A couple weeks ago in Cologne, Germany, EA and DICE showed off a few minutes of co-op mode in "Battlefield 3." The "Exfiltration" mission had the two-player team escorting a political defector out of hostile territory, and while it didn't appear to reinvent the wheel, the mode certainly looks like a lot of fun. Writing on the PlayStation Blog this morning, DICE junior product manager Tommy Rydling shared a few more details on what to expect in October.
While the GamesCom demo highlighted the use of teamwork in taking down enemies in tandem, you'll have to work closely with a partner in other ways to advance through "Battlefield 3" co-op successfully. Rydling pointed out a couple scenarios, like working a mounted gun while your pal flies a chopper, or covering their back while they disarm a bomb.
You're responsible for your teammate's life in the game, as well. If your buddy takes a bad hit and goes down, you can revive them with the "Man down!" mechanic. If both players go down, you'll end up with a game over. This sounds a lot like "Left 4 Dead," except in "Battlefield 3" – hopefully – your jerk friends don't leave you behind as zombie chow.
Rydling also mentioned that while the co-op mode story runs within the same scenario as the single-player campaign, the missions follow a unique series of events with an "explosive finish." Even more interesting, the co-op missions feature randomized events, so there could be quite a bit of replayability. That's not to mention that co-op playthroughs can land you unlockable gear rewards, usable in normal multiplayer matches.
"There are a number of weapons that you can unlock in co-op and take with you to the regular multiplayer modes," Rydling wrote. "These unlocks are based on your combined scores accumulated throughout the co-op campaign."
Those co-op scores will also show up on the new "Battlefield 3" social network, Battlelog. Leaderboard -type score tracking, random experiences, and weapon rewards could make the co-op mode a rather addicting proposition.