Ask Battlefield developer your questions!
Have you got a question about Battlefield Heroes or Battlefield 1943? Let us know in the forums quickly.
Oh, and we're taking your questions too.
Patrick himself is currently hard at work on Battlefield 1943, so is ideally placed to field any questions you might have about the game and how it might differ from the other games in the series, as well as any other DICE-related queries you might have.
If you've got a question you want to ask him then all you have to do is pop it in the comments below. We won't be able to put all questions to him obviously, but we'll take the most interesting and popular ones and pass them on as quickly as possible.
We'll carry on taking questions until the end of the week, so jot your ideas down before Monday 23rd if you want to be considered. We'll have Patrick's answers up shortly after that.
Oh - and if you think this is a particularly good idea then be sure to pass on some forum reputation and e-cookies to forum member Lewchenko, who suggested we get off our bums and actually organise this.
So; pop your questions in the forums and try to keep them as clean and relevant as you can, if you please.
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Discuss in the forums ReplyWill there be longer ammo reload times for aircraft in battlefield 1943. After playing 1942, armour had a very tough time against aircraft due to the frequency at which aircraft could overfly the airfield and re-arm and return to battle. Wouldn't it be better to force aircraft to land properly for re-arming.?
Will the weaponary (planes, tanks, guns) be equal (rate of fire, damage, look, accuracy) to their real life counterpart?
1) ^ what he said
2) Also, will hit-detection actually reward sharp shooters or is the same old spray & pray?
3) Continued support for patches etc.... unlike BF2.
4) Widescreen support? FOV adjusted?
5) Ultra Settings for Uber PC's
Also, dolphin diving is apparently fixed in bf2 as of 1.21
Similar to Airwarrior or WWII Online. Character trees (Marine, Sniper, Spec Ops, Medic, Support etc). Each tree has upgrades in specs and unlocks better weapons or unlocks weapon skills. You could buy or quest (missions) weapons, gear, etc. Guild(Battalion) plots/bases. Vehicles would still be based on zone control and you'd need skills to fly or drive certain advanced(AH-60 or F22 or Abrams) vehicles. To avoid country conflict or politics create non-fiction factions. Major base captures would require raid parties.
I love impertinent questions.
2 - When is the Battlefield 2 1.5 patch going to be released to fix some of the remaining critical bugs? If it is not going to be released why was it announced by EA?
3 - Why does EA customer service have no way to contact developers to pass on suggestions and problems reported by customers and glean information on patches?
4 - Is he aware that many PC gamers actively boycott EA and DICE for the reasons alluded to above and would he care to offer an apology on behalf of EA/DICE to those who bought BF2 for all the problems they have had to suffer and continue to suffer? What assurances can he give that BF1943 will not be the same?
Thanks
My questions
1) Why the change of focus to a more arcade style of gameplay when compared to BF2 and 2142 ? As these versions sold well, why would you go in the opposite direction for BF1943 ?
2) The PC community has been asking (in great volume) for a follow up to BF2 ? Why has this not been announced yet and will there ever be a proper follow up with the complexities of massively multiplayer warfare that were present in BF2 and 2142 ?
3) Why only 3 maps to start with ? Even BF2 came with 8 maps and that was low compared to other online multiplayer games such as Unreal Tournament ?
4) Why rebuild the same maps that have been out for years in various incarnations ? An acceptable answer is not that they are the most popular either!
5) As mentioned by others, BF2 was due to receive a massive update called patch 1.5, but there is no new information about this ? In light of the lack of true support that BF2 received why should we buy another battlefield game from EA ?
6) Will the player limit be 24 players on a PC. If so why ? The original BF1942 and all subsequent versions have scaled much higher than this.. to 64 players even.
7) Will PC players need to play on dedicated servers ? I presume console players will both host their own server and play on the same machine ?
8) Why did you remove the squad element from BF2, and then reduce the class choices ?
9) Is there a commander mode like in BF2 ?
