Multi-Player Mode

Since almost the first games in the series the importance of the MP side of the game has grown with each of the new titles. in fact for a lot of players the MP side IS the game! That said, it is to the credit of the team of wizards behind the game and series that they have always created a quality single-player story mode to go with each title even if the community emphasis has moved towards the MP side.

Actually the single-player story mode for Hardline is pretty important for the MP side really, because it is the only way for players to obtain free Battle Packs and the stuff that comes in them!

To be clear, Battle Packs are the method that is used in the game on the MP side to add content. When you complete the single-player story mode you will have unlocked a large number of Battle Packs - but there is no way to say what you will actually receive - or how rare and valuable it will be - until you actually turn in the packs in the MP side of the game.

While we cannot say WHAT you will specifically obtain, we do know that it will be a combination of Vouchers for kit, Boosts, Weapon Camos, possible special Weapons, Patches, Loadout Slots, and Batttlelog Items.

Over the course of several gamertag play-throughs we obtained a wide variety of items when turning in our packs, including some rare ones!

Battlepacks from Story-Mode

For the record, Battlepacks are how you obtain the plethora of items and objects that are used to customize your avatar and MP character. Specifically that encompasses both their appearance AND their kit!

The important point to be made here is that while the normal path to obtaining Battlepacks is usually through the online store (i.e. by spending real-world funds to buy them) there IS an alternate route - that is to play the single-player story mode of the game.

It was not entirely clear from the start that obtaining Battlepacks via the Single-Player Story Mode was anything more than a one-off deal. As it turns out though, it is considerably more than that... I shall explain,

The first full and complete play-through we did while writing the guide was on the standard (Officer) Difficulty Level. When we reached the end of the game on Officer Difficulty, we had a pretty sizable pile of Battlepacks to open for our MP side. Those were obtained via the SP mode play.

Our assumption was that the game was set up so that if you played through the SP Story Mode you received a set number of Battlepacks as part of the "reward" for putting in the time on the SP side of the game. That was a reasonable assumption because in the past that is how they did things.

However when we re-played the story side of the game on the highest (Hardline) Difficulty Level we discovered that it unlocked and added additional Battlepacks.

Okay, neat - we said. Makes sense - we played at a harder difficulty so it gave additional packs. That felt like it was reasonable - but then we needed to replay several levels in order to better position our PoV for some of the collection items. We did this on the Officer Level, which would be a lower level than the last run-through.

As we played through the levels the notification that we had unlocked additional Battlepacks appeared and we just assumed that those were canned repeated messages for the ones we had already unlocked. Much to our shock and amazement though, when we loaded up the Battlepack Menu on the MP side there were, in fact, additional Battlepacks present!

So that being the case -- and assuming that this is not a bug but the method of rewards that the wizards who made the game intended -- it appears that you can replay the various episodes on the SP side to obtain additional BP!

Inside the Battlepacks

Whether you paid for them or you won them as a reward for SP Story Mode play, you are getting specific Battlepacks by colour -- Bronze / Silver / Gold -- the Gold being the rarer and more to the point, more likely to contain rarer and more valuable reward items.

Either way when you open the Battlepacks Menu you will be presented with the collection of BP that you currently own. We cannot say what will be IN them, but we can confirm that you will unlock the following Battlepacks for completing each of the following:

• Ep. 1: Back to School -- Bronze Battlepack

• Ep. 2: Checking Out -- Bronze Battlepack

• Ep. 3: Gator Bait -- Bronze Battlepack

• Ep. 4: Case Closed -- Bronze Battlepack

• Ep. 5: Gauntlet -- Bronze Battlepack

• Ep. 6: Out of Business -- Bronze Battlepack

• Ep. 7: Glass Houses -- Bronze Battlepack

• Ep. 8: Sovereign Land -- Silver Battlepack

• Ep. 9: Independence Day -- Silver Battlepack

• Ep. 10: Legacy -- Gold Battlepack

So all in all, even if the MP side is your thing, thanks to the above rewards scheme it should be pretty obvious that the story mode is worth playing if only for those free Battlepacks!

That said, we think that the SP Story Mode really is a lot of fun too and worth playing!

