Battlefield 2
.png/300px-Battlefield_2_(PC_Cover).png) |
|
DICE |
| Special Forces |
DICE Canada |
|
Electronic Arts |
|
Refractor 2 |
| Windows |
June 21, 2005 |
| Metacritic |
91 |
| IGDB |
93 |
| Monetization |
One-time game purchase, Expansion pack |
| Modes |
Singleplayer, Multiplayer |
| Pacing |
Real-time |
| Perspectives |
First-person |
| Controls |
Direct control |
| Genres |
Action, FPS |
| Vehicles |
Automobile, Flight, Helicopter, Naval/watercraft, Tank, Transport, Truck |
| Art styles |
Realistic |
| Themes |
Contemporary |
| Series |
Battlefield |
|
Warnings
- GameSpy online services have been shut down (see Network for solutions).
Battlefield 2 is a singleplayer and multiplayer first-person action and FPS game in the Battlefield series.
The game received a major expansion pack, Special Forces, in November 2005, and two booster packs, Euro Force and Armored Fury in March and June 2006, respectively. The two booster packs were integrated and made available for free to all owners of the base game with patch 1.50 in September 2009.
The official GameSpy servers were shut down in 2014. The Revive community offered a custom master server, but in late 2017, after a legal notice from publisher Electronic Arts forbade the distribution of game ISOs, the service was shut down.[1][2] BF2Hub took over shortly thereafter and is operational as of October 2023.
In addition to server lookup, some users may find issues with mouse skipping/stuttering for which there is no known fix, as well as compatibility issues with multi-core processors and potential rendering issues.
General information
- Battlefield 2 hub on Planet Battlefield
- The Battlefield series on Battlelog - PC section.
- EA Answers HQ
- Steam Community Discussions
Availability
| Source |
DRM |
Notes |
Keys |
OS |
| Retail |
|
SafeDisc v3 DRM - Removed by the official 1.50 patch.
Can be redeemed on Origin through the EA Support. |
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| Origin (unavailable) |
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|
|
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| Steam (unavailable) |
|
Complete Collection |
|
|
- This game is no longer available digitally.
Version differences
- Disc-based versions require a CD-key which has to be typed in when installing. Individual CD keys are required for each expansion, except for the Complete Collection as mentioned below.
- The Complete Collection includes the expansion pack Special Forces, along with the two booster packs Armored Fury and Euro Forces. Only one CD key is available for all the expansions.
Monetization
| Type |
Notes |
| Expansion pack
| The major expansion pack includes a separate set of maps featuring different gameplay. The minor booster packs include new standard multiplayer maps, factions, vehicles, infantry gear and awards. Initially a separate purchase, booster packs were integrated with the official 1.50 patch. |
| One-time game purchase
| The game requires an upfront purchase to access. |
DLC and expansion packs
| Name |
Notes |
|
| Armored Fury |
Included in the 1.50 patch and the Complete Collection |
|
| Euro Force |
Included in the 1.50 patch and the Complete Collection |
|
| Special Forces |
Included in the Complete Collection. |
|
Essential improvements
Patches
- The Origin and Steam versions are already patched.
- Includes a new map, fixes bugs and exploits.
- Includes prior patches.
- The retail version of the Complete Collection is on this version.
- Version 1.41 has to be installed beforehand.
- Removes the disc check DRM and adds widescreen support.
- Includes the Armored Fury and Euro Forces expansions for free.
- Fixes a crash issue when using Alt+Tab ↹ to switch to desktop.
Online play support
- The BF2Hub client allows the game to be played online after the shutdown of the GameSpy online service.
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Download and install the BF2Hub client[3]
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Notes
- Changes done by the client can be reverted at any time.
- Includes fixes for crashes on startup.
|
PunkBuster updates
- Support for the anti-cheat software PunkBuster in BF2 has been discontinued by Evenbalance.
Skip intro videos
Game data
In-game general settings.
Configuration file(s) location
Video
- Included in version 1.5 of Battlefield 2.
|
Use console command[3]
|
- Open
%USERPROFILE%\Documents\Battlefield 2\Profiles\Default\Video.con in a text editor and change the 60 in VideoSettings.setResolution 800x600@60 to the display's refresh rate.
- In-game, press ~ and the command console will appear.
- Type
Game.LockFps XX where XX is your desired frame rate (e.g. Game.LockFps 0).
- Press ↵ Enter to activate the console command and press ~ again to close the console.
