History VideoGame / Battlefield4

** All classes now have explosive-based weaponry since the beginning. Assault retain their weapon-mountable grenade launcher, while the Engineer retained the [=RPGs=] (as well as other recoilless cannons). Support now start with an airburst grenade launcher and can later acquire C4, while the recon start with C4 after it was moved to Support class in ''Battlefield 3''.

* GoodGunsBadGuns: Compared to ''Battlefield 3'', which only had this for the starting guns for each class, this game hews closer to ''Bad Company 2''[='=]s example, where each class has one gun they start with regardless of side - Assault gets the Russian AK-12, Recon the Chinese [=CS/LR4=], Support the Singaporean Ultimax 100 and Engineer the Italian [=Mx4=] - and leaving other guns to be used regardless of side as well. Attachments still follow a model similar to ''[=BF3=]'', where a weapon unlocks attachments from one "side" through making kills (e.g. a Chinese assault rifle unlocks the Chinese "Coyote" red dot sight at the same number of kills an American one gets the [=RX01=] or a Russian one the Kobra) and can only get attachments from the other two through [[RandomDrop the luck of the draw with Battlepacks]] (including the ability to get a mismatched version of an optic long before you grind out the matching one).

* WearingAFlagOnYourHead: New to the series is the ability to create your own custom emblems through Battlelog, which is proudly emblazoned on your character's outfit, somewhere on every gun you use, and in the killcam view for anyone you kill. Until you do make one, however, the game defaults to the flag of whichever faction you're currently playing as.

* MeleeATrois: Though multiplayer is still purely a two-side affair, the maps can be played with any combination of the [[EagleLand United States]], [[MakeTheBearAngryAgain Russian Federation]] and [[UsefulNotes/ChineseWithChopperSupport People's Republic of China]] fighting one of the other two, as opposed to earlier games where, even if there were more than two factions, most of them would be teaming up together against the US.

** The initial Engineer missile is the weakest missile available and has no active lock-on system, but will, if pointed mostly towards a vehicle and the targeting reticule is kept on the target, ''always hit'' thanks to passive systems that direct the missile to a target.
** The UCAV and TV-Guided Missiles are also player guided. In addition, SUAV's can be used to get Road Kill points, making them a non-explosive variant of this.

** In an example of rare guns being used for ShownTheirWork, BF4 has multiple weapons that are based on the AK-12, but in completely different weapon classes. These include an LMG, a DMR, a carbine, and even a shotgun. These were all proposed alternate AK-12 variants which the AK-12 could become by switching out its modular components, including the barrel, rechambered in different calibers and used in different roles. Almost none of them were physically built, however, and the idea was dropped in the final AK-12 production version.
** The famously rare Mateba Unica 6 is a new revolver added in the ''Dragon's Teeth'' expansion. The weapon's real life production is known to be extremely limited but no actual numbers are known, what is known however is that the number of Matebas in North America is in the single digits.
* RegeneratingHealth: As per standard for a Modern Military Shooter. Notably, the HUD has an actual numerical health meter that shows your exact health, instead of simply relying on the standard [[VideoGame/DutyCalls Bloody Screen So Real]] (although the game has that too). This is rather unusual for a Modern Military Shooter single-player campaign, but it's been in the multiplayer for both ''Battlefield'' and ''VideoGame/MedalOfHonor'' for a while.

* BackForTheDead: [[spoiler:Dima and Agent 'Whistler' Kovic]] both return from the ''VideoGame/{{Battlefield 3}}'' campaign, only to die within their first appearances.
* BigBad: Admiral Chang

* CrapsackWorld: It seems Dima and Blackburn's sacrifice in stopping Solomon was in vain with the US still fighting a war against Russia who's trying to overthrow the moderate government in China and replace it with one loyal to them. The Shanghai mission shows that much of China is chaos, with riots breaking out in the streets and the PLA enforcing martial law. Not to mention the Chinese have taken over MOST OF ASIA and the Suez Canal with little difficulty... and for no reason.

** And if the level ''Singapore'' and some of the muliplayer levels are to be taken as canon, most of Southeast Asia have been taken with little resistance from their individual militaries.

