Battlefield Hardline

Battlefield Hardline moved the series away from the warfronts into the world of American police officers and criminals, and handed lead development to Visceral Games, previously known for the horror title Dead Space - DICE this time oversaw mainly the technical side and multiplayer. The campaign is split into episodes styled like a TV crime drama, complete with season-style title cards and a recap of the previous episode at the start of each one; as detective Nick Mendoza, the player deals with bank robberies, drug gangs and corruption within his own police precinct, and the game gives more room to a stealthy approach, investigation and arresting suspects instead of plain shooting, for which the player could also earn bonus rewards.

The multiplayer stays Battlefield at its core - large maps, vehicles, destructible environments - but new themes such as robbing armored trucks, police car chases or the Hotwire mode, where players fight over stolen cars in constant motion along the highway, give it a different rhythm than the classic military maps with tanks and helicopters. Asymmetric modes were also added, where one team plays as police and the other as criminals with different objectives, something the series hadn't offered before. It's precisely this change of setting, characters and pace that makes it feel more like a thematic sibling than a mere reskin of the previous entries.

Why play it: A good fit for players who've grown a little tired of classic military Battlefield games and want the same team-based chaos wrapped in a fresher theme of police chases and heists. The decently told episodic campaign with its own cast of characters also works for those who mainly look for a story in the series rather than just competitive multiplayer, and it will appeal to players who enjoy action crime dramas and want a similar experience carried over into interactive form.