Battlefield: Bad Company 2 – Vietnam
What is it good for? Absolutely nothing!
“War. War never changes” ... is the slogan associated with the Fallout-series, but it also applies to this offshoot of the Battlefield-series. In 2004, Battlefield: Vietnam sent us into the conflict between the US and the Vietcong, and in 2010, Battlefield: Bad Company 2 – Vietnam did the same. Unlike the first visit, however, this time it was an expansion, meaning a lower price and less content. But since we are at the beginning of the 2010s, Bad Company 2 players were not just presented with the familiar in a new guise.
In addition to five new maps, the expansion also offered six contemporary vehicles and 15 firearms – including flamethrowers. Together with friends and one relative, we had some morbid fun in the tropical climes, but I personally preferred the modern military setting of the main game.
The score
One thing I really liked about the expansion, however, was the use of music – after all, since Apocalypse Now , the attack of a Bell UH-1 or simply ‘Huey’ helicopter has been practically unthinkable without Richard Wagner's Ride of the Valkyries. That's why, as in the Grand Theft Auto-series, the expansion featured car and tank radio. The accompanying soundtrack was never released – thanks to licensing hell – and, according to the wiki, includes 14 Vietnam classics that didn't make it into the first game.
Instead of Edwin Starr's WarEdwin StarrBattlefield Vietnam or Surfin‘ BirdThe TrashmenBattlefield Vietnam by The Trashmen, the Bad Company 2-add-on features anti-war sounds from artists and bands such as Jack Arel, John O'Brien-Docker, and Anders Lewen blaring from the speakers. Back then, as today, these are absolutely a matter of taste and primarily something for the rock/psychedelic faction, even if the hallucinogenic hippie vibe without the accompanying gameplay is a bit jarring. Personally, I like Fortunate SonCreedence Clearwater Revival by Creedence Clearwater Revival and Ride of the ValkyriesRichard Wagner, but as with any radio album, the music from the Vietnam-offshoot is difficult to evaluate.
