Let me first start off by saying that I did not want Commander to return to Battlefield 4 and I did not miss it in BF3. I also wrote about that and what I thought Commander Mode would be like. I was pretty spot on with my hunches.
So Battlefield 4 has a commander mode and I have played it a bit and figured out the system and all that and I found it to be wanting. Now why would a guy that didn’t care for Commander Mode and didn’t miss it be playing it? Well, the easiest answer is that it’s part of the game and I play the entire game. I didn’t care if it returned or not, but that did not mean that I didn’t like it in the past or don’t like it now. I always feel that something in the game that is alright could be made better and that if you have some ideas, you should share them.
So, here we are.
I thought trying to explain Commander Mode and what should be done would have been a bit too hard in text format, so I decided to record a blog and post it up for those of you that want to know what the mode is and my issue with it. For those that do not like videos or know about the mode, you can scroll down and read my points and what I think needs to be done as well.
So the improvements of the teamwork added and no more fighting commanders is nice. I also like the perks you can give teammates, such as faster respawn and promotions. Having some commander assets tied to flags is also a nice bonus to both promote teamwork and create more of an objective for everyone to work together for.
As my video stated though, the issue is that the Commander doesn’t do a lot on the battlefield. Yes, it is true that they can drop supply crates and send out UAVs and counter commander UAVs with EMP UAVs. Sometimes the commander can shoot a missile that takes really long to get to the target and even longer to reload or they can bring in an AC130 that is made of paper and are very easy to destroy, so no one wants to get into them. Both of these items REQUIRE a flag for your team to capture. Usually flag C.
And that is the problem. If you have a team that is late getting out of the gate or, for whatever reason, just cannot capture flag C, there is no recourse. The commander could spam UAVs and send out EMP UAVs and all that other stuff, but that is pretty much it. The commander is entirely at the mercy of the team and has no real way of helping. They can tell a squad to go to an objective or to say that an area is clear, but that doesn’t mean people listen and most do not. This goes for both teams. An entrenched team cannot be removed. As a “ground pounder” in Battlefield that has played without a commander while the enemy team had one, it’s not a big deal. I rarely worry about the enemy commander in a game. I don’t think I have ever been killed by a commander asset, though I have destroyed plenty of UAVs and AC130s.
Which brings us to artillery. Yes, I feel that each commander should have artillery at their disposal as an asset on the field that can be destroyed by either team and repaired by engineers or the supply crate. That asset should reside near the base of that team for both protection and attacked. It can be a single radar box that can be destroyed by three C4s. The reason is so that the commander could weaken an entrenched team or help use “arty” as cover for a team to get out of their spawn or to make it to the next objective while under fire. As it is now, if you do not have the attacking asset in Commander, you just have to sit and wait a bit.
So these are the final bullet points I think need to be done to make commander a bit more:
- Flag B – Infantry Scanner
- Flag C – Missile or AC130 ( Depends on map )
- Flag D – Vehicle Scanner
- Teamwork Bar – Stays the same
- Vehicle Drop – Destructible Asset on Battlefield ( Available when teamwork bar is full & asset is not destroyed )
- UAV – Destructible Asset on Battlefield
- Artillery – Destructible Asset on Battlefield ( Start up delay to prevent spawn attack )
- EMP UAV – Commander Option Always Available
- Proxy Attack – Commander Option Always Available
- Supply Drop – Commander Option Always Available
So there you have it. Something that gives the commander a little more ability on the Battlefield. The commander would no longer be a secondary piece that is just an annoyance for the enemy team, but could actually do some things to change the course of the battle or at least help in a better way.
I doubt any of these changes will happen any time soon, but who knows, maybe in the next Battlefield.
Crunch Time 