Spawn in

Five steps, and only the first two take any time. After that it is the shortcut and the server list.

Server password: davis

1. Sign up

   Apply for an account. Someone has to approve it before it works in game, so give us a shout on Discord once you have applied.

2. Download and install

   Once you are approved, the installer is on the downloads page. It is the whole game with Special Forces, patched to 1.5 and already pointed at this server, so there is nothing to configure. The setup is small and downloads the game as it installs (about 4 GB).

   Already installed? Run the new setup over the top: it only downloads what changed.

   On a Mac you need both downloads: the Windows installer and the Mac download. Both are on the same page.

   On Linux download the Windows setup, then paste this into a terminal:

   curl -fsSL https://bf2.askdavis.com/linux.sh | sh

   It installs Lutris if you don't have it, sets up Wine, and asks for the setup you just downloaded. Keep the install folder the setup suggests. Read the script first if you like.

3. Launch with our shortcut

   Use AskDavis Battlefield 2, not an old Battlefield 2 or Special Forces shortcut. It opens our launcher, where you pick the display mode, resolution and graphics, then press Play. The launcher also tells you when there is an update.

   More than one monitor? Choose Borderless. It stops the game from shuffling the windows on your other screens.

4. Sign in, the first time only

   Multiplayer → Retrieve Account (not Create Account) → the email and password you signed up with → your player name appears, select it and log in. The game remembers it after that.

5. Join

   Multiplayer → Internet tab → find AskDavis BF2 Server in the list and join. The password is davis. Add it to your favourites and it is one click from then on.

   Not in the list? Connect to IP and enter bf2.askdavis.com.

Everyone who joins is on the same team, against an army of bots. Bots fill out our side too, so you are never alone even when you are the only one on.

• Regular maps: 32 enemy bots, plus 16 on our side.
• Special Forces maps, mixed into the rotation: about 17 enemy bots and 7 on our side.

Your stats still count: ranks, unlocks, medals and ribbons all go toward the leaderboard.

The login screen sits on "connecting to account server".

You are not using our download. Install the game from the downloads page; it is the part that points the game at this server.

It says my account does not exist.

Either it has not been approved yet, or you used Create Account instead of Retrieve Account. Accounts are only made on this site.

The game says "modified content" or "version mismatch".

Your install is out of date. Open the launcher and update, or run the latest setup from the downloads page over your install.