Well, it's about that time. Battlefield: Bad Company is creeping closer to it's release and with it, public access to the demo. I've had issues with EA's advertising schemes, like promisng early access to the demo in exchange for a pre-order, or the attempt to try and sell weaponry in exchange for cash or microsoft points. However, with all that said and done, and in the back of our minds, these are my impressions of Battlefield: Bad Company (DEMO) for the PS3, and the Xbox 360.

I tried the Playstation 3 first, wanting to see how good it would be (and frankly, because I saw it on the Playstation Network first) with the Playstation 3's hardware advantage. I was, as usual, dissapointed by the "installation" procedure I had to endure. While it may not take more than nine minutes, it's still a wait time that seems out of place for any console.

I started with the singleplayer, wanting to see what they've done with it, considering that is the "biggest" change to Battlefield, and while it was a fun, enjoyable ride, a few issues reared their ugly head. The first was the god-aweful "Medal Of Honor" soundtrack that seemed so out of place in comparison to the title's more lazy tones, and the radio in the background from any jeep or truck you were in. It got so bad in fact that during a major firefight I couldn't stand how loud and in-your-face it was that I turned the soundtrack off. Thank god that you can still have the radio (for when you get into non-armored vehicle) to listen to, which works perfectly for the environment.

The AI seemed a little more than daft for your team-mates, but considering that they didn't take damage in the first place from enemy fire, they could go superman and just stand up there spraying bullets galore. Meanwhile, the enemy AI made sure to target me as if I had a giant neon sign saying "I am the commander! Hit me!" which is interesting considering you play as the FNG.

The sound was okay, though it seemed like it lacked the bass that previous Battlefield games had, especially with the artillery strikes and weaponry. I did like what I heard in terms of distant shots, but other than that it sounded very flat to me, and trust me.. I like booms. Certain voiceovers had some issues, particularly the Russian(?) or the re-recorded MEC(?) voices. They would pop and cut out, especially during heavy firefights.

The visuals look like they tried to make it look good, but it seems like they tried to hard. The contrast was all messed up and you couldn't change that in-game (hell, almost any game has an option for brightness or contrast these days) which made it look all washed out. Finding the contrast between soldiers and ground was difficult, especially in tanks as there is a filter over the screen to make it a little brighter. Compound that with the already washed out look and it's as if you were in a mild fog.

The online play was fun, but just like any other online game for the PS3, communication was lacking. Everyone was running everywhere, and doing whatever they wanted without co-ordination. It was really frustrating as I seemed to be the only person with a headset, and even then that didn't get anyone motivated enough to win.
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The 360 version is a little different. The first thing coming to mind is the lack of the installer. A good start. The second thing that was noticable was that the 360 had a near perfect contrast and brightness level, making it a lot easier to see and know what was going on, especially in tanks. This made it feel like I was fighting in a desert, rather than in a fog bank.

The sounds seemed better, as they didn't have the same sound cut outs that the PS3 had, but at the same time the booms seemed lacking still. However this means vital information wasn't lost or too jarring while it was "spoken" to you.

The online compenent was great, a lot of people were talking and willing to work together which made it even better to play and win. However on the 360 version, there was a bit of an issue with latency, and joining and leaving issues. This is more prevelant with non-ranked matches as that seemed to have major lag issues for the first 90 seconds of the map before it evened out allowing a bit of combat, and then relapsing into it's latency issue again.
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Overall Battlefield: Bad Company feels like it tries to do what Battlefield 2: Modern Warfare for the PS2 and Xbox 360 was supposed to do. Allowing console gamers a crack at the Battlefield series with a bit of dumbed down controls, a lack of a leadership ladder, and chain of command.

The 360 version was more fun to play, and I've decided that if I do decide to buy BF: Bad Company, I will be buying it for the Xbox 360. Even buying it in the first place is in question, as I'm not sure if I'm a fan of the dumbed down combat that this title offers so far. As far as the PS3 goes, for a console that's supposed to be superior hardware-wise the PS3 just isn't stepping up to the plate in the sound department which is a huge letdown.