By Jim Rossignol on February 29th, 2008 at 11:27 am.
Could this be the future of PC gaming? Battlefield Heroes has the potential to be one of the most important games the PC has ever seen. Free to play, funded by advertising, super-accessible, playable on a low-spec PC, and still attempting to capture some of what makes a classic PC title so entertaining to play: it’s one of the smartest things EA/DICE have ever done. And it’s funny, too.
Past the jump: my impressions from the GDC demo, the trailer, and the some screenshots.
The first thing that becomes obvious is that all the people griping that EA in some way “ripping off” Team Fortress 2 have nothing to worry about. Seriously: why should you care if another game taps into the kind of charm that makes Team Fortress 2 so good? Did you moan that Battlefield 1942 was ripping off Medal Of Honor? No, well maybe you did, and if that’s the case then you are destined to go to the special hell. Anyway, Battlefield Heroes makes the cartoon look its own, and it also delivers a game that is firmly, comprehensible Battlefield, with all the point-capturing and vehicle craziness that makes those games so entertaining. It’s a remix of the classic conquest game modes, albeit it stripped down and made easier to digest. Simplified to loveliness – it’s an action game that has learned from World Of Warcraft.
What? Yes: it’s in third-person. That might seem like an odd decision, but DICE argue that people are much better at navigating their surroundings when they have a World Of Warcraft behind-the-head view, than they are in first person. It might seem counter-intuitive to grumbly old gaming veterans like us, but you can see exactly why they’ve decided on this: Battlefield Heroes is intended to be accessible to everyone, and whatever makes things easier for the less skilled gamer, well, that’s what DICE have to do.
But I’m getting ahead of myself. What the Battlefield Heroes demonstration showed us was that DICE have created a game that is downloaded, configured and launched via a website, and that will not cost us a penny, but that has all the attributes of a fully-fledged shooter. (All this is expected to be paid for via the advertising you’ll see on the loading screen. Producer Ben Cousins joked that Battlefield loading times had always been awful, but that Heroes would be “optimised” so that we’d not spend too long looking at desperate adverts for Crysis…) You’ll have a persistent character, and that’s designed using the website interface. It’s truly impressive stuff.
What Heroes shouldn’t have, however, is the staggeringly impenetrable interface and unwieldy community vibe that characterises most FPS games. Battlefield Heroes will be tracking how well you do in your games and will, should you just hop into the game and play, pop you into a game with people who are roughly the same skill level as you. The game too is right at your fingertips – equipment is all tied to a number, the maps are as clear as a summer’s day, and the whole WASD-structure control is set out exactly as you’d expect. I couldn’t help thinking – between laughing at the slapstick lunacy of it – that this is exactly the kind of game that those time-starved older gamers have been looking for. I’ve lost count of the number of times my friends have lamented how hard it is to get a decent quick game of Counter-Strike, or Battlefield, or Quake III… this model could fix that instantly. It could be the ultimate five minute blast.
DICE weren’t clear on exactly how we’ll get to play with friends and online chums, but I’m sure that will come clear with time.
Anyway, the GDC demo showed off a single map in which two teams battled with toyish aeroplanes (with very shooty cannons) and funny little tonka tanks (that had great big howitzers attached). It was World War Two (except it’s The Royal Army vs The National Army) in Pixarland.
Battlefield Heroes retains the class-based systems of the original games, only this time there are three classes which are basically light, medium and heavy. The light have stealth systems and can turn invisible at range, the mediums are a standard machinegun-toting soldier type, and the heavy are strong-but-slow beasts of firepower. The range of different classes might have been diluted, but I really can’t see this as a bad thing. If anything, BF2 and ETQW went too far in making their classes varied and versatile.
Besides, there’s also a range of equipment available for each Heroes character. This might be a group-heal effect that allows you to patch up nearby buddies while patching up yourself, incendiary rounds for your gun, grenades, even a wall-hack system that allows you to temporarily see where enemy players are lurking. We didn’t get to see all such abilities in the demo, so it’s looking like the full spectrum could give us a game that is tactically pretty deep, despite the glossy, simplified presentation.
