Battlefield Hardline is a two-pronged success, with a killer cops-and-robbers story backed by a speedy take on competitive play.

Battlefield: Hardline may seem like simply an expansion to the fourth entry in the game, but after diving in I enjoy it a lot more than the previous effort. The campaign is a breath of fresh air, and the multiplayer adds enough to make it stand out.

On the multiplayer side, Hardline provides a solid and very compelling, even if highly BF4-like, experience, with some very entertaining new modes; the single player campaign resulted in a satisfying experience too, but we would have liked proper, full-blown stealth gameplay, rather than the unconvincing mix Visceral presented us.

The simplicity of the campaign's stealth gameplay and the enemies' readiness to submit at the sound of "Freeze!" is comical, though the silliness was not likely Visceral's intention.

Unless you have friends to play online with right away, wait for a price drop before pinning on your police badge or slipping into a ski mask. Hardline is good but it's not exactly a necessity.

Battlefield Hardline's new gameplay mechanics don't work all the time. This game developed by Visceral Games is generic and pretty forgettable, but if you enjoy competitive multiplayer, you should try it.

Battlefield Hardline feels like a valiant attempt from Visceral and EA, but the gritty crime drama that they're aiming for comes out as an underwhelming effort. Multiplayer offers some fun moments, but it doesn't do enough with the concept to feel like a major leap in the world of first-person shooters. Meanwhile, the campaign feels bogged down under the weight of silly cliches and doesn't offer enough of a tactical, strategic cop experience.