* FeaturelessProtagonist: Unlike previous ''Battlefield'' campaigns, the player character is never shown, nor is any detailed background information given about them other than the name "Recker." The game takes place entirely from a first-person perspective, and the player never speaks. The whole silent protagonist shtick stops working after you become squad leader but still never say a word. It gets pretty stupid when all the conversations happen through your second in command and even when making your "final decision" not a word is said. Even Pac complains about it after Irish decides on his own to bring in nearly four-hundred Chinese refugees the recently-EMP'd ''Valkyrie'' would strain even under the best of conditions to accommodate, stating that unit cohesion gets ruined when subordinates go against what the leader decides like that - not that Recker apparently decides that applies to Tombstone in any way.

* {{Jerk with a Heart of Gold}}: Irish is [[SirSwearsaLot foul-mouthed]], [[AngryBlackMan blunt]], and is often rude and distrustful towards Hanna. However, he acts the way he does towards Hanna because she's: A) replacing Dunn, whom Irish and Recker had known for years; B) joining the team under rather suspicious circumstances, which no one seems inclined to inform the rest of Tombstone about; and C) from a country that is, at this point, basically at war with the US. [[spoiler:Once he realizes Hanna's motivations and that he was wrong about her, he does show a genuine desire to make up for his behaviour.]]

** DroppedABridgeOnHim: Dropped a [[spoiler:cable car]] on him, actually. Particularly notable since Modern Military Shooter protagonists (like, say, ''everybody else'' who was in that [[spoiler:cable car]]) normally survive crashes like these every other mission - guess Modern Military Shooter protagonists dying for no other reason than it's part of the MMS checklist takes precedence.

** In the Kunlun Mountains mission, once you make it outside, there are two helicopters that can crash into the mountainside and explode. None of the guards notice, and none of the characters comment on it, probably making this one a {{Good Bad Bug|s}}.
** Another bug can cause Irish in the intro to the Shanghai mission to brake hard to avoid hitting two pedestrians, but completely ignore a third one (who won't mind too much since he can ''phase through'' the van). Sometimes as well, the elevator ride in which you accidentally open onto the wrong floor and alert the Chinese to your presence can have the game completely fail to render any of that actual room, leading you to get shot at by Chinese spec ops who are floating several hundred feet in the air and apparently have no problem with this.

** While the multiplayer Chinese voice is generally pretty good, there are still some cringy parts, mostly some eccentricities like using weird terms for "Sniper" and "Medical Bag", PoirotSpeak with "C-Four" and "Tank" being spoken in English, and the occasional broken grammar.

** Subverted with the MAV, SUAV and EOD Bots, which behave closer to {{Surveillance Drone}}s as they were meant as support tools. Alas, player creativity carried over from [=BF3=] hasn't stopped anyone from improvising them for more lethal purposes...

'''RU Announcer:''' Hey where the [[PrecisionFStrike ''fuck'']] are you going?
* CallForward: The Final Stand DLC features a HoverTank and prototype version of weapons found in ''VideoGame/Battlefield2142''. Seemingly showing how the RGF and possibly the PLA too, form the Pan Asian Coalition.

** ''Final Stand's'', XD-1 Accipiter is surprisingly this to infantry and light-vehicles, despite its GatlingGood status.

** On the infantry side, there are no items that unlock through rank alone. The first of each class of all-kit weapons require reaching five-figure kit scores on Engineer (carbines), Support (shotguns) and Recon (designated marksman rifles), forcing the player to use the default kit-specific weapons for quite a while. Those who think they can "cheese" their way through the kits by dispensing health and ammo to teammates on the "grinder" maps of Locker and Metro will be in for a rude shock when they realise that Assault and Support do not start with ammo and health boxes, but ammo and health ''packs'' that heal/resupply one player at a time. Finally, the weapons are no longer unlocked through kit score, but through ''weapon'' score, meaning that healing, repairing, resupplying etc. will not get you closer to that shiny new gun - you have to start getting used to, and getting kills and assists with, the starting guns!

