Battlefield: Bad Company
By Brett Molina,
Common Sense Media Reviewer
Common Sense Media Reviewers
Military shooter with strong visuals, multiplayer.

A Lot or a Little?
What you will—and won't—find in this game.
Where to Play
Community Reviews
Based on 21 parent reviews
Let me tell you the truth
Report this review
it is the best
Report this review
What’s It About?
Unlike most military shooters where you are cast into the role of an elite soldier, in BATTLEFIELD: BAD COMPANY you're part of a squad of army rejects battling in a futuristic campaign against Russia. As your character, Preston Marlowe, and his crew of misfits uncover stashes of gold hidden throughout the region, you decide to turn AWOL to try and get rich.
New to the Battlefield franchise is the ability to decimate buildings and other elements of the environment. Instead of chasing an enemy hiding in a building, you can blow a hole in the side and negate his cover. Visually, the destruction looks very impressive. Chunks of walls fly after receiving a shot from a grenade launcher. Trees tumble as you mow through landscapes in tanks. The arsenal in Bad Company allows for great flexibility in how you kill foes and demolish landscapes. Besides a broad range of guns, players can use tanks, helicopters, air strikes, rocket launchers, and grenades, to name a few.
Is It Any Good?
The game's single-player campaign is solid but not as compelling as other top-notch military titles. Part of the problem is the artificial intelligence. Your teammates offer little help, forcing you to do almost all the work. Enemies, meanwhile, are wildly inconsistent. Sometimes, they deploy effective tactics like flanking. Other times, they prefer to hide and let you hunt them down. The penalty for dying is also rather low, thanks to an injector soldiers carry that offers unlimited health boosts. Fortunately, the game redeems itself with an strong multiplayer mode that allows for up to 24 players.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about military games. How close do you think these games mirror real-life warfare? Does the lack of blood or graphic imagery make the violence easier to watch?
Game Details
- Platforms: Xbox 360, PlayStation 3
- Available online?: Available online
- Publisher: Electronic Arts
- Release date: June 24, 2008
- Genre: First-Person Shooter
- ESRB rating: T for Teen
- Last updated: November 4, 2015
Did we miss something on diversity?
Research shows a connection between kids' healthy self-esteem and positive portrayals in media. That's why we've added a new "Diverse Representations" section to our reviews that will be rolling out on an ongoing basis. You can help us help kids by suggesting a diversity update.
Suggest an Update
Where to Play
Our Editors Recommend
Common Sense Media's unbiased ratings are created by expert reviewers and aren't influenced by the product's creators or by any of our funders, affiliates, or partners.
See how we rate