The free-to-play banner isn't enough to save this game from being a missed opportunity.
This is the path EA took for Battlefield Heroes, a free game initially developed by Digital Illusions CE that proposes the Battlefield's hectic combat under a cartoon style, with players being able to purchase customization options such as clothing, among other items.
Unlike the other Battlefield games. BF:H uses a third person perspective, and the reason for this is so players can see their Battlefield Heroes presents you three classes with unique skills, different amount of hit points and weapons.
The Commando is the agile scout-sniper, they can use a Stealth skill, a sprinting one, and also being able to equip a knife, the only melee weapon in the game.
The Soldier is your average grunt, being able to heal themselves and team mates, using skills to enhance their damage, and aid team mates by seeing enemies through walls, being able to use submachine guns and shotguns.
Gunner is the bulky class, with a shield ability that can be shared with team mates, a sprint one that can also be shared with team mates and it's the only class that can use a rocket launcher, the two other ones have only a sticky TNT, but you must be in close range in order to throw it at the vehicle. The default weapon of the Gunner is a machinegun, and they can also carry a shotgun.
The balance between classes has seen many changes during the beta stage of the development of Battlefield Heroes, and after many tweaks here and there aren't major problems regarding classes and their skills at the moment.
The vehicles could be described as Battlefield Lite, you have a jeep, a fighter plane and a tank, and they do the job pretty well of covering the basic aspects of the appeal that stands out in the series.
The maps available for the game aren't exactly varied. You have large ones for more vehicle combat and infantry maps, usually with a single jeep. The major problem is that they look exactly the same, and even being free game, it might get boring to see the same recycled buildings ans trees after several matches. The map design is fine for most of the times, except for Buccaneer Bay, where capturing one point can work against you, thanks to terrible spawn points totally exposed to the enemy, and how there's not much to do if your team gets cornered in that single spot, as the whole area around it is totally exposed to enemy's fire.
There is a ranking system in the game that directly affects the skills you can use and how effective they are, and this can be a double edged sword. There is no server browser, usual match is made by a matchmaking system. The skills clearly play a big role in the outcome of your performance, however the matchmaking system solves the level gap problem for most of the times.
There two currencies in BF:H, Valor Points, won during matches and missions, and Battlefunds that can only be acquired by using real money to get them. You can buy clothes, items, emotes and weapons with both, but VPs can barely allow you to get customizations options for long, as long as the best arsenal.
The weapons aren't exactly varied, you have the default one, and usually one with a faster firing rate more suited for close quarters combat, they also have less bullets per clip. The other is the opposite, slower firing rate than the default weapon and more accurate, perfect for long range firing.
With the addition of "uber weapons" during a update, those closer range/long range variations got upgraded versions that perform better, the only problem is that they're very expensive VP wise, and the best route for players not willing to play BF:H many hours per day solely to get a single weapon for a limited time is to buy them with Battlefunds, this created quite a stir in the community and Valor Points as a whole are currently less valuable than they were in Beta, where you could keep a different weapon for a decent time with them, without worrying about running out of VPs too fast.
The customization in Battlefield Heroes is not exactly overwhelming. It feels that it could be way more varied than it is, and the community could surely help with ideas, or maybe a contest for original ideas for new customizations. For a game being founded mostly on microtransactions involving clothing customization, BF:H is surely lacking in that department. Also, due to the price of weapons and items it's hard to acquire other clothes with Valor Points alone.
Many comparisons have been made between Battlefield Heroes and Team Fortress 2, both go by the same cartoon style, however the gameplay is different, mainly regarding the tools for improving the team work in the game.
Sound effects aren't bad in the game, but not extraordinary either, they do the job just fine. Music could use a little more variety, but they are okay for a free game.
There's a lack of in game voice communication, which is a very bad thing, since improved team work is the hallmark of what Battlefield games usually provide. This might end in frustration, with team mates running alone with the sole jeep of the map, or just not working as a team in a game where cohesion and cooperation is needed.
Battlefield Heroes feels nice to play, it is accessible,t doesn't demand a very powerful machine, and it was a smart idea in order to attract a wider market to the game. There's only a single game mode, the classic Conquest, and capturing an enemy flag grants you experience, as well as killing the players from the other team.
Communication between the developers and the community is somewhat limited, and the gigantic amount of ignored suggestions for example can be quite disappointing, as the game stands stale on its own place without further progress for any improvements.
The result of all that is a game that failed to deliver an experience that lives up to its name. After some time of playing, it gets overly familiar too fast for a multiplayer game. The underwhelming customization, total lack of tools to promote team work, expensive weapons and outfits for non paying players, and copy-pasted maps make it hard to think about spending your money with Battlefield Heroes. After all it's a frustrating, big missed opportunity.