10) Hard core BF2 and 2142 players feel let down by this '1943' announcement as they have been waiting for a true sequel with the complexities of modern multiplayer warfare. What do you have to say to these people ?
11) Will the PC version be available in Steam and if so, for how much ?
12) DLC map packs fragmented the user base on 2142 and BF2 and were not commercially successful for clan's etc to host servers just for the map packs. What will be different in the new DLC model (assuming there is one with only 3 maps shipping at launch) ?
Thanks Bit-Tech !
M
1) Will DICE take an active interest in making the player classes balanced OVER TIME. What I mean by this is a constant adaptation to thwart taking advantage of specific class abilities.
2) Will accurate weapon dynamics be reflected in combat? Specifically penetration and destructive properties (The M107 should be able to punch through nearly any existing body armor at great range, grenades should have a wide destructive field, etc.)
Overall, I think the series is a great one, but while I like quickly getting into an arcade-type battle, I LOVE it when a game strives for realism.
(cough, cough, OFP2)
Seriously, games such as Battlefield are intended for online play, however in almost every EA related game the weak point is the in game server browser, often unintuitive, and always buggy.
Laymans terms: Will we finally get an error report if and when the game crashes to the desktop?
Shhh.... don't tell everyone.
+1
Rofl@BF2 server browser - Worst Browser Ever!:(
With Battlefield 2 and Battlefield 2142 being so popular and successful at the time of release with many gamers around the world spending all their free time on these games and normally playing into the early hours of the morning (i.e. myself), will you be combining the best parts of these two games to create Battefield 3 or will you be taking a different approach this time regarding gameplay, weapons, maps etc.
2)
Being a massive fan of the BF series myself, I have played the PC versions of these games a lot, but in both of the releases, the games were not 100% and are normally patched up to get rid of bugs and glitches. Now I know it can be hard to make a game 100% ready and it requires many gamers reporting issues to yourself, but with the release of Battlefield 3 being so important to many, will this time be different? Will the game be released near perfection?
General:
- Unfortunately, it can’t be avoided that EA/DICE has attracted some resentment from the community. Are there any measures in place to improve upon past performance?
1. beta quality launches
2. poor support
3. perceived abandonment of games
4. zero news / feedback
- While Mirrors Edge has gone down very well as a new franchise, is there any reason for the shift to the more relaxed style of gameplay in Battlefield? Most feel 1943/Bad Company to be ‘casual fad’ cash-ins.
- Following on from that, the community feels somewhat let down with these recent announcements. Battlefields substantial player base has been crying out for a full blooded PC led follow up to BF2 for some time now. Is such a game in development? Is there anything you can do reassure them they have not been forgotten?
- Are there any details you can give on Bad Company 2?
- Just how many things have you guys got on the go right now? Are you not spreading yourselves too thin? Seriously!
Current games:
- BF2 is still widely played for its unique gameplay, but still has some glaring well documented issues in need of repair. A patch has been announced but 3 apparent deadlines have passed with no news.
This is a huge cause of agitation in the community, and is a major driver for the negativity towards DICE (They have the time and money to throw out casual bumf but can’t finish what they started).
Is it possible to shed any light on the issue?
- Is there any reason that expansions/boosters could not be integrated into the main game so ranked servers could run them all? While good in of themselves all they did was fragment the community and quickly die. A Dawn of War / Orange Box like model seems to work much better for both the consumer and sales (the latest instalment includes all the previous ones).
- Does DICE feel that BF:2142 was released too soon in BF2’s life? A significant portion feel that it was a lacklustre effort and not a true successor.
1943:
- Would it be fair to call 1943/BC2 tech tests for the Frostbite engine on PC?
- Would it be fair to call 1943 the console cousin of BF:Heros?
- Why only 3 maps to start with? How many more are you planning to add via DLC and how will it be handled?
- Will the PC version be available on Steam?
- Will the player limit still be 24 on PC? If so why?
