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Berlin, 2142 It is early evening and a cold rain lashes the streets. Although warm inside your APC, outside, across the frozen wastes of a once bustling city, skyscrapers sit waist deep in snow drifts. Far off, down a myriad of alleys and streets, the enemy are preparing to move forward. In the distance there is the thump-thump of a Battlewalker. The enemy can be heard calling out across the cold, evening air, firing assault rifles. The static buzz of an EMP strike crackles across the rooftops. Welcome to the future...The Future Is Cold At this years WWDC, EA announced that a number of top tier PC games would be making their way to the Mac platform this July, with future PC games also seeing simultaneous release on the Mac. Among them is Battlefield 2142, the fourth game in the acclaimed Battlefield series.Set in the near future, the world is a giant freezer courtesy of the next Ice Age. Two factions, the Pan Asian Coalition (PAC) and the European Union (EU), are battling it out to seize control of the remaining land that is needed to feed the starving masses. The world may be a freezer, but technology has taken a few gigantic leaps forward. Giant floating fortresses known as Titans dominate the air, each mounted with powerful guns, crammed full of troops and flying death machines. Mechanized walkers stalk the landscape with heat seeking EMP’s and heavy machine guns. Troops have been given a few upgrades too, depending on their specialization: shields to deflect light arms fire, Active Camouflage to render the wearer almost invisible, portable defibrillators to revive fallen soldiers. Although you’ll be a bit chilly, you will certainly have enough gadgets and weaponry to make the permanent winter seem that little bit rosier… I need backup! Players can choose from four basic classes of soldier; Recon (Sniper/Special Ops), Assault (Infantry/Medic), Engineer (Anti Vehicle/Repair) and Support (Defence/re-supply). Each class has a different role on the battlefield and can access different gadgets and weaponry through experience (more on this later).Teamwork is a huge part of BF2142. By making squads with your fellow players you can combine the strengths of each class and almost eliminate the weaknesses of the individual. An Assault player can heal and revive fallen teammates. A Support player can re-supply his teammates with ammunition and explosives. Together these two players can support each other directly (through healing and supplies) and therefore last much longer in the battlefield than they would alone. Throw in the ability for players to pick up a fallen soldier’s kit and you’ll find that your Support buddy can pick up your Assault kit when you die and revive you, saving the day! Class customization doesn’t end there: a Recon player may not just be a long-range sniper, they may have chosen to get the Lambert Carbine sub assault rifle and Active Camouflage instead. So while you and your Support buddy pin down the enemy nest with distanced rockets and suppressive fire, your Recon buddy can sneak up behind them, ‘de-cloak’ and dish out some pain.
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