** The [=U-100 MK5=], the starting LMG for the support class. It only has a 30 bullet magazine and a pitiful firing rate for an LMG at 590 RPM - the second lowest of them all, making it unsuited for the suppressive fire role. Then one realises that it has the lowest recoil and spread values of all the [=LMGs=], packs the highest bullet velocity (faster than even the sniper rifles!) and is the only one to have a burst-fire mode, as well as all players starting with a red dot sight and a magnifier for it, resulting in it being very good at picking off targets at ranges that even assault rifles may have trouble handling.

* LaserSight: At least more realistic than most that it help your accuracy while hip-firing - turn it on and you can see your crosshairs shrink. Also available in green, tri-beam and flashlight-toggle versions. Like Battlefield 3, it can be seen by other players though it no longer blinds enemy (and friendly) players that much.

* MeleeATrois: Though multiplayer is still purely a two-side affair, the maps can be played with any combination of the [[EagleLand United States]], [[MakeTheBearAngryAgain Russian Federation]] and [[UsefulNotes/ChineseWithChopperSupport People's Republic of China]] fighting one of the other two.

** Ends up with a callback in one of the campaign achievements later: after [[spoiler: blowing up the dam and finally escaping from behind enemy lines to go save Jin Jie]], you get the A Trapped Wolf Will badge, signifying that Tombstone will do whatever it takes to carry out their mission, no matter how crazy or costly to themselves.

** Another bug can cause Irish in the intro to the Shanghai mission to brake hard to avoid hitting two pedestrians, but completely ignore a third one (who won't mind too much since he can ''phase through'' the van). Sometimes as well, the elevator ride in which you accidentally open onto the wrong floor and alert the Chinese to your presence can have the game completely fail to render any of that actual room, leading you to get shot at by Chinese spec ops who are floating several hundred feet in the air.

** Subverted as despite being nominally in command of the squad, Recker never gives orders and instead is ordered around by everyone, including those who are supposed to be your subordinates; apparently the sole justification for him being the squad leader is to justify the tactical binoculars and ability to mark targets for your teammates, something which you get to do ''before'' Recker is actually given command. Somewhat justified as, by the time Recker takes command, he's either working directly for a superior officer by radio, already has a specific mission objective, or [[spoiler: is working with the few allies/friends he has left to try to survive, by winging it]]. Squad members almost always follow his/your lead, though, and won't take the initiative unless ordered to, or until you do.

* GoodGunsBadGuns: Compared to ''Battlefield 3'', which only had this for the starting guns for each class, this game hews closer to ''Bad Company 2''[='=]s example, where each class has one gun they start with regardless of side - Assault gets the Russian AK-12, Recon the Chinese [=CS/LR4=], Support the Singaporean Ultimax 100 and Engineer the Italian [=Mx4=] - and leaving other guns to be used regardless of side as well. Attachments still follow a model similar to ''[=BF3=]'', where a weapon unlocks attachments from one "side" through making kills (e.g. a Chinese assault rifle unlocks the Chinese "Coyote" red dot sight at the same number of kills an American one gets the [=RX01=] or a Russian one the Kobra) and can get attachments from the other two through [[RandomDrop the luck of the draw with Battlepacks]] (including the ability to get a mismatched version of an optic long before you grind out the matching one).

** The Hand Flare lights up people around it like Christmas trees and blinds anyone looking directly at it. Also resembles laser pointers while in a smoke filled room, acting as a perfect decoy. Bonus points that it causes massive InterfaceScrew to anyone using IR scopes.
** The [=U-100 MK5=], the starting LMG for the support class. It only has a 30 bullet magazine and a pitiful firing rate for an LMG at 590 RPM - the second lowest of them all, making it unsuited for the suppressive fire role. Then one realises that it has the lowest recoil and spread values of all the [=LMGs=], packs the highest bullet velocity (faster than even the sniper rifles!) and is the only one to have a burst-fire mode, resulting in it being very good at picking off targets that even assault rifles may have trouble handling.