Classes

The MP Mode Classes are pretty much consistent with the Class System in previous games, the exception being that they are divided not just by job or focus but also by role... So when you are playing as a cop you get a different possible load-out in terms of weapon selection than you do as a criminal.

That said, the basics for Class include the following:

• Operator

• Mechanic

• Professional

• Enforcer

• Hacker

You have the option of creating multiple load-outs for each class, so you can tailor each class to both the role AND the map / mission type you are doing.

Initial Focus

If you are anything like the typical Battlefield player your first focus is going to be to retire those pesky few remaining MP Achievements / Trophies! To do that you will need to focus your MP play in several specific areas.

First you will want to win x5 Heists and x5 Blood Money matches -- note that we did not say PLAY, but rather WIN.

After that, you will need to focus on any match style you feel comfortable with while you take down x25 enemies with a MAC-10 and x25 enemies with a Double Barrel Shotgun. Once THOSE are managed all you have left to do is to take down x25 enemies with the T62 CEW Taser and you will have unlocked the following three MP Achievements:

• The Big Score (25g) Win 5 Heist and 5 Blood Money matches in multiplayer.

• Menz in the Hood (50g) Kill 25 enemies with a MAC-10 and 25 with a Double Barrel Shotgun in multiplayer.

• Electric Company (25g) Take down 25 enemies with the T62 CEW in multiplayer.

Base MP Maps

The base game (not including the expansion content) includes the following Maps:

Heist

The criminals are striving to steal extremely valuable assets, while the cops are trying to stop them.

The criminals must crack into one or more vaults, steal the two bags from the vault, and take them to the escape helicopter to secure the loot.

Law enforcement has sanctioned lethal force in order to stop the heist and prevent the criminals from escaping.

Hotwire

Marked vehicles are stashed around the level.

Both cops and criminals must capture the objective vehicles and drive them at high speed to deplete the other team's tickets.

This is similar to classic Conquest, except points are high-speed and action-packed!

Blood Money

Cops and criminals fight to take control of a huge stack of cash.

The cops are trying to recover the money as evidence, while the criminals want it for themselves.

Deposit the cash in your team's vault and defend it so that the enemy cannot steal it. Teamwork is critical- money is key - and blood will be spilled!

Rescue

Vicious criminals have taken two hostages in attempt to negotiate an escape.

Cops must rescue at least one of the hostages within the time limit to prevent the success of the criminals' negotiations -- or eliminate all of the criminals.

No redeployments are allowed.

Crosshair

A criminal mastermind is going to squeal to save his own skin - the criminals can't afford to let this happen, and have orchestrated a hit on this VIP as he tries to head for the courthouse.

The cops must escort the VIP safely to one of the extraction zones and prevent the assassination.

With only one life to live, the stakes are high for everyone concerned.

Conquest Small

Classic Battlefield point control.

Both teams fight to control 3 points of interest on the map and hold them until the enemy team's tickets have fully depleted.

Conquest Large

Classic Battlefield point control.

Both teams fight to control 3 points of interest on the map and hold them until the enemy team's tickets have fully depleted.

Team Deathmatch

Close quarters infantry combat, no vehicles.

One single objective for your team: kill the enemy.

Check out the Multi-Player Maps Section for Strategy Tips and Guidance on how to own the Maps and the other players in this most excellent Cops & Robbers take on Classic Battlefield Multi-Player Play!

Conclusions

Even under the best of circumstances and the largest of maps, game play on the MP side tends to be hectic and fast. When you get dropped into a crowded map and mission it can be downright frantic, and you can easily end up dying... A lot.

Fortunately even when you die quickly as long as you accomplished at least something you can count on some forward progress - whether that is just XP, or XP and money. Either way you get something from the experience.

One of the most obvious differences in game play on the MP side is found with team play. That is to say that when you are playing with a group of mates (as opposed to complete strangers) the game play tends to be just a little less frantic and a lot more enjoyable.

It is also incredibly addictive and in ways that are unusual for this game series particularly because of the new focus (cops and robbers) as opposed to the well-established focus which in the past remained largely military in focus.

While the game is still new in relative terms, we can say this: a great deal of attention was paid to the new dynamics of cops and robbers and the wizards who created the game certainly gave it the attention it deserved, which makes for a very well-balanced, effective -- and perhaps more important than all, FUN game play experience!