Notes
- This data can also be put into
Global.con in the profiles folder (needs write protection).
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Ambient occlusion (HBAO)
|
Use Nvidia Inspector tool[4]
|
- Download the NVIDIA Inspector Tool.
- Extract the files to any new folder.
- Open
nvidiaprofileinspector.exe.
- From the drop down list next to Profiles select
Battlefield 2.
- Select the
Ambient Occlusion compatibility line.
- Set
SettingValue to 0x00000003 (Fallout 3) from the drop down menu.
Notes
- This tweak might not work with the previous 1.4 patch.
|
DirectX API Wrappers
Some modern Windows systems may experience glitches or crashes with old DirectX games. Some have had success with the following DirectX wrappers. They are usually installed by extracting override DLLs alongside the game EXE file in the game installation folder.
- DirectX to OpenGL: WineD3D for Windows
Input
In-game general control settings.
Audio
| Audio feature |
State |
Notes |
| Separate volume controls |
|
|
| Surround sound |
|
Missing from Windows Vista and onward. See Surround sound. |
| Subtitles |
|
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| Closed captions |
|
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| Mute on focus lost |
|
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| EAX support |
|
EAX 2, EAX 5[5] (via OpenAL)[6] |
| Royalty free audio |
|
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- Only Creative X-Fi cards support surround sound by selecting Creative X-Fi as audio renderer in the in-game audio settings. This may lead to game crashes however.
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Replace OpenAL files[7]
|
- Launch the game and set the audio renderer to Hardware.
- Go to
<path-to-game> and create a backup of the file BF2OpenAL.dll.
- Install OpenAL.
- Copy the file
OpenAL32.dll from %WINDIR%\SysWOW64 (when using a 64-bit OS) or %WINDIR%\System32 (32-bit OS) to <path-to-game> and rename it to BF2OpenAL.dll.
- Download and extract OpenAL Soft to a temporary folder and copy the file
soft_oal.dll from inside bin\Win32 to <path-to-game>.
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Localizations
Network
- Servers can optionally use PunkBuster anti-cheat protection.
Multiplayer types
Connection types
Ports
| Protocol |
Port(s) and/or port range(s) |
| TCP |
80,1024-1124,4711,27900,29900,29901 |
| UDP |
1024-1124,1500-4999,16567,27900,27901,28910,29900,55123-55125 |
- Universal Plug and Play (UPnP) support status is unknown.
VR support
In-game Novint Falcon settings.
Issues unresolved
Mouse skipping/stutter
- Battlefield 2 suffers from mouse skipping and acceleration when standing still and looking left/right. Skipping will not occur if moving forwards/backwards but will when strafing left/right.
There is no known fix for this.
Issues fixed
- TweakGuides has created a comprehensive guide for fixing issues in this game.
Newer version already installed
Can't find install folder
|
Patch 1.41 won't install ("Can't find install folder")[10]
|
- Go to
HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Wow6432Node\Electronic Arts\EA Games\Battlefield 2.
- Create a new string by right clicking in the folder and select New > String Value, label this string
InstallDir.
- Right-Click, Modify the string, and in the Data Value field, input the installation folder (e.g.
G:\Battlefield 2).
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Game crashes often
Game crashes to desktop at launch
Set frame rate in %USERPROFILE%\Documents\Battlefield 2\Profiles\Default\Video.con to match the display's refresh rate; see High frame rate[citation needed]
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Game crashes when entering a game
- Multiple input audio devices can lead to crash when entering a game. Remove all input devices like Bluetooth headsets the one.
X-Fi related sound issues
- On 64-bit Windows 7 systems with a Creative X-Fi sound card, severe audio corruption or crashes may occur when running under X-Fi Audio Mode and Ultra sound quality.
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Reduce sound quality to high or change it to hardware mode[13]
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- Some maps fail to include the file
Sounds.con which leads to broken EAX on X-Fi hardware and the X-Fi MB3 virtual sound card (see <path-to-game>\mods\bf2\Levels\Dragon_Valley\server.zip\Sounds.con). This file contains the line sound.setReverb "common/sound/levelambients/Openlandscape.eax" ("City.eax" for some maps).
Extract Sounds.con from a map's server.zip file and put in maps that do not have it[14]
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Invalid CDKey
- Some people get kicked from every game with an "Invalid CDKey" message. This also happens with the Steam version, where the key is bound to be correct anyway.
- There is a thread on the Steam forums containing some fixes for this. To manually resolve this issue, see this guide from EA.