- With infinite ammo / health and only 3 classes are you sure it’s not a bit too simplistic?
This Penny Arcade comic just about sums up my feelings about 1943, Bad Company and what we have all been waiting for: http://www.penny-arcade.com/comic/2006/7/10/better-late-than-never/
BF2 brought us the ranks and awards ("...as you gain ranks and awards..."): so if these aspects are staying - part of the progression of the Battlefield franchise - why has the commander role gone? Are they telling us BF1943 is a retrograde step?
Will widescreen be supported? They surely can't use the "it's an unfair advantage" feeble excuse they tried with BF2, it's no more an advantage than more RAM, faster CPU and better quality monitor.
BF2 brought real innovations to the game which were lost with 'booster packs' and the SF fiasco... three maps to start then another every 3 months for free, that'd be good.
Hopefully, BF1943 will be a six-month test for Frostbite DX whilst they get BF3 sorted: Frostbite'd BF2 (not going to happen is it >:()
I could, but thankfully wont, wax lyrical about this, and also regarding accessibility in games too (personal perspective but very qualified).
Sorry, rambling 1st post.
Pike
Here is a killer one:
1 - Will we be able to prone on Battlefield 1943 on PC, unlike Battlefield Bad Company?
2 - Any booster pack planned for Battlefield 1943?
3 - Don't you think that's too much titles in so short time? (Battlefield Heroes, 1943, and later on Bad Company 2)
We know that it's not as complete or capable as Steam, but do EA?
1. Will there be squads? Squad spawn? squad VOIP?
2. Will airpower be reeled in fromt he airwhorage of BF2? More to a 2142 level maybe?
Cheers
M1.9P
2) Do you have any estimates on when the games might be released, or any betas or demos?
Thanks
Will we ever see the glory days of the old battlefield series? of BIG maps and MASSIVE amounts of players making it feel like WAR and not another CT vs T game like all the COD and Source games... I loved it when you get onto the battlefield (yes not a house or a court yard an actual battlefield) and you could hide and shoot, fly and bomb, use tactics and strategy... this game removes all what stood for battlefield being called battlefield it should really be called Wake Island mini edition 1943.
2. Will you please keep the same class system as before as it works best for Squads?
3. Will you be adding Mortar support, this was sadly missing from BF1942 and BF2?
4. Will the Creative X-Fi Sound Issues be fixed properly this time?
5. Are you making a proper sequel to BF2 as well as this mini sequel to BF1942?
Will the fix (for 'fix' I mean 'remove') the dolphin diving and bunny hopping. Ignoring the political reasoning and validity of excuse for the invasions and occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq (this isn't a political statement), who, when watching ANY footage on TV has seen ANY protagonist of either side in a REAL situation either dolphin diving or bunny hopping? This should not be a key feature of the BF franchise, the whole game should be.
Will they fix the multitude of glitches? No 'firing through walls' (of buildings/locations that you shouldn't be able to get to) - or will this be a 'feature' of the Frostbite engine?
BF1943 will (surely) be keeping the correct rank structure, but will a future BF (ie BF3) keep a non-2142 structure please - Corporal is a HIGHER rank than Lance Corporal.
I know that this isn't meant to be a simulator, but BF2 could have been the mutz nutz... but wasn't. DICE missed the mark only just but didn't capitalise on what they had - and the 3+ months waiting for a patch killed the following too. Fight EA and make the game right. EA, don't rush them.
Will vehicles be balanced - for better gameplay in BF2 the solution shouldn't have been to 'nerf' the Blackhawk, the Chinese/MEC 'cargo' chopper should've been up-gunned (or replaced with a real style troop carrying Hind unlike the one in BF:SF).
Crytek released their SDK and it's awesome, the mods that have come out and continue to come out are so impressive.
You have to think outside the box, modders don't make money out of your game, you make money out of modders modding your game, don't be greedy and release a proper SDK for 1943 or BF:BC 2 or BF3, but do it.
