January 18, 2003 - Battlefield 1942 has managed to grind productivity to a halt on several occasions here at work. Late nights and weekends bring gunfire, explosions and screams of pain to the IGN offices. More than a few editors have stayed after hours for that one last game that will give the fix they need. But that fix is never enough. There have been frequent sightings of Ivan and Cory asleep at their desks, drool slowly seeping into the cracks between keys, with a mouse in one hand and Japanese cries of control points being lost washing over their snoring bodies. Just last night, even though the usual soothing call of his bed was pulling him to sleep, Dan found himself sitting down in front of the computer for a quick game. Of course that quick game lasted four hours and meant sleep at three in the morning. Well that and the speed, can't forget about the speed.

With this in mind, we're sure you can understand the excitement that we felt when we heard we would get the chance to take a trip down to Electronic Arts in Redwood City, CA and look at the first expansion pack for Battlefield 1942 entitled The Road to Rome. The siren song of DICE's superlative shooter brought five of us (Steve, Dan, Ivan, Tal, and Cory) down for some significant hours of hands-on play. From the moment we wandered into the EA offices and heard that lovely Battlefield tune, it was on. The blood started pumping and we were ready to start shooting some fools.

Considering we're normally teaching other players the meaning of pain, it was more than a little shocking to come up against the group of testers that had basically been playing the game non-stop for days and days. They were good. Some of them were sickeningly good, especially since they knew the maps and we didn't. But when the shooting started, it didn't matter that by the end of the day only one of us had managed to crack the top three slot. Thanks Dan! You're the greatest! (Please note that Ivan only played three of the maps on a feeble computer and Cory spent the day filming.)

Road to Rome covers one of the more overlooked campaigns in popular media. Italy was a big turning point in the war, removing one of the Axis points and clearing the path for a southern advance into Germany. The six new maps cover some of the major points of this campaign and offer some awesome gaming opportunities. Each of the maps has definitely been shown the same amount of care that draped onto the first set.

Two new sides are also entering the fray. The French and Italians make their first appearance with new skins, weapons, vehicles, and voices. Of course, we managed to play as both of these sides to get a solid feel and the main differences lay in the Italian assault and French medic weapons, which you can read about in the sections below.

The gameplay itself remains true to the newest patch, but all of the new content is plenty to digest. At 20 American dollars, this expansion is shaping up to be one that all fans of the game will have to buy.

So without further ado, explore the rest of the preview that outlines new content and offers impressions of each of the new maps. And make damn sure that you check out the 28 new movies we took of the action, which all include color commentary by all of IGNPC's gutter-mouthed editors.


Forces

  • French Free Forces:
       In June 1940, Gen. Charles De Gaulle appealed on BBC radio for French men and women to join in the fight against Nazi Germany. By the end of July, 7,000 volunteers had joined the Free French forces. The Resistance grew in strength under De Gaulle's leadership, and after the D-Day landings, the Free French forces numbered 400,000 men and women.

    Sure, they were conquered and suppressed for a few years, but that only makes taking up their cause all the more enjoyable. Like the Italians, the French are on the losing side of the war. Well, until Brits, Canadians and Americans come to save them.

    Still, if you play waving the French flag you'll have an excuse to lose. That alone makes them a worthwhile nation to pledge loyalty to. Then there's the fact that you get to rush Monte Cassino.

  • Italian Army:
       By the time Italy joined WWII, the Italian army was well-conditioned and experienced. The Italian army fought in Ethiopia 1935-1936, Spain 1936-39, and Albania 1939. Still, the Italian army was severely hampered by low morale, poor equipment, and even worse leadership, and it went from defeat to defeat until Mussolini's overthrow in 1943.

    There's no pizza eating and good wine drinking here. Like all races, Italian quips and phrases are authentic and just as inaudible as the Japanese's, assuming you don't speak the language. Their grayish, greenish uniforms may make them appear like a cross between Germans and Americans, but they're all about defending their homeland. Unfortunately they don't do so well in the real war and their maps and technology reflect this.

    A little less powerful and a little outnumbered, they're a hard but nonetheless fulfilling faction to ally with.