Sunday, January 16, 2011 at 3:59PM

Even with the ability to snipe someone from across the map with a shotgun, Bad Company 2 functions both as a stress reliever and an intense moment-to-moment exercise in what makes the standard FPS worth buying in to.

The interesting thing I've noticed in my multiplayer habits is that there is no room for being exceptional at a wide variety of these types of games. Out of the dozens of multiplayer games that came out for PS3 and PC this year I only had time to really get into the games listed below and especially this years winner: Battlefield: Bad Company 2.

It takes a lot to pry me away from my Left 4 Dead and Team Fortress 2 mouse and keyboard experiences. Thus far every Resistance and Killzone game I've played exclusively for a Playstation console feels somewhat off. Couple this with the questionable audiences of the recent Call of Duty games and you can see my apprehension prior to be playing a game like Bad Company 2.

When I was invited to participate in the beta of Bad Company 2, I had that feeling that seldom happens when you touch, taste or experience something you know will hook you. This game, rife with bugs and exploits [seriously, sniping with a shotgun?] continues to be my game of choice when I turn on my PS3. Not only this, but its helped me loosened my grip on my mouse and keyboard and made more open to multiplayer experiences found in Transformers: War For Cybertron and Red Dead Redemption.

All these things, and I get called fewer racial and homophobic slurs, than in any other console shooter I've played in 2010.

Honorable Mention: Red Dead Redemption, Transformers: War For Cybertron, Super Street Fighter IV