Besides that I'm just waiting for an announcement for 32-48 ppl maps in the PC version. sounds cheap to call it down to 24, and their excuse "64 player servers where always buggy or not full on BF2 and BF2142", lies, I played a lot of 64 player servers in 2142 without major problems. Besides reducing from 64 to 24! you could still have gone with 48 which is double the announced number and those servers were GREAT!. But yes I know how it goes "PC doesn't sell as much as console" crap, so they won't make a sepparate version for PC gamers with higher numbers on bigger maps than offered on console...
Just remember DICE! us PC GAMERS MADE YOU!
1942 wasnt released on ps nor on xbox, nor was bf2, and after that, you merged EA, you owe us PC gamers some respect!
Do you have a clue???????
nevermind...we all know the answer to that one.
Why would you even hint that 1943 is for the PC ... Are you really that stupid... You really want the rest of us ( the few remaining ) to finally say " SCREW THIS, we have been slaped in the face by EA again"
You are so lost ... well no .... you know what?
You are not going to do what is right for the BF2 game so why do any of us bother to ask.
You ( EA ) are going to market to the console gamers.... and rake in as much $ as you can by pumping out this garbage ( BF HEROS, 1943, ) and lose your core customers... PC GAMERS.
Here is a good question: Did EA or DICE really believe BF2 PC gamers were going to BUY 1943 ? Or is it just an attempt to show that you care. Because if you think that 1943 is something that we want or will even play...Your a R E T A R D !!! With special needs.
Putting the frostbite engine on 1942 and lowering the player count is NOT making a new game!
It's trying to grab $ from the console market. So say we just need to make some money so we put this piece of crap out there. And maybe we will not say to hell with EA.
You know that our gaming clan found a MOD for BF2 ... AIX 2.0 allied intent extended. And now most of them won't even go back to Vanilla BF2.
Maybe you guys over there at DICE should get the DEV team from AIX over there to show you what BF2 gamers want in BF3... So you might have a CLUE!
:(
I'm speaking from the heart, and asking the questions that 90% of my Clan are asking everyday. So Sigh all you want... These are real players asking real questions.
Considering the fact that Battlefield 2 sold more copies on one platform(PC) in its first year than Battlefield Bad Company had sold on the PS3/360 combined on its first year, why would you rule out a sequel to a very successful game and focus on releasing a sequel to a console oriented title like Bad Company then release it on the PC and expect it to become a successful hit like Battlefield 2? Do you not realize that PC gamers despise console ports and the "dumbed down" game play that carries over?
Yours wasn't a question though, it was just a bile-filled rant. The question immediately above conveys the same kind of displeasure but in a more intelligent way.
The average Pc Gamer has a broadband connection and enough PC performance to support a 64 player experience with the best graphics and VOIP running.
# 1 Will the new Battlefield Bad Company2 title we have been hearing about for the PC take advantage of these advances by creating the LARGE 64 player environments we have come to enjoy with Battlefield2 ?
This is how you want the questions to look I know.
General:
- What does DICE think of developers like VALVE, STARDOCK, RELIC and thier practices? Would they aspire to be as respected (loved?) as them?
- How do they feel about people not really careing for anything but BF2 and its sequal? Most of the (less then helpful) questions posted in this very thread mainly about 1943 are about BF2 (and its bugs)! Me included... :o
Sales pitch:
Battlefield 2 - Joint Forces Edition:- BF2 with all the boosters and Special Forces intergrated into one game with;
-all the current maps plus a few more, some with Special Forces and some with vanilla factions.
-redesigned menu that does not hang / give stupid pings / better filters / intergrated friends list.
-optimised netcode to fix hit registration issues.
-all known bugs / glitches fixed.
-revised anti-cheat.
-tweak graphics options so that lower settings do not effect the gameplay (a dark shadow is a dark shadow for all players). Most PC's nowdays should handle this.
