Hardline is the very next Battlefield, scheduled for October of this year. The beta is currently taking place on PC and PS4, I wanted to introduce you to the game a little, in any case its multiplayer part (the single player is not accessible, necessarily), the novelties, or what remains. specific to the series. You can also discover the video test of friends Payji and Gallanthief in our pages.
Please note, everything that follows is taken from the beta, and will not necessarily represent the final product once released. I also give you my impressions, which represent my personal vision of the game.
Hardline is therefore no longer developed by DICE, but by visceral Games, famous in particular for the Dead Space series. A change of hand which is reflected a lot, especially in the first parts, much more nervous than on its elders. In particular thanks to urban decors, much more conducive to close encounters and ambushes of all kinds.
Game modes
At the moment, only two game modes are available:
- Blood Money : Each side has a deposit of money and a stack of banknotes in the middle of the map. The goal of each side is to collect the money in the middleAnd then bring it to its depot. But be careful, because the depots can also be looted by the opposing camp.
- Heist : two armored vans are exploded. The criminals must collect a case in each van and convey them to one of the two extraction points. The objective of the police is simple: prevent criminals from reaching extraction points with the cases.
The two modes are rather pleasant and, if they are based on classic mechanics, they renew the genre a little by offering objectives at several levels. Especially the Heist mode, which I particularly like, because it offers a lot of possibilities: defense of the central money stack, taking money and running towards its own deposit, infiltration in the enemy deposit, or even, to be still more vicious, one can very well post in the enemy base near their depot to prevent them from depositing the money.
I steal their money ...
... and I deposit it in my repository!
Even, and I admit that I particularly like this method, laying mines on their depot, and even hiding inside the truck to zigzag the poor unfortunate who did not ask for anything.
Blood Money mode offers different objectives for each camp. That of the police is a little more static in general. If the team distributes the two points well, the round is mainly about defending and we remain fairly static. On the side of the criminals, the stake is to be fast enough and manage to keep the police at bay long enough to grab one of the bags. Once one of the bags carried by one of the criminals, the game becomes much more nervous, and this is where we see the cohesion of the team or not. The police must manage to run after the briefcase to retrieve it, always keeping an eye on the second case. It often happens that all the police force themselves in pursuit of the briefcase and the second remains defenseless. All it takes is for a criminal to be on the lookout to retrieve the briefcase, then leave to drop it off quickly.
Equipment and classes
Hardline offers four classes, which will not disorient the regulars of BF4. Indeed, we find more or less the same things.
- Operator
- Mechanic (Engineer)
- Enforcer (Support)
- Professional (Eclaireur)
It's the doctor, the little guy who will take care of and bring his friends back to life. Among other things, because if he can play the doctor, he also has some very useful gadgets to move around, such as the grapnel and the zipline. Small novelty also: it has a kit survival, which allows him to resurrect himself, except during damage to the head, fall or explosion. In terms of weapons, he has the choice between two assault rifles and submachine gun.
The group mechanic. The Mechanic has at his disposal a repair tool, but also some destruction gadgets: two rocket launchers, the Stinger for aerial threats, and the RPG, for vehicles ... and sometimes for infantry. It can also count on an assortment of submachine guns : P90, UMP-45 and Uzi.
My favorite class! The Enforcer is an incredible war machine when it comes to defending a point. Ammo box, ballistic shield, explosives charges, a real little Rambo. Two ways to play: remotely with a machine gun, very handy for suppressing shots. Or in contact, with two shotguns, one with a pump, the other with a sawn-off barrel. Extremely formidable guns!
Finesse and stealth, two key words for Professionals. Class of sniper par excellence, it has a useful arsenal to stay on a rooftop ziggling enemies in peace: proximity mine, camera which detects enemy movements at 50m and, at the end of the day, a lure, which projects false indications on enemy radars and generates gun sounds. Of course, not to deploy on yourself! The Professional can rely on three sniper rifles : one with lock, and two semi-automatic. In the event of close combat, he will always be able to draw his Tec-9, small submachine gun handgun with a rather high rate of fire.
vehicles
What would a Battlefield be without its vehicles? Hardline is no exception to the rule but, urban environment requires, abandons planes and large tanks a little. Between racing cars, intervention station wagons, light armored vehicles, helicopters, motorcycles and so on, you will have enough to move around easily. There are few armed vehicles at the moment, the only ones being: Intervention SUV, with a turret on the roof that a buddy can slip into. But on the other hand, it becomes a rather easy target. A third thief can also slip into the chest to water enemies.
The Attack trucks, a kind of light armored vehicle, with a grenade launcher for the driver. A colleague can take control of the .50 caliber turret. The Mobile command center. The friends can hide on the sides to strafe at all costs.
And of course the helicopters, with the attack one, with cannons and missiles, and the transport one, with more places, but more limited armament with only machine guns on the sides.
Some vehicles also have spawn points. Convenient to quickly reappear near a place, just leave your vehicle parked. What struck me quite was the lack of robustness that the vehicles have. Having a light armor doesn't ensure you become invincible, as an enemy with an RPG can do serious damage very quickly. Barely two rockets, and the armored personnel carrier explodes. Cars and motorcycles are even less resistant. Playing primarily an Enforcer, it happens very often that I detonate a car just with my machine gun. Note also that it is very easy to see your life pass to death in a car, or even worse a motorcycle. Windows are not very famous for being very strong, well placed, and you are done. So, a word of advice, if you drive, drive fast!
My first opinion
I am extremely excited about this Hardline. I enjoy the Battlefield more and more, playing from time to time with the friends of the Boulette squad, and recently with my mentor Chris (well yeah, I had to say hello!), And I have to say that this new title launches a breath of fresh air on the series. Well, the game is only in beta at the moment, there are few weapons, few vehicles, few modes and few maps (only one actually), but the clashes are so nervous and above all very often different from one part to another, that despite the "little", I take great pleasure in it. I particularly like small details, like the possibility of interrogating a thief, after having arrested him, to force him to reveal the position of his allies around.
Where are your friends ?!
I can't wait to see the sequel, the new game modes, especially the vehicle-centric one, see how the classes will evolve, but anyway, for the moment, I'm impatient, and I hope you will. have made you want to discover this game for yourself. Beta registrations are still open, by the way. Do not hesitate to register, it does not commit to anything.
Beta