In summary: this is exactly the kind of game that has been brewing for the past couple of years. It plonks its feet firmly in the web-based, free-to-play, casual-but-complex trends that have been emerging from PC gaming. It’s going to run on a low spec PC (1ghz, 512mb RAM, integrated graphics) so you’re going to be able to enjoy the action on your crappy old laptop, or even your lumpen Dell desktop in the office. It’s merging the brilliance of classic PC game design (ie Battlefield’s tactical vehicular combat) with the kind of ease of use and friendliness that Nintendo thing they have a monopoly on.
There’s even a meta-game being built into the website, so that the battle can rage across their fictional Europe and players can jump in to turn the tide of a particular front.
And Heroes wasn’t even the most interesting thing that DICE showed at GDC. More on that in a bit.
But first:
You’re our heroes, Gametrailers.
Battlefield Heroes is set to arrive this summer.
Click for full image:
29/02/2008 at 11:42 Max says:
Maybe this could replace Open Arena as our in-lecture game of choice? :D
29/02/2008 at 11:47 Lu-Tze says:
*sports massive want*
*places money on the most impressive thing being Mirror’s Edge*
29/02/2008 at 12:00 Butler` says:
Looking forward to seeing it in action.
29/02/2008 at 12:12 AbyssUK says:
Its Codename Eagle 2 and I can’t wait!!
29/02/2008 at 12:22 dr_demento says:
“Not even the most interesting thing DICE showed”? Oh, you teases. That’s the second non-mention of DICE’s NDA-protected announcement.
29/02/2008 at 12:27 roBurky says:
That actually looks ace. The tanks especially.
29/02/2008 at 12:30 Flint says:
“Staggeringly impenetrable interface” in FPS games, what?
29/02/2008 at 12:31 Kast says:
Oh yes please. ^_^ Also: sitting on plane wings!
The most interesting thing from DICE = Mirror’s Edge? Maybe.
29/02/2008 at 12:35 Jim Rossignol says:
“Staggeringly impenetrable interface” in FPS games, what?
Watch a non-gamer try to figure out what’s going on in UT3 or BF2.
29/02/2008 at 12:41 Flint says:
Yeah, I guess. I think I’m too blinded myself when it comes to seeing the problem, with what FPS being one of my favourite genres and therefore being so used to the interface.
29/02/2008 at 12:42 Linus says:
But will it run on Linux?
29/02/2008 at 12:43 Frans Coehoorn says:
Played this for like 2 seconds at the EA/DICE hq in Stockholm last Tuesday and I liked it already! Unfortunately they had to kick me out because it was a print only thing but atleast I can say I am the first Dutchie to play Heroes. :D
And yes, Mirror’s Edge is… ah well, you’ll read it soon enough. ;)
29/02/2008 at 12:46 Rook says:
Trying to find a server in UT3 is about 10x harder than it needs to be.
29/02/2008 at 12:50 Matu says:
“Watch a non-gamer try to figure out what’s going on in UT3 or BF2.”
Murderin’? It seems pretty obvious.
29/02/2008 at 12:51 Man Raised By Puffins says:
Heh, nice trailer. Looks like there are slots on the plane wings for players to sit on, which is a great idea. I’m increasingly warming to this game now, after intially being unconvinced.
That this will run on integrated graphics makes me raise an eyebrow though, but I’d imagine it’ll be scaling down a fair bit for that (well either that or I’m underestimating their oomph).
29/02/2008 at 12:53 James says:
A free, high-quality team based shooter in a perpetualish world that can run on my laptop? Oh, yes please. Yes please.
29/02/2008 at 12:57 Ghiest says:
I really, really wanted to dislike this but from the lil vid there it acutally looks quite good. IF they can pull it off for free it will be big … really big I think.
29/02/2008 at 12:59 Okami says:
Whistles along
(World) War (2) has never been so much fun…
Of course the whole premise of a funny ww2 game begs one question: Dürfen die das?
29/02/2008 at 13:03 Mark-P says:
I had the misfortune to be eating yoghurt whilst watching the trailer and almost spray-painted my monitor when the Pirate Bay frontpage came up.
This could actually be good. Is it really going to be browser based ( Flash? o_O ), or a downloadable client?
29/02/2008 at 13:05 anonykins says:
Not gonna lie, this game looks horrible. I don’t see what the writer’s hype about it is.