* MeleeATrois: The multiplayer maps can be played with some combination of the [[EagleLand United States]], [[MakeTheBearAngryAgain Russian Federation]] and the [[UsefulNotes/ChineseWithChopperSupport People's Republic of China]], though the maps can only be played with two factions duking it out at once.

** Also [[spoiler:some levels have you fight on a carrier - particularly, the last level has you defending the one you've been operating from as enemy forces invade, not unlike the antepenultimate level on the USS ''Obama'' from ''VideoGame/CallOfDutyBlackOps2''.]]

** In the Kunlun Mountains mission, once you make it outside, there are two helicopters that can crash into the mountainside and explode. None of the guards notice, and none of the characters comment on it, probably making this one a GoodBadBug.
** Another bug, which is particularly endemic to the [=PS3=] version, can cause Irish in the intro to the Shanghai mission to brake hard to avoid hitting two pedestrians, but completely ignore a third one (who won't mind too much since he can ''phase through'' the van).

* GoodGunsBadGuns: Compared to ''Battlefield 3'', which only had this for the starting guns for each class, this game hews closer to ''Bad Company 2''[='=]s example, where each class has one gun they start with regardless of side - Assault gets the Russian AK-12, Recon the [=CS/LR4=], Support the Singaporean Ultimax 100 and Engineer the Italian [=Mx4=] - and leaving other guns to be used regardless of side as well. Attachments still follow a model similar to ''[=BF3=]'', where a weapon unlocks attachments from one "side" through making kills (e.g. a Chinese assault rifle unlocks the Chinese "Coyote" red dot sight at the same number of kills an American one gets the [=RX01=] or a Russian one the Kobra) and can get attachments from the other two through [[RandomDrop the luck of the draw with Battlepacks]].

* JokeItem: Hand Flare, final hand grenade unlock. But...

** The Hand Flare lights up people around it like Christmas tree and blinds anyone looking directly at it. Also resembles laser pointers in smoke filled room, acting as a perfect decoy. Bonus points that it causes massive InterfaceScrew to anyone using IR scopes.
** The [=U-100 MK5=], the starting LMG for the support class. It only has a 30 bullet magazine and a pitiful firing rate for an LMG at 590 RPM - the second lowest of them all, making it unsuited for the suppressive fire role. Then one realises that it has the lowest recoil and spread values of all the [=LMGs=], packs the highest bullet velocity (faster than all the sniper rifles!) and is the only one to have a burst-fire mode, resulting in it being very good at picking off targets that even assault rifles may have trouble handling.
** The MBT LAW, the starting Engineer rocket launcher. It only does 21% damage per hit to tanks and [=IFVs=], even if you fire it at the rear of a tank! However, the rocket has little drop over range, automatically hits armoured vehicles as long as it flies near it, and most critically, ''circumvents Active Protection''.
* LaserSight: At least more realistic than most that it help your accuracy while hip-firing. Also available in green, tri beam and flashlight-toggle versions. Like Battlefield 3, it can be seen by other players though it no longer blinds enemy (and friendly) players that much.

*** On the other hand, you still get the XP for your weapon and class for those assists, unlike Battlefield 3 weapon unlocks which requires kills.

* NostalgiaLevel: The whole Second Assault expansion, added 3 maps from Battlefield 3 plus the old Gulf of Oman.

** SmashingSurvival: If you knife someone or attacked in melee from the front, you need to jam the melee key and whoever faster wins.
* RandomlyDrops: New to ''Battlefield 4'', Battlepacks that you earn every two levels give you a couple of items, rarely including paint jobs for guns and vehicles, plus soldier camos from gold versions. Annoyingly, some of the accessories may not be for weapons you have not unlocked yet, unless you get a weapon battlepack (earned from having lots of kills with a specific weapon), which always contains attachments only that weapon can use.

* SlapOnTheWristNuke: The attack jet JDAM weapons. Guided bombs in real life are hundreds to THOUSANDS of pounds and capable of leveling concrete bunkers in a single hit, let alone tanks. In game it has an explosive radius barely larger than a hand grenade, and wasn't even that visually impressive until a 2015 update.

* ThrowAwayGuns: Besides the various single-use rocket launchers featured in the game, various maps have special weapons on the ground that can be picked up. Your solider throws these away after use (or after switching back to one of their normal weapons).

