Battlefield 3 is the eleventh installment in the franchise of FPS games featuring 20th-21st century warfare.
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Story & Themes
The Battlefield games all feature scenarios of modern warfare, some real and others imagined. Battlefield 3 takes place in the year 2014 and follows the stories of Sergeant Henry Blackburn and Dimitri Mayakovsky as they work to save New York from a terrorist attack.
Although the games do include campaign storylines, Battlefield's real strength is in its multiplayer. Vehicular combat, teamwork, strategic movement, and large-scale battle scenarios are the norm. There is also a special mode in some of the games called Commander Mode, during which players gain an RTS-like bird's eye view of the map and ability to control different units.
Heads Up!
Violence Realistic violence, death imagery, and blood and gore are depicted. Buildings and vehicles are also destroyed (and often blown up). There is some melee combat as well. Battlefield 3 includes one recorded scene of an execution.
Scary Imagery Although the imagery isn't necessarily scary, the games aim to increase players' adrenaline levels, and some may find the constant hyper-awareness fatiguing.
Strong Language This game has a good amount of heavy swearing.
Discrimination Battlefield 3 features a playable female character, but her role is brief.
Online Community
Parents should be warned that the primary draw of Battlefield is the multiplayer aspect of the games. Players chat via headsets while engaging in large-scale battle, and anything goes.
Conversation Starters
Parents should use this opportunity to really address online play and make sure kids a) feel safe and respected, and b) are engaging in respectful repartee with others.
- Do you think these battles are realistic? Is this what real ground warfare would feel like?
- Do you think there is any danger of (in fictional battle settings) these powers actually engaging in war?
- How does this intense adrenaline rush make you feel? Do you ever get anxious after playing Battlefield, or are you more relaxed?
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