-SLIGHT balance adjustments (F35, G36E, Surface AA, 2 Grenades per player, Crouch past claymores, Vehicle destruction points).
Should not be too hard to put together as a stopgap and appease the mob. Hell I'd buy it! And I'd bet lots of other would too. As they say "Make it and they will come". BF2 was in most respects perfect and will be a very tough act to follow... you guys have you work cut out for you.
Few... that it for now. :o
Is that because people seeing 1943 as a pre-cursor to a BF3? I hope EA sees it that way and realises (and acts upon) that.
Operation Flashpoint Dragon Rising
http://www.codemasters.com/flashpoint/language.php
This game will be the Battlefield killer. DICE is shooting themselves in the foot by going casual.
Now that is something that they need to be aware of, not a question for them but a statement to them.
The BF2 fanbase that I'm aware of (from my clan and others we dealt/deal/play with/against) were divided regarding 2142 (like Marmite), some loved it and moved on to SciFi type games (or stayed on 2142) whilst others hated it. Those who found 2142 from outside the BF franchise aren't an issue here, expecting the fanbase to blindly follow is.
Questions then (some repeated from my previous posts):
I want to add on this. As I have been a loyal BF fan (I have all bf's with all expansions and haven't doubted to pay for booster packs, eventhough bf2 booster packs were a major letdown for me). It's very nice to see a perspective like Valve's when it comes to PC game developing, their games have climbed the charts in such an insane matter, games like L4D, Portal and TF2, all built around the same engine. Do you know why it is that they have this great success?
here's an article I found at Games Industry dot biz
http://www.gamesindustry.biz/articles/valve-pirates-are-under-served-customers
it titles "Valve: Pirates are "under-served customers"" which is another perspective to what EA has done with their DRM stupidness.
To summarize to the point I want to get to on that article, he(Holtman@Valve) made a special note on extra content for games that went like this:
"He also questioned monetising additional game content, an area Valve has historically made a firm stand on. By giving away extra content, Holtman said the developer had seen resulting sales spikes across several products rather than just one. "
So there it goes. And DICE charges for those silly maps they made for ME recently which kind of pissed me off after delaying the game to put a technology that only half the userbase(nvidia users) where able to enjoy.
So my final question is: What do you think of Valve's point of view on DLC, seeing that they sell so many copies with such a different, less capitalist approach? I mean, I know things in sweden are expensive, but do you really need to monetise on that bit of sand you're developing for games.
Here's an interesting bit (my red, bold hint to EA):
Will Battlefield 1943 and BC2 for pc feature PhysX? as an ATI card owner myself I'm really interested in knowing if they will feature it, because in ME, I didn't miss not having the PhysX but in Battlefield... I will!!!
Strange that no other interview that I've seen has asked that question. Let's hope they don't. 4870X2 FTW!
Disappointing, I know, but I think it's a reasonable reaction as long as long as the answers come along eventually.
True, but I'll make sure we get answers eventually...one way or another!
I'd love to think that...
or ****! release physX for ati already! my 4870X2 would own physx like if was his b.................. brother... yeah... brother
We can only hope! :(
EL Alamein should be a staple of the desert component if an expansion is being worked on. This map is especially useful when modding for modern warfare scenarios.
Cost. Hopefully the cost will be reasonable for such small content. Anything above $9.99 for three relatively small maps would be detrimental to your efforts.
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/battlefield-1943-hands-on
http://www.eurogamer.net/articles/battlefield-bad-company-2-preview
I suppose its harder to face the fans Q&A rather then bring somone to your HQ...
Granted though, some of the stuff sounds promising. Now for the after sales bit...
I just read on BF1943's Twitter Page that the game will not feature PhysX. They said it will use the Frostbite Engine which uses the Havok engine from Intel, no Physx for 1943! YAY!. They also said that the reason why ME used PhysX was because it was made with the UT engine.
PhysX does rock the house though, too bad it's exclusive to nVidia users only, bad move nV