** The Armsel Striker is again called [=DAO-12=], as per series tradition. The Cheytac Intervention is called SRR-61, after the Jordanian army sniper team. The Heckler & Koch [=HK416=] is called [=M416=]. The Beretta [=ARX=]160 becomes [=AR-160=]. Averted with the Ares Shrike machine gun - the [=AWS=] label is part of the Shrike's full designation.
** The variants of the [=AK-12=] have mostly fictional names (though this is to be expected for some since most of their real names are unknown due to their RareGuns status) - the carbine ([=AK-12U=]), shotgun ([=AK-12/76=]) and marksman rifle ([=SVK-12=]) are called [=AKU-12=], [=DBV-12=] (persumably standing for 'drobovik', the Russian word for 'shotgun'), and [=SVD-12=] (despite having no commonality with the Dragunov sniper rifle) respectively.

* AcceptableBreaksFromReality: [[DiscussedTrope Addressed]]. In RealLife, double-action revolvers have a trigger delay, which was reflected in-game as a small delay between pressing fire and the revolver actually firing the bullet, [[http://youtu.be/zPPDGXtwBOY seen in this video]]. Unfortunately, this is hard to emulate in a video game where players expect the gun to fire after pressing a ''button'' versus actually handling the gun and pressing the ''trigger'' to fire. With the "2.0" update, this was removed entirely, making the game closer to its ''Battlefield 3'' counterpart.

* CriticalExistenceFailure: Played mostly straight with infantry, who, aside from suppression (which is separate from your HP anyway), screen blood and reduced colouration can fight as well at 1% HP as they can at 100%, but completely averted with vehicles; first, there's critical hits: If you take at least 30% damage from a single attack, you suffer a Mobility Hit which makes you move slower and more awkwardly for 5-10 seconds, or if you take 40%, you suffer a Mobility Kill which completely immobilizes/stalls your vehicle for 5-10 seconds. Finally, when your vehicle is reduced to 10-15% armour, it becomes disabled, meaning it will be permanently in a state of mobility hit and if not repaired, will catch fire, burning away the last of its remaining HP.

* RevolversAreJustBetter: The .44 Magnum and the [=MP412 REX=]] are the only revolvers in the game (unless you have DLC weapons), and usually kills enemies in 2 shots in both single-player and multi-player depending on range. For comparison, most assault rifles, carbines, and submachine guns require an average of 4-5 shots to kill enemy soldiers in single-player, and about as much in multi-player. The drawbacks are the low ammo capacity and lack of range.

* ArtisticLicenseGeography: Several jarring examples, especially during mission, Singapore.

->''Turn around, every now and then...''

** There's also the still unpatched (as of version 1.02) bug reported on multiple platforms which sometimes fails to save/deletes your campaign progress. Cue ClusterFBomb when you choose resume campaign and hear ''Total Eclipse of the Heart'' start to play...

** The variants of the [=AK-12=] have mostly fictional names (though this is to be expected since their real names are unknown due to their RareGuns status) - the carbine ([=AK-12U=]), shotgun ([=AK-12/76=]) and marksman rifle ([=SVK-12=]) are called [=AKU-12=], [=DBV-12=] (persumably standing for 'drobovik', the Russian word for 'shotgun'), and [=SVD-12=] (despite having no commonality with the Dragunov sniper rifle) respectively.

** The most egregious errors come from the variants of the [=AK-12=] - the carbine ([=AK-12U=]), shotgun ([=AK-12/76=]) and marksman rifle ([=SVK-12=]) are called [=AKU-12=], [=DBV-12=] (persumably standing for 'drobovik', the Russian word for 'shotgun'), and [=SVD-12=] (despite having no commonality with the Dragunov sniper rifle) respectively.
** Competing for absurdity is the name given to the Chinese [=CS/LR3=] sniper rifle. "FY-JS" is actually taken from a Chinese military enthusiast message board named '''F'''ei'''y'''ang '''J'''un'''s'''hi (rough trans: High-Flying Military). Chinese ''Battlefield'' fans have called out [=EA=] and [=DICE=] over this.

