In the latest addition to the Battlefield franchise, EA reveals what the 99 problems are, and which one is the B#%@. It’s no doubt that the game has been loaded with some major issues, but they are not the issues your expecting. These problems are of the best type, the ones that take a lot of bullets, and even more destruction to deal with. Battlefield 3 remedy’s 99 problems, and reveals the B#%@, or the one that's not.-a problem that is. You'll need to play the game to figure that one out. 

With life like animations and some of the most realistic lighting ever seen, EA begins Battlefield 3 with a story from the past. Battlefield 3 takes the bar for graphics, destruction, and combat chews it up, swallows, and creates a new standard. Everything before and likely everything after Battlefield 3(at least until Battlefield 4) has been reduce to a shooter from the previous generation of gaming- the one without Frostbite 2.0

With a story design that in many ways is reminisce of Black Op's, Battlefield 3 tells the story through a series of flashbacks told by officer Blackburn, whose being question about his involvement surrounding a potential terrorist threat. The overall plot in Battlefield 3 will have you resting in the reigns of confusion, until the story reaches that epic bravado and you connect all the dots.

What will really stand out about Battlefield 3's story is how the game carries you along through the different areas of combat. When you’re with a squad the communication is natural and fluid, other soldiers show compassion, empathy and even desperation. As you all fight together to stay alive, you get the sense that this is a pretty realistic depiction of what actually happens in war.  Though there’s some hand holding through certain portions of the game, the varied locations do wonders for making the experience feel like you've journeyed through an intense battle. With fewer cinematic cut scenes to watch, the story is told from a hands on perspective; having you play most of the moments you would normally watch.

All the epic cut scenes don’t show up here, but what does show up are a number of moments that couldn’t be experienced any other way. Driving the Abrams Tank was one of those missions. Playing this portion of the game had me longing to play it again immediately after I finished it. The campaign in Battlefield 3 is an amazing experience. You'll find a number of missions that visually are standout moments. The F/A-18F Shark flying is like nothing in any other shooter. Flying through the clouds is amazingly realistic, and air combat in many ways is done better than most flying specific games.Though you're not the one flying.

You’ll alternate sending out flares and rockets during dog-fights, while watching the other  jets explode becasue of your work on the guns; which makes for some satisfying jet fighting. Dice also expands the fly experience by allowing you to offer some ground support-a feature also available in multiplayer.

The attention to detail is uncanny. Little things like well place cloths blowing in the wind will fool you into to thinking its an enemie, or the flash around a corner that catches you of guard for a moment. These types of things add to the detail in the environment, and the intensity of the combat. With some of the best set pieces happening during the gameplay, you'll feel more engrossed in both the combat, and the narrative. 

The variation of weapons, and mission types keep the gameplay running at a high level. That being the case, don’t expect to burn through the campaign by running past everyone. You'll need to progress strategically, from one cover to the next while picking of your attackers. Over all the gameplay in Battlefield 3 is a standout among this generations shooters. Few offer as complete of an experience.

However, The unsung hero here is the sound. Gun fire, grenades, and even the sound of footsteps can clearly be distinguished. Often times they keep you on edge wondering who or what that was. Add in the ambient noise of war, and the amazing lighting, and this becomes an FPS contender for GOTY. With all the greatness housed in EA's shooter, it's not without its flaws. 

A few blemish, and some confusing map layouts will have you searching to find an exit. The Operation Guillotine mission is one that has many. The mission starts in epic fashion and has you running through a field carrying the mortar. However, once the runnings done, you'll find it hard to know which way to go. As you reach a certain point in the map, which offers two paths the frustration will kick in. The dark map combined with the enemies shooting may have you respawing a few extra times. Also killing the experience and adding to the dead time, are some of the spawn points.

If you die at certain spawn point you'll find yourself running to catch up to the battle, a minor slow down but when dieing multiple times, it becomes an irritant. On the Guillotine mission there’s a section where you have to find a flanking entrance to the Bank. While playing the mission I noticed one of my squad mates running straight into the Bank as gunfire was being unloaded at me and him, but he doesn’t die. When I tried to follow his lead I'd get killed every time.

After some precise timing and good shooting I was able to make it inside the building, but this one moment seem overly hard to achieved for such a simply task. With a few set backs, and some amazing visuals EA delivers on all almost all accounts with Battlefield 3. An intense single player and one of the biggest multiplayer experiences seen in shooter. During the campaign the story sequences act as a good break from the otherwise unrelenting single player action.

The single player mode is also a good platform for you to master all the controls and weapons the game allows you to wield. Considering everything EA is offering, Frostbite 2.0 stole the show. The game has elevated the current generation of consoles into the next evolution of graphical fidelity. Though some low res textures did appear, even with the 360's texture pack installed, overall the game offers more than its share of eye candy. The PC version as you'd expect, is beyond both console inclusions, with the PS3 coming in as a distance second. Battlefield 3 is 2011 most definitive shooter. Dice has delivered on both its single player campaign and its multiplayer presentation, this shooter is the shooter to beat in 2011.