIPS
Heist is another brand new game mode coming to Hardline, which pits cops versus robbers in epic bank heists. These get hectic, so stick with your team and be ready to fight in tightly packed corridors to win.
PLAY TO WIN
It can be easy to fall into the TDM trap, but always be playing to your objective here. Always be ready to either guard to raid the vault if you want to win.
BEWARE OF SNIPERS
Due to the open nature of the maps, snipers can take total control if you let them. Be aware of tall skyscrapers and cover positions, especially if you’re the bagman.
STAY ALIVE
Can’t wait for those heals? Run up to a team-mate and press X to take a medikit from them you’ll regen ten health per second as long as you stay close.
With maps built to hold 64 players not to mention a litany of land and air vehicles it can be pretty crazy trying to find your feet. But take it slow and you’ll pick up the ropes. This isn’t Call Of Duty or Titanfall; Battlefield is all about working to the objectives, taking it slow and steady and using dominating team tactics to find victory. Get some friends together, join a squad and prepare to enter one of the most chaotic games to ever.
PLAY THE OBJECTIVE
An impressive K/D ratio is certainly something to shout about, if you’re playing a different game franchise. Do you want the Battlepacks, ranks, and dollar bills to buy any weapons you want and make your friends jealous? Then play the objective.Capture Control Points, Hotwire those vehicles and get that loot to the chopper. If you want to play TDM, go play TDM, but if you’re in an objective-based game mode of which there are many playing the objective will always grant more lucrative rewards.
PLAY IN SQUADS
Whether you’re with friends or playing solo, try to jump into full squads as often as you can. Not only will you be able to spawn directly on your team-mates more often than not you’ll get straight into a firefight but you’ll be able to quickly earn EXP by playing specifically to your class role. Drop ammo, heal up your team, or repair your vehicles; helping your squad out will give you bonus rewards. Oh, and don’t forget to Spot approaching enemies with RB it can be the difference between life and death.
FORGET BATTLEFIELD 4
This might be easier said than done, but it’s time to give Battlefield Hardline itself a chance to succeed. Visceral has done an outstanding job making Battlefield Hardline feel like more than an overbearing expansion pack to Battlefield 4, so give it a chance before you let some of these bad vibes surrounding DICE bring you down. While many mechanics and weapons might feel familiar, you’ll need to adapt your strategies to the new cops and robbers aesthetic if you want to secure victory.
STOP RUNNING
Battlefield is not COD. Obvious, right? Wrong. It’s shocking how so many players approach the two similarly, then complain when they start getting massively pwned. There might be 63 other players around you, but slow and steady wins the game and lets you score easy headshots. If you attempt to ADS your weapon after sprinting, you’ll notice it takes a split second longer. Be brisk, use those Halo strafing skills, and settle in behind cover if it gets hairy.
FIRING LINES
It’s tough to get into the Battlefield flow, so keep this under consideration if you’re packing an assault rifle, carbine or sniper: aim in front of a moving target. Those that do choose to run everywhere can avoid a lot gunfire with raw speed, but will be slow to react due to the ADS penalty discussed above. Instead of meeting your opponent head on, assume a crouched position, aim slightly ahead of the fleeing enemy and fire in short, head-aligned, bursts.
TRUST NO-ONE
By its very nature, Battlefield Hardline is a team-based game. That said, when it comes to vehicles, trust no-one. Unless you’re in a squad with friends; getting in/on cars, bikes and helicopters with randoms can be the quickest way to earn a cheap death. For every incredible chopper pilot you might encounter, there are ten idiots who career into bridges.
CHECK YOUR BATTLEPACKS
Battlepacks have changed slightly, and for the better. In fact, you’ll want to open these up as soon as you get them. If you’re a Battlefield newbie, it can be easy enough to overlook them, we sure did once upon a time, but this is the quickest and easiest way to unlock new weapon customisations. Better still, you’ll be given a voucher letting you choose which weapon to fit your new stock or scope to.
BUY WEAPONS, QUICKLY
Both the Operator and Mechanic classes start their multiplayer careers with an RO933 Carbine. To be frank, it’s pretty useless. Once you nail 20 perps you’ll be able to attach a scope, making it deadly up close, but there’s little you can do about the wild recoil. Play the objective, play in your squad and get as much cash as you can quickly. You really won’t regret it.
