Perfect for what it is with a only a few minor flaws.
There have been some changes though. The classes have had a few tweaks and the unlock system, while similar to Battlefield 2, have been updated to match the current world of first person shooters. That said there are plenty of unlocks with enough progress bars begging to be filled to keep you playing. New weapons and other unlockables are a welcome addition.
Two new gameplay aspects have been added. They are both distortion effects and one is a way of getting xp in the game. Attaching a flashlight to your gun is a way of blinding anyone you point it at similar to the effect flash bangs affect you. The other new addition is suppression fire. This is done by shooting at an enemy and missing. The enemy's vision is then blurred, again similar to a flash bang. Doing this is another way of gaining xp.
Not everything that was in Battlefield 2 made to cut however. There is no longer a commander role like what was found in Battlefield 2. It is strange that something that worked well in the previous iteration did not make it into the newer version. Another part of Battlefield 2 that did not make it into Battlefield 3 is the ability to play against bot. This has been replaced with a single player campaign. More on this next.
The single player campaign is above average. While it is very comparable to the style of Call of Duties single player, it is better than the average first person shooter and therefor is not bad addition to the game. The problem then lies with what the single player game is replacing, fighting against bots. While it get's you used to the shooting mechanics and how different guns behave. What it looses is any way to practice different maps and handling vehicles. This is especially important for flying as that takes practice to truly do it well and you are now forced to do this in actual multiplayer.
Summary and reason for score:
Battlefield 3 is excellently made and most importantly fun to play. It has everything you could ask for from a Battlefield game save a few things. It looses a point for getting rid of the commander role and making it impossible to easily practice, both things that a previous Battlefield game had that Battlefield 3 lost. Don't let that make you not play this game though. If you are a fan of first person shooters, or big open combat then you need to play this game.