its dumb, i cant launch this game

upd: if your game isn't launching, it's probably because you've turned on borderless fullscreen. the easiest way to turn it off is to delete your settings profile, stored at "%userprofile%\Documents\BFH\settings". just delete the entire folder and try launching through battlelog again.

upd 2: I revised this review completely. the original was just me complaining that the game wouldn't launch and that EA's online services sucked. since then, steam declined me a refund on the grounds of having 10+ hrs in a game I had only 1 achievement in (if I understand correctly, it "ran" in the background because of the issue solved above). so, like a normal person, I figured out how to fix the issue described above and hate binged through the whole game to be able to write a review on it.

bf: hardline stands out a lot from any other battlefield game, and its campaign is the biggest part of that. instead of playing as a military man in a squad, you are put in a mix of cop drama and action movie, where over-the-top plot twists meet scenery of a hurricane going through a mall and the perspective of falling from a roof holding onto a piece of zipline that has been caught by a helicopter.

I'd say that if you're into cop drama, then the singleplayer campaign of bfh would be a good ~10 hours of it. however, unless you're really hungry for cop drama, I'd recommend against it.

starting off, you will get dizzy from the developers' insane idea to lock the cutscenes to 30 fps. you do get used to it a little, but it's still jarring to go from 200 fps (gameplay fps is also locked) to 30.

another reasons to reconsider would be that this is the first battlefield game in my memory that is stealth-first. not sure if I remember battlefield games even having stealth, which would explain why it sucks so much.

(basic gameplay spoilers, skip 2 paragraphs if you'd like to go in fully fresh)
the stealth system in this game is extremely basic - goons are standing around the map with detection cones. detection cones don't really move, even if the enemies' heads do. you have a magical smartphone that can mark them which gives you an indicator which you can see through walls. you have a far cry "throw stone" button to distract them. that is basically it.

the only reason why you'd want to stealth through the level is arrests. while in stealth, when you get close enough to an enemy, you can flash your badge and arrest them. that gives you more progression points, and guys with warrants on them (marked by the funny phone app) give 1000 points per arrest. also, arresting these guys is probably giving you rewards? not sure on this one.

what I am sure about is that stealth is, generally, the preferred route when playing on higher difficulties. not only do you die much faster; to respect the "battlefield" name, developers decided to make practically every wall penetrable. which would be a cool addition, but bots, for some reason, can basically see through any material once you get spotted. I've lost count to deaths from enemies that shot me from god knows where.

bots hit hard and smart, by the way. you won't last long running around like an idiot and they rarely miss. that means that when the game puts you in a tight spot (which can happens right after cutscenes), unless you know where to run, you'll probably die. as a note - I did play on veteran, so maybe your experience will be different. I really liked the variety in bots' models. since you have to see their faces much more often than in other battlefield games, the devs made sure each bot felt unique enough.

gameplay, on the other hand, doesn't really feel very outstanding. the main additions are a grappling hook and a zipline. former is used mainly in just one map, to solve a few puzzles, while the latter can be applied anywhere but really makes no sense since enemy placements are obviously made without it in mind.

speaking of maps - they're ok. each is unique (enough) and well designed. it never felt like any of them failed their two purposes - that of a stealth map and an action map. they also look good, even though you can really see the crustiness of 2015 in the textures and shadows. it is upsetting, since other battlefield games still look good, yet this one just looks... mediocre.

which I guess i what my main gripe with this game is - it is way too mediocre to be worth anyone's time. its gameplay is shallow and doesn't bring much to the table. its story is generically twisty and most of its twists are way too predictable. its graphics are good-enough-to-be-called-AAA and are now looking outdated. the characters beg their writers for depth, yet are still just puddles of personality and you don't care about any of them (including the main guy). there's just no substance here, nothing to really like, nor to dislike. all I can really come up with is that this is probably the only game that mixes battlefield-esque environmental scenes with a high stakes cop drama, but these don't feel like pros and more like just a box that was checked. the entire game feels that way.

nobody thinks this game is worth their time - neither the players, nor the developers. there's only one (yes, one) server that has more than 2 players semi-frequently. there's an issue that makes the game unplayable if you set it to borderless fullscreen mode. even its battlelog looks unfinished.

don't waste your money and your time on this game.

PSA: Every time you launch this game (regardless of multiplayer or campaign), you need to start up the EA app, which takes you to an EA website (in your browser), on which there is a link that opens the exe. If you're lucky then the game will actually open, if not, then you're stuck with the exe running in the background without the game window ever opening.

Save yourself the headache - it's just not worth it. In its current state it's essentially a scam.