UNDERSTANDING SUPPRESSION
Suppression penalties aren’t as drastic in Hardline as they were in BF4. For those out of the loop: while under fire, or in a location that was under heavy fire, your weapon sway and recoil would be drastically increased. The person laying down the suppressing fire would also be granted bonus EXP for keeping the enemies. While you can still ADS just fine while under fire, it’ll be a little tougher.
ONE WORD: TASER
So why would you sacrifice your deadly side arm for a C62 Cew Taser? Well, the Taser is an awesome way to take down an enemy. Not only do you get to watch them writhe in pain from shock and embarrassment from being dispatched by a non-lethal takedown but there’s always a chance you can interrogate your victim. Sure, this leaves you open to a headshot, but a successful interrogation reveals all nearby enemies on the mini-map.
USE THE EQUIPMENT
It’s important to always use your equipment not only does it help your team out, but it’s also a quick way to earn bonus cash quickly. Drop medipacks and ammo boxes as often as possible and, if you can, revive anyone that falls near you. Also, be on the look out for Grapple Hooks and Zip Lines. Not only do these give you new options to travel the map with, but they can give you great access to otherwise unavailable vantage points.
TRY HACKER MODE
Hacker is Hardline’s version of Commander mode in Battlefield 4. As a Hacker, you don’t need to engage in combat to help out instead you can sit back and support from a distance. As the Hacker you can use GPS Spotting to mark enemies, use Trojan Virus Uploads to hack cameras letting you locate objectives and then there’s also Shutdown Protocols that temporarily keep your opponent from capturing bases in Conquest. Tricky but a lot of fun.
HOTWIRE TOP TIPS
Hotwire is Battlefield’s newest and most awesome game mode, pitting both cops and robbers after roaming objective points in search of victory. It’s great fun, but has a bit of a learning curve. You’ll want to follow these hot tips if you want any chance of ruling the roads…
LET’S RIDE
Hotwire is all about controlling moving vehicles to win the round. Stop messing around on foot, jump ina car and start looking to control the VIP vehicles.
MECHANIC’S PARADISE
The Mechanic has the ability to equip a Repair Tool: use it to keep control vehicles active, even after they take damage. Sit in the passenger seat and get to work.
TRACKER DART
Like in BFBC2, the Tracker Dart can be fired ata vehicle it will then be tracked on the minimap, lettinga teammate line up an all important RPG shot.
CRUISE WITH FRIENDS
Get a full squad of four in a car, press in the right thumbstick to lean out of the window and protect your wheels!
SOUND OF THE POLICE
Want to really enjoy Hardline? Press B to cycle through songs on the radio. It has a fantastic library of music to cruise to.
CLASS BREAKDOWN
LIKE PAST BATTLEFIELD GAMES, HARDLINE LETS PLAYERS CHOOSE BETWEEN ONE OF FOUR CLASSES. THESE CAN BE FREELY SWITCHED BETWEEN AFTER YOU DIE, AND CATER TO A NUMBER OF DIFFERENT PLAY STYLES
OPERATOR
The Operator is essentially an assault/medic hybrid. They are always on the front lines, rocking an assault rifle and taking on objectives. They also have the capacity to heal team mates with a medikit and revive downed friends to get them back in action.
MECHANIC
The role of the engineer has never been more important, with modes like Hotwire. The Mechanic packs a Carbine and specialises in repairing and destroying vehicles. The Repair Tool can fix, their RPGs can explode it’s easy to move up the scoreboard as this class.
ENFORCER
If you’re looking to support your Squad by laying heavy suppressing fire and covering movement to objectives, Enforcer is definitely the role for you. The primary weapon focus is LMGs, while difficult to control, they offer unrivalled stopping power.
PROFESSIONAL
If you think camping is a legitimate strategy, go Professional and never look back. As the sniper of the group, expect to use Grappling Hooks to find new vantage points, and patience to wait out your enemies. Just don’t be surprised when they swarm on you with force.
HEIST TOP TIPS
Heist is another brand new game mode coming to Hardline, which pits cops versus robbers in epic bank heists. These get hectic, so stick with your team and be ready to fight in tightly packed corridors to win.
PLAY TO WIN
It can be easy to fall into the TDM trap, but always be playing to your objective here. Always be ready to either guard to raid the vault if you want to win.
BEWARE OF SNIPERS
Due to the open nature of the maps, snipers can take total control if you let them. Be aware of tall skyscrapers and cover positions, especially if you’re the bagman.
STAY ALIVE
Can’t wait for those heals? Run up to a team-mate and press X to take a medikit from them you’ll regen ten health per second as long as you stay close.