Battlefield 4 Forum Question of the Week

With the introduction of Battlefield 1 came a whole new user interface for both Battlefield 1 and Battlefield 4. The purpose of this new change in BF4 was to help get players who haven’t bought BF1 adjusted to the new interface in hopes that they would eventually pick up a copy. However it seems as though BF4 players aren’t very happy with the change.

This week question, which is more of a complaint, comes to us from Freshthrowaway1138, who asks,

Personally I have found the new user interface to be refreshing. I didn’t mind the change and actually appreciated it when I got my copy of BF1 before returning it.

 

Old Interface:

 

New Interface:

Now although the experience and benefits from having the new vs old UI is extremely subjective it seems like a lot of other players want their old BF4 look back.

Most of comments on the community reddit page were like this. It’s unfortunate that others don’t seem to like this change. In fact in the gaming world, change (big ones that is) seem to usually be disliked by the communities that are affected by said change.

I consider myself to be more of a casual gamer, but don’t get me wrong. I rag about your typical gamer issues like campers, lag and getting killed by noobs. However, at the end of the day I still realize that I’m just playing a game. So changes to a User Interface may take some getting used to but it would never affect me to the point that I would take to the forums to vent or rant about how sucky the new “thing” is compared to the old “thing”.

Yet I also know that gamers can be very, no, extremely passionate about the titles they play. There are some die-hard battlefield players out there that honestly have logged so many hours playing this title that almost any negative nerf or major change, as perceived by them, can be the antithesis of good in their eyes.

So as an answer to the question posed above I simply say, Yes. As a gamer it is your right/freedom to express your views about the changes that have/are/will take place in a game that you have bought. However if your gripes pertain to a game that has already been finished and won’t be receiving anymore updates or content then is there really even a point?

Honestly BF4 has been out for years. It’s a finished game and complaining about it’s new user interface is pretty much synonymous to a dog barking at a parked car. Yeah, you’re making a lot of noise. Others may begin to bark with you. However the car has reached it’s destination and isn’t going anywhere, no matter how much noise(or complaints) you make.

BF4 Question of the Week!

Once again I’m back with another question straight from the forums. This week’s question is pretty good in my opinion.

It comes to us from Yoyonny who asks,

Now LMG’s in BF4 vary. It depends on which one your using and the attachments (this is a comprehensive list of all weapon modifications) that you’ve got equipped. For example, the LSAT is one of my favorite guns in the LMG class. It has a regular 100 round magazine and a pretty decent rate of fire (700 RPM).

Now you could throw a bi-pod on it, find yourself a corner and enjoy your spray n’ pray camping excursion. However, I find that this weapon fits my run and gun style pretty well if you equip a suppressor and an auto-fire grip attachment like the vertical grip. This helps to mitigate the recoil and make it damn near non-existence from my perspective.

Im not alone. PotatoDome also agrees with me.

However some players like RizzlyBear see LMG’s as being good for only one type of play style.

Although I disagree, I do see his point.  Usually people who do play with light machine guns tend to follow that path. However I am not one of them.

Xxdavidpwns seems to agree with RizzlyBear.

In fact a lot of the reddit users on the BF4 page seems to have this singular view of LMG’s.

In all honesty it really comes down to how you play and what works best for you. Although I’ve encountered a majority of players who do play in a very defensive and supportive role with this weapon I have also seen some who play in a run and gun offensive style as well.

Some tactics just work better for some. It may be aggravating to others, but if you’re at your best hiding in a corner then by all means go for it. In the end it is just a game. So do whatever makes it enjoyable to you and forget the haters!

The Minority of Minorities: Being a self-identified “Black Male Gamer”

Being a gamer, for me, is like being black. It’s in my genes, my DNA. Games are one of the things that I can’t imagine living without. Personally, I feel like the term “Gamer” adequately describes me. However what percentage of the population feels like me? More specifically how many people who are black/African American feel as I do?

-image credit: Dreamstime.com

Disclaimer: In these studies gaming can be done on multiple platforms, i.e. tablets, consoles, computers and phones.

In a 2015 U.S. study, it was found that 50 percent of men and 48 percent of women play video games. Of these two groups 15 percent of men and 6 percent of women identified themselves as “Gamers“. If broken down into age groups 77 percent of men(18-29) and 57 percent of women(18-29) also play games. However, in this group, 33 percent of men and 9 percent of women identified themselves as “Gamers”.

It appears that there’s a trend among those who game. The younger you are, the more likely you are to play video games and identify yourself as a regular gamer.

I did find it interesting that the study found that Hispanics are more likely to use the term “Gamer” to identify themselves more than whites or blacks. In terms of self identification, 19 percent of Hispanics, 11 percent of black and 9 percent of whites felt that this term accurately explained who they are as a person.

In regards to views on gaming there was a lot of variation in beliefs. At 19 percent, blacks view games as being a good way to promote teamwork and communication while only 10 percent of Hispanics and 8 percent of whites believe this statement.

On the flip side 28 percent of whites believe gaming is a waste of time while 21 percent of Hispanics and 15 percent of blacks agree with this statement.

Among all of this data I was also able to find that, in terms of “If video games painted minorities in a bad light“, 13 percent of blacks said that this was true for most games, 22 percent said true for some but not others, 17 percent said not true for most and 47 percent said not sure. In regards to the last percentage, 50 percent of whites said that they were also unsure if games portrayed minorities negatively.

In the end it seems that being a self identified black gamer is pretty rare. It’s like the minority of minorities if that makes sense.

However, I could care less. Im glad to be an African American gamer and I wouldn’t have it any other way!