While many people took the weekend to relax and unwind, many gamers took to the frontlines in EA’s and DICE’s latest beta- build of their hit first-person shooter video game, “Battlefield One.”

For those who aren’t up-to-date with video games, Battlefield is a very popular first-person shooter video game that differs from others in the genre due to DICE’s attention to realism. This means all buildings are destructible, all vehicles move and shoot like they would in reality and the weapons follow the rules of physics. The attention to detail is what makes this series a top contender for competitors like “Call of Duty”, who focus only on gameplay instead of making their product play realistically.

Also, don’t let the name fool you into thinking this is some sort of HD remake of a past Battlefield game. The One is to fall in line with the war that the game is set in, the first world war. Now that everyone is  caught up, does the beta show a promising first look at what gamers should expect this Fall?

While beta players were only given one map to play on, the Sinai Desert, the details of this map helped the game designers display quality over quantity when compared to other betas that offer an average of  three different maps. After playing the beta, if one were to take the time to Google “Sinai Desert”, they would see how much detail DICE put into recreating this iconic historical landmark.

From the yellow sands with highrise- like cliffs, to the architectural structures off all of the buildings that existed in the early 20th century Siani, DICE truly makes players feel like they just visited Egypt. The map is beautiful to look at. The wind realistically brushes against the tree’s leaves, the bright sun causes dazzling glares in the soldier’s eyes, giving that sense of extreme heat found within the desert, and the game even has a sandstorm that blankets the map very few games.

Gameplay wise, there is only two modes in this beta, Rush and Conquest. Rush groups players into one of two teams as they attack or defend objectives together. The map is cut into one fourth the size in order to accommodate the 24 player mode, but still holds some fun.

Rush mode also doesn’t push the game to limit which means that out of the two modes it is the far more stable one, with players hardly running into any glitches. If players want more of a team- based play- style, game Rush mode is the preference.

Conquest mode has been a Battlefield staple, and continues the trend in Battlefield One. This mode offers 32 verse 32 on the full Sinai Desert map, in which players must capture and hold objectives in order to get their team “tickets.”

Tickets determines who wins the match. At the end of the game, the team who runs out of tickets is the loser. This is by far the most popular choice within the game. Hosting the largest number of players, the game mode not only increases the number of people engaged in combat, but pushes the game to it’s max and points out bugs that range from vehicles disappearing while riding them, players not spawning with any weapons, and even having player’s solder zig- zagging along the map.

Battlefield isn’t a run- and- gun game, it requires strategic planning for each and every situation, which is why there are four different classes to choose from that players can swap to at any given time to help turn the tide of battle.

Assault is your front of the lines class. Those who choose this class will be doing most of the killing due to its arsenal of weapons to counter your foes. The Medic class is for those who like to heal players on the field. They have the ability to revive those who have fallen as well.

Support class is all about restocking players with the items they need as well as setting up traps to help hold onto objectives. Scouts is the last the class, and players who chose it are snipers that generally keep to the back and take out those who fail to get down into the trenches.

Overall, the beta was pretty fun and enjoyable to play. I really like the way guns now have a drop ratio, which means bullets don’t just fly straight, but instead descend overtime like a real bullet would. I also like the special classes that players can pick up on the map to turn them into flame wielding soldiers or high armored foes as I feel it adds to the tension of never knowing what you will encounter.

The few things that didn’t fare well with me are the horses and tanks. Horses feel like they are way too difficult to kill. I understand that a horse shouldn’t die after a shot or two, but when I ride a horse and get shot, the horse shouldn’t be able to outlive me. As for the tanks, I like driving them and firing the mounted machine guns, but the amount of anti-tank weapons on the field or in player’s arsenal is way too limited. In other Battlefield games I could see a tank and pull something out to at least damage it, but now it becomes a game of hide and seek in order to avoid a death.

Only time will tell if the beta’s success will translate into dollars when the game releases October 21, but EA and DICE should not have a hard time earning the trust of gamers after such a great and fun beta game.