Battlefield 3 won't let you shoot civilians. Players are therefore deprived of experiencing the consequences their violent actions.

In the battle between the two franchises, Battlefield 3 has won the battle among PC gamers, with its stunning graphics and more robust dedicated server model.

Along with the wide-scale 64 player maps, Battlefield 3 is especially valuable for moviemakers thanks to the diversity of styles that gamers can employ, whether that be long-range sniping, close-quarters combat, playing as a tank commander - or, as some people prefer, not playing seriously at all. (Warning: profanity throughout.)

Trolling aside, one of the best aspects of Battlefield 3 is the skill ceiling. Sniping has always been a different beast in the Battlefield series than any other multiplayer franchise, with players having to account for their shots dropping off over distance.

Of course, that's not going to stop people for very long.

One of the less appreciated skills is the ability to properly fly helicopters and aircraft. Jets are fairly easy to handle, but dogfighting is another matter altogether, as this video shows.

Helicopters are especially difficult though: getting to grips with hovering while still shooting other aircraft, tanks and infantry takes quite a bit of skill. Luckily, there are plenty of Battlefield veterans around to dominate the skies, as well as plenty of new-school gamers happy to show their skills on YouTube.

But for all the skill, headshots and teamwork, there's always room for something a little special. Instead of simply just playing the game, a tech show in Britain decided to take Battlefield 3 and use it as the basis for what they called the "Ultimate Battlefield 3 Simulator".

Instead of pointing the mouse at a target, the player would have to physically point a gun in real-life at a series of projectors. If you want to move, you'd have to physically walk in the direction you wanted to go. And if you got shot in-game - well, be prepared for a volley of paintball fire in real-life.

Lucky are the few who could afford to put together such a system.

How do you like to play Battlefield 3 - and what's your preferred class? Let us know in the comments below.

Alex Walker is ABC Tech + Games' regular gaming columnist. You can follow him on Twitter at @thedippaeffect.