* RareGuns: In an example of rare guns being used for ShownTheirWork, BF4 has multiple weapons that are based on the AK-12, but in completely different weapon classes. These include an LMG, a DMR, a carbine, and even a shotgun. These were all proposed alternate AK-12 variants which the AK-12 could become by switching out its modular components, including the barrel, rechambered in different calibers and used in different roles. Almost none of them were physically built, however, and the idea was dropped in the final AK-12 production version.

** The Russian multiplayer lines are pretty good...until they become completely cringe-worthy of Russians saying "LAV" and "Djet", making them PoirotSpeak instead of using the proper Russian words.[[note]]Some of the Russian voices were actually done by Andrew Byron, who is ''British''.[[/note]]

** The Russian multiplayer lines are pretty good...until they become completely cringe-worthy of Russians saying "LAV" and "Djet", making them PoirotSpeak instead of using the proper Russian words.
** The Chinese voice is very accurately done[[note]]And for once they actually sound like native Mandarin speakers (with some very mild and true-to-life regional accents) instead of people from non-Mandarin speaking regions attempting to speak a butchered version of Mandarin[[/note]]. If you known Mandarin, you'd learn that their arsenal of quotes is about 50% ClusterFBomb (delivered with [[LargeHam ham]]), which were blasted out when they're hit, suppressed, or shit-talking. (the swears are notably very heavily slang-based and regional, so it's incredible that these were researched correctly) There are still some cringy parts, mostly some eccentricities with special terms like using weird terms for "Sniper" and "Medical Bag", PoirotSpeak with "C-Four" and "Tank" being spoken in English, and the occasional broken grammar.

** The Chinese voice is good most of the time[[note]]And for once they actually sound like native Mandarin speakers instead of people from non-Mandarin speaking regions attempting to speak a butchered version of Mandarin[[/note]], with a highlight being the {{Cluster F Bomb}}s that were blasted out when hit (the swears are notably very heavily slang-based and regional, so it's incredible that these were researched correctly). There are still some cringy parts, mostly some eccentricities with special terms like using weird terms for "Sniper" and "Medical Bag", PoirotSpeak with "C-Four" and "Tank" being spoken in English, and the occasional broken grammar.

** There is lots of unsubtitled Mandarin dialogue, though certain key bits are story-relevant[[note]]for example, [[spoiler:Hannah]] telling the Chang-aligned troops that [[spoiler:Pac]] is already dead so they should just grab [[spoiler:Irish]], one of the Chinese assault troops onboard [[spoiler:the ''Valkyrie'' during the final mission]] comming to other Chinese troops that [[spoiler:Jin Jie's still alive and aboard the ''Valkyrie'']], and even "''Chang''" actually being surnamed Zhang[[/note]]. However, the quality varies quite a bit, from being "mostly alright" to "hilariously broken". The final story-important exchange on the ''Valkyrie'' is actually completely and [[AsLongAsItSoundsForeign utterly screwed in its grammar]], becoming a minor meme on the Chinese community.

** The Chinese voice is good most of the time, with a highlight being the {{Cluster F Bomb}}s that were blasted out when hit. Cringe comes in the form of similar PoirotSpeak like saying "C-Four" and "Tank" in English (while using Chinese other times), and using English word/sentence order.

* AKA47: The Armsel Striker is again called [=DAO-12=], as per series tradition. The Cheytac Intervention is called SRR-61, after the Jordanian army sniper team. The Heckler & Koch [=HK416=] is called [=M416=]. The Beretta [=ARX=]160 becomes [=AR-160=]. Averted with the Ares Shrike machine gun - the [=AWS=] label is part of the Shrike's full designation.

* ObviousBeta: Despite hopes that [=BF4=] would be 'polishing' [=BF3=] and be near perfect, it is not. The game has tons of bugs, some returning from BF 3 and the single player apparently haven't been playtested, choppers fly into the mountainside during scripted events, in multiplayer the tv guided missile blowing up your own helicopter still exists. Singleplayer FOV is hardlocked at 60°.