Battlefield 1
Electronic Arts
PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC
Four stars
Why doesn’t the First World War get more attention in popular media? Perhaps because it is complicated.
Sure, we all know it started when some archduke got assassinated – but most non-history majors would be hard put to explain why this event subsequently plunged the world into conflict. There are no black-and-white good guys and villains, just a lot of mayhem that led to 17 million deaths.
Battlefield 1 takes that ambiguity and builds a surprisingly effective narrative around it. The latest war game from Electronic Arts' Sweden-based Dice studio offers few rah-rah moments of triumph – most of the time, you are just relieved to make it out alive.
Dice has taken a savvy approach to the story: rather than following an unlucky grunt through an unlikely gauntlet of the war’s most renowned engagements, you get an anthology featuring different characters in each location.
You begin as a member of the Harlem Hellfighters, hopelessly trying to stave off a relentless German invasion in French territory. After that, you take the roles of a tank driver in France, a British fighter pilot, a desperate Italian soldier in the Alps and a wily old Australian veteran in Gallipoli.
The final story ventures into the Middle East, where you are a Bedouin fighter in Lawrence of Arabia’s guerrilla campaign against the Ottoman Empire.
The anthology approach gives DICE a chance to show off its flair with gorgeously rendered landscapes, as well its skill in building a variety of weapons and vehicles that feel like they have genuine weight. This is the 1910s, so you are stuck with sluggish rifles, clunky grenades and a temperamental tank that tends to get stuck in mud.
As a result, Battlefield 1 feels much different from most contemporary war games. Unlike, say, Gears of War 4, you can't just run screaming into the fight and expect to make it out alive. Most scenarios demand a tactical approach – you must find a way to quietly eliminate enemies one at a time before breaking out the heavy weapons. It is the rare war game in which I have felt compelled to retry scenarios to look for more subtle ways to complete missions.
There’s a full suite of online multiplayer contests, highlighted by Dice’s signature Conquest mode, in which up to 64 soldiers fight over a sprawling wasteland. There is also the new Operations mode, a tug-of-war between offensive and defensive troops that grows increasingly tense as you move from map to map.
From Call of Duty to Halo and countless others, the market for war video games is saturated. Battlefield 1 is the first in a while that feels like it has some fresh ideas – and one of the few I would recommend to people who do not normally care for the genre.
artslife@thenational.ae
Brief scores:
Toss: Northern Warriors, elected to field first
Bengal Tigers 130-1 (10 ov)
Roy 60 not out, Rutherford 47 not out
Northern Warriors 94-7 (10 ov)
Simmons 44; Yamin 4-4
The biog
Name: Ayisha Abdulrahman Gareb
Age: 57
From: Kalba
Occupation: Mukrema, though she washes bodies without charge
Favourite things to do: Visiting patients at the hospital and give them the support they need.
Role model: Sheikha Fatima bint Mubarak, Chairwoman of the General Women's Union, Supreme Chairwoman of the Family Development Foundation and President of the Supreme Council for Motherhood and Childhood.
Voices: How A Great Singer Can Change Your Life
Nick Coleman
Jonathan Cape
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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Director: Laxman Utekar
Cast: Vicky Kaushal, Akshaye Khanna, Diana Penty, Vineet Kumar Singh, Rashmika Mandanna
Rating: 1/5
The specs
AT4 Ultimate, as tested
Engine: 6.2-litre V8
Power: 420hp
Torque: 623Nm
Transmission: 10-speed automatic
Price: From Dh330,800 (Elevation: Dh236,400; AT4: Dh286,800; Denali: Dh345,800)
On sale: Now
PROVISIONAL FIXTURE LIST
Premier League
Wednesday, June 17 (Kick-offs uae times) Aston Villa v Sheffield United 9pm; Manchester City v Arsenal 11pm
Friday, June 19 Norwich v Southampton 9pm; Tottenham v Manchester United 11pm
Saturday, June 20 Watford v Leicester 3.30pm; Brighton v Arsenal 6pm; West Ham v Wolves 8.30pm; Bournemouth v Crystal Palace 10.45pm
Sunday, June 21 Newcastle v Sheffield United 2pm; Aston Villa v Chelsea 7.30pm; Everton v Liverpool 10pm
Monday, June 22 Manchester City v Burnley 11pm (Sky)
Tuesday, June 23 Southampton v Arsenal 9pm; Tottenham v West Ham 11.15pm
Wednesday, June 24 Manchester United v Sheffield United 9pm; Newcastle v Aston Villa 9pm; Norwich v Everton 9pm; Liverpool v Crystal Palace 11.15pm
Thursday, June 25 Burnley v Watford 9pm; Leicester v Brighton 9pm; Chelsea v Manchester City 11.15pm; Wolves v Bournemouth 11.15pm
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Thursday July 2 Arsenal vs Norwich 9pm; Manchester City vs Liverpool 11.15pm
The Uefa Awards winners
Uefa Men's Player of the Year: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Uefa Women's Player of the Year: Lucy Bronze (Lyon)
Best players of the 2018/19 Uefa Champions League
Goalkeeper: Alisson (Liverpool)
Defender: Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool)
Midfielder: Frenkie de Jong (Ajax)
Forward: Lionel Messi (Barcelona)
Uefa President's Award: Eric Cantona
Western Region Asia Cup T20 Qualifier
Sun Feb 23 – Thu Feb 27, Al Amerat, Oman
The two finalists advance to the Asia qualifier in Malaysia in August
Group A
Bahrain, Maldives, Oman, Qatar
Group B
UAE, Iran, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia
Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 petrol engine
Power: 420kW
Torque: 780Nm
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Price: From Dh1,350,000
On sale: Available for preorder now
The specs
Engine: 2-litre or 3-litre 4Motion all-wheel-drive Power: 250Nm (2-litre); 340 (3-litre) Torque: 450Nm Transmission: 8-speed automatic Starting price: From Dh212,000 On sale: Now
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COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Total funding: Self funded
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If you go
Where to stay: Courtyard by Marriott Titusville Kennedy Space Centre has unparalleled views of the Indian River. Alligators can be spotted from hotel room balconies, as can several rocket launch sites. The hotel also boasts cool space-themed decor.
When to go: Florida is best experienced during the winter months, from November to May, before the humidity kicks in.
How to get there: Emirates currently flies from Dubai to Orlando five times a week.