Battlefield moves from the epic conflict zones of the Second World War and the dense jungles of Vietnam to something much more unsettling – a not so distant future when an impending ice age has caused the citizens of the Northern Hemisphere to flee towards safer climes down south.

Naturally, the current residents aren’t happy about the potential mass refugee crisis and trouble quickly flares up. With two groups – the European Union (which includes other Western superpowers) and the Pan-Asian Coalition fighting for survival, it’s never going to be a pretty conflict, and dubious politics aside, this is another solid edition of one of the best gaming franchises of recent years.

Okay, it’s not vastly different from Battlefield 2, but with such a familiar game engine, the developer would be daft to tinker with it too much.

The excellent maps within Battlefield 2142 are set in a range of locations, including the plains of the Balkans and the key North African regions, where the last remaining areas of farmable soil exist. As you’d expect, there’re some futuristic technology on display here, although it’s not quite as spectacular as you might expect.

The weapons aren’t much more sophisticated than what you’d find in current shooters, but we guess that super powerful mind-bending artillery might make for dull gameplay.

Like the other Battlefield games, it still excels when it comes to vehicles – with the usual tank-like behemoths joined by walking mech devices that are rather wonderful.

It looks functional but hardly inspiring – the future probably will be a homogenous landscape of bleak, barren environments battered by weather changes and conflict, but the beauty of visions of tomorrow is that they can be much more romantic with their ideas.

Still, the visuals are smooth and generally problem-free (providing you have a decent graphics card) which allows the gameplay to remain as the true star of the show.

The addition that has got Battlefield veterans most excited is the Titan mode, which is a vast expansion of the capture the flag game found in most shooters. Here, you have to first seize control of a huge floating vessel and then destroy the controllers that disable your enemy’s resources.

Titan mode offers exciting gameplay with enough to appease cynics that might just accuse 2142 of being the emperor’s new clothes. Battles can change in a flash and it can make for thrilling action.

So while this plays more like a mod or an expansion pack than a fully-fledged sequel, the strength of the Battlefield engine and the solid gameplay is near enough to justify purchase of this fun offering. But one note of warning, this is definitely one to play in multiplayer mode, as the single-player campaign pales in comparison.

Also consider
Dark Messiah of Might and Magic
Is your PC mighty enough for this action adventure?

Company of Heroes
Yet more war ­ but is this a fresh strategy or just history repeating itself?

All action and adventure games