Rendering issues
- Certain graphics card drivers cause visual issues with the game.[15][16] These include black terrain and/or models, objects, black spots on map, and more.
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Set "Terrain" quality to low[17]
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Download updated shader ".fx" files[17]
|
- Download a new "shaders_client.zip".
- Go to
<path-to-game>\mods\bf2, make a backup of shaders_client.zip and replace it with the downloaded file.
- Delete the cache folder in
%USERPROFILE%\Documents\Battlefield 2\mods\bf2. This will force Battlefield 2 to recompile the shaders.
Notes
- Applying this fix will not allow the game to be played on PunkBuster-protected servers.
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Connecting to account server takes a long time
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Delete server history[3]
|
- Go to the configuration file(s) location.
- Open
General.con with a text editor.
- Delete all lines starting with
GeneralSettings.addServerHistory.
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Fix stretched HUD in widescreen resolutions
|
Use "BF2 HUD fix" by marekzajac97[18]
|
- Download the latest release.
- Make backup copies of
Battlefield 2\bf2.exe and <path-to-game>\mods\bf2\Menu_server.zip.
- Open the zip file, and copy
hudfix.dll, BF2.exe and hud_config.txt to <path-to-game>.
- Copy the contents of the
Menu_server folder within the zip file into <path-to-game>\mods\bf2\Menu_server.zip.
- Only supports patch 1.50.
- As this includes a modified
bf2.exe, consider using a DLL injector to create a custom patched executable.
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Other information
API
| Technical specs |
Supported |
Notes |
| Direct3D |
9.0b |
|
| Shader Model support |
1.4 |
|
| Executable |
32-bit |
64-bit |
Notes |
| Windows |
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Middleware
|
Middleware |
Notes |
| Audio |
OpenAL, Speex |
|
| Cutscenes |
Bink Video, Swiff Player |
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| Multiplayer |
GameSpy |
|
| Anti-cheat |
PunkBuster |
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Automatic login
Use the Command line argument +playerName YourName +playerPassword YourPassword[19]
|
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Notes
- It might be necessary to log-in at least once.
- The command and login data is case-sensitive.
- Doesn't work on offline accounts.
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Mods
Forgotten Hope 2 is an award-winning World War II mod for Battlefield 2, covering all aspects of land, air and sea combat, with a focus on realism and historic accuracy.
Project Reality reworks Battlefield 2 to create the most realistic and demanding virtual combat environment for PC gamers possible. Does not require BF2 to be installed.
AIX aims to deliver an amazing array of content which is 100% bot compatible for use in single player and coop game modes.
Heat of Battle is a BF2 mod focused on delivering top-tier animation, sound, and lighting, as well as fast-paced, intense gameplay to make it more in-pair with modern releases in the series. Does not require BF2 to be installed.
MoRoZ Rebalance is a mod that rebalance various aspects of the single player game, already added and is compatible with all the maps from Special Forces expansion as well as extra maps from Point of Existence mod which also added Russian factions. Weapon kits are also rebalanced, notably the PLA which has now the correct weapons for each class.
Sandbox is a mod that lets you use the BF2 engine to build structures, set up racetracks, ramps, and much much more. This is all done from an easy Command Rose interface in-game.
Based on the Vietnam war, it features a variety of weapons, over 40 brand new vehicles and diverse maps ranging from dense jungles to overgrown rice paddies.
A recreation of the console exclusive game.
The main goal is to improve original UI include Fonts, minimap icons, crosshairs etc. while still keeping the original look of the game.
System requirements
| Windows |
|
Minimum |
Recommended |
| Operating system (OS) |
XP | |
| Processor (CPU) |
Intel Pentium 4 1.7 GHz
AMD Athlon XP equivalent |
Intel Pentium 4 2.4 GHz
AMD Athlon XP equivalent |
| System memory (RAM) |
512 MB |
1 GB |
| Hard disk drive (HDD) |
2.3 GB | |
| Video card (GPU) |
Nvidia GeForce FX 5700
ATI Radeon 9500
128 MB of VRAM
DirectX 9.0b compatible
| 256 MB of VRAM |
Notes
- ↑ File/folder structure within this directory reflects the path(s) listed for Windows and/or Steam game data (use Wine regedit to access Windows registry paths). Games with Steam Cloud support may store data in
~/.steam/steam/userdata/<user-id>/24860/ in addition to or instead of this directory. The app ID (24860) may differ in some cases. Treat backslashes as forward slashes. See the glossary page for details.
References
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