Sergeant Redford

Written by Paul

Overview

Sergeant Redford is a member of B-Company, or Bad Company as they are better known. Owing to his more senior rank, he adopts the role of leader for the team. He is the only African-American in the team, and he is more of an ‘all-rounder’ than Sweetwater and Haggard, who have specialised roles in support and demolition, respectively.

Redford has grown disheartened with the United States Army, and says that he used to be proud to be a soldier, though he no longer feels that way. One of the recurring focuses of both Battlefield: Bad Company games is that Redford longs for his retirement. He holds the distinction of being the only soldier ever to transfer willingly to Bad Company, though he did it for a reason: he could get retirement early if he was prepared to play against the odds. Redford’s plans for retirement are to enjoy fishing, and he references this with a line during the games that ‘Come next week, all I’m gonna be fighting is bluefin tuna’.

Redford’s first name is difficult to say, as it actually varies according to different sources – from EA themselves! During the pre-release video blog that was released for Redford, a screen can be seen outlining his basic information, with the name of ‘Clarence Redford’. Confusingly the game manual refers to him as ‘Samuel Redford’. It is not impossible that the first name was changed for different markets, as the use of the name ‘Samuel’ has been verified in an EU copy of the original game’s manual only. The video would have been intended for an international audience, and Electronic Arts may have simply chosen to use the name from a US copy of the game. Redford’s first name is irrelevant however, as none of the team refer to him by it. Everyone in the squad calls Redford ‘Sarge’, and in Marlowe’s case at least, ‘Sir’.

A recurring gag is that something always delays his retirement. Examples of this include when Haggard runs across the border into Serdaristan during the first game, and Redford chases him down. During the second game, Redford admits that he would miss his team if he was to retire, and when something intervenes he says, “F**k it. Retirement would have been boring anyway”. Sergeant Redford seems to instil fear in his team at times as a method of keeping them in line. This is suggested at when they enter Serdaristan and are immediately discharged from the army and are to be hunted down by their own people. Sweetwater mentions that technically they are no longer in the military, and therefore his rank holds no sway. Redford threatens to ‘beat their asses into submission’ if they object, and Sweetwater backs down.

Like the rest of B-Company, Redford’s weapons of choice change between the two games. In the original Bad Company, Redford carries an M416. In the sequel this weapon is substituted for an XM8 Prototype with an ACOG Scope mounted. These two weapons are also the default loadout for the player’s character, Preston Marlowe.

For a member of the military, Redford does not appear to have much skill with computers. When playing the mission ‘Sangre del Toro’ in the second game, Redford is required to use one of the computers to help triangulate the location of the fictional Peruvian ship. When you leave Redford at the location of the computer needed, he will say, “I knew I should have taken that Adult Education course. Perhaps I’d even know PowerPoint too”. Oddly, immediately after this he is able to use a computer to work with something much more advanced than Microsoft’s PowerPoint program.

Video Blog

Before the release of Battlefield: Bad Company, DICE released ‘video blogs’ from each of the characters in the game, giving some more background information that is not contained in the game or manual. Redford's bio is somewhat ironic, as he claims that he is 'not a moviestar', and he has 'nothing to talk about'. Despite this, his blog is the joint-second in terms of length, at 1:37. In his Video Blog, the name 'Clarence' is used.

Official Character Bio (Bad Company)

Inside the two Bad Company games, are different bios detailing each of the characters. The bio changes between the manuals, and below in italics is the content of the original game’s manual, from a PAL-region copy of the game, on the Xbox 360. The details may vary slightly between regions or platforms.

"Sergeant Samuel D. Redford reporting for duty. They tell me I'm the first soldier ever to be transferred to Bad Company on my own request. Doesn't surprise me. Ths outfit has the highest mortality rate in the Army. We're just target practice for the enemy, really. Believe me, I know we're playing against the odds. But if the deal I made means I can get out of this damned war, then it's worth the risk. You know, I used to love the Army. I was proud to serve my country. Not any more. A couple weeks more, and I'm out of here. The only things I'm planning to fight then are marlin and bluefin tuna."

None of the content above, in the italicised text is the property of Bad Company 24/7, or any of the sites under the Digital Warfare 24/7 network. The above content is the sole property of DICE and Electronic Arts, and is not intended to infringe on any copyright.

Official Character Bio (Bad Company 2)

Contained in the manual for Bad Company 2 (again, a PAL-region copy on the Xbox 360) is another bio for Redford. The information contained inside the bio is different from that of the first game, and actually points towards it.

"Sergeant Samuel D. Redford is the only soldier to actually request transfer to Bad Company. Some paint that decision as crazy or suicidal, but Sarge has his reasons. He used to buy into the whole military lifestyle, Mom and Apple Pie, all of it.. Not anymore. Not after Sadiz."

Serial Number

With all of the characters in your team, they are assigned serial numbers. These numbers frequently reference another game, and are only seen during their promotional video blogs. Sergeant Redford's serial number is 000BFV004BF2142006. In his serial number the letters 'BFV' are seen - this is the abbreviation for Battlefield: Vietnam. 'BF2142' is also seen, and this ties in with Battlefield 2142, which happens to be the only futuristic game in the franchise. 2006 appears to refer to the release year of Battlefield 2: Modern Combat. This was the first Battlefield game to be released on Microsoft's Xbox 360 platform.

Quotes

"I knew I should have taken that Adult Education course. Perhaps I'd even know PowerPoint too."
- Sangre del Toro, Bad Company 2

"Fuck it. Retirement would have been boring anyway."
- Bad Company 2, when an event delays his retirement even further