29/02/2008 at 13:09 MisterBritish says:
I was ready to be an uptight twichy bitch about this but it looks brilliant, hurrah!
Is this one of those ‘pay to customise you avatar’ dealies?
29/02/2008 at 13:11 oryly says:
“and you don’t download it on Bittorrent.”
(with a screenshot of The Pirate Bay)
This is one of the most hilarious parts of an official trailer ever.
29/02/2008 at 13:25 Zeno, Internetographer says:
Best way for a developer to prevent piracy: make the game free. Speaking of which, are they still doing that microtransaction thing?
I’m a happy bumblebee.
29/02/2008 at 13:38 AbyssUK says:
Hmm Spitfires with American stars on them… only very very few American spitfires were used… but still tis only a game.. at least it has spitfires…
29/02/2008 at 13:38 Fazer says:
Honestly? It’s third-person shooter, so it won’t be as fun as FPS. For now, the faces look horrible. We’ll see if the gamplay and balance is allright. But most of all – Team Fortress 2 was first ;-)
29/02/2008 at 13:39 Niall Sheffield says:
Aww, I know so many 15 year old boys who are going to swear profusely over this, repeatedly.
29/02/2008 at 13:41 Meat Circus says:
Good ideas: All of the things this game is doing.
It seems that, despite all that self-indulgent whining, PC Games *can* compete with free after all. Whoda thought it?
Bad idea: Those mustaches.
29/02/2008 at 13:44 Seniath says:
Well, colour me unjaded. Upon first hearing about this, I was of the ‘too close to TF2′ school of thought, but watching this trailer I’ve certainly warmed to it.
And at the end of the day, it’s free. Who can possibly complain about free stuff?
29/02/2008 at 13:51 Okami says:
I wonder why the people who complain that it’s ripping off TF2 don’t accuse every FPS ever made of ripping off Doom? Or Wolfenstein3D?
EDIT: Of course every right thinking person knows, that Battlefield Heroes is ripping off XII, which was the first FPS to feature a comic look!
29/02/2008 at 13:59 Turin Turambar says:
Very interesting, but you know, this article reads as an advert from EA. :P
The vehicle gameplay seems fun, the shooting-while-walking looked slow and clunky. ;S
29/02/2008 at 14:03 Jim Rossignol says:
I think EA deserve a round of hyperbole, frankly. The DICE presentation dwarfed pretty much everything else I’ve seen this year.
29/02/2008 at 14:06 Kitt Basch says:
Yay, that was a really fun trailer.
Then again, I’ve always thought Battlefield games look fun, but whenever I try to play them I just find them dull.
Still excited though. Trying to make a profit off a completely free game is one of the most original ideas I’ve ever heard, and making a game focused purely on the idea of being fun is unheard of, surely?
29/02/2008 at 14:07 Ben Abraham says:
Hey, it’s March 1 already everywhere east of the wonderful land of OZ, so does that mean you can tell us (and *only* us living in March already) what this super-secret-NDA-clad future game thing is??? Send me an email! :D
29/02/2008 at 14:20 Man Raised By Puffins says:
They have RAF roundels on the fuselage though. It seems a bit silly to get pedantic about it though when the Allied faction seems to incorporate both British and US elements, not to mention that the designs are broad caricatures anyway.
Edit: Gametrailers now have a HD version up for all to ogle at.
29/02/2008 at 14:42 Marcos Castrillon says:
I’m probably the biggest WWII buff out there and yet this still gets a thumbs up from me
I mean, shooting a 50 cal, while sat on the wings of a Stuka? Sign me up!
29/02/2008 at 14:55 Will Tomas says:
That was the best game trailer I’ve seen since… ooo, the TF2 Soldier movie? Obvious comparison I know, but this was genuinely funny. I heartily approve.
29/02/2008 at 15:26 realmenhuntinpacks says:
mmmmmmmmmmmm
in
29/02/2008 at 15:28 Michael says:
This is sooo effing sweet!!!
29/02/2008 at 15:47 Nick says:
The sitting on the wings thing has sold (given it freely?) it to me. That and the piratebay part which literally made me “lol”.
I take back my previous lack of interest.
29/02/2008 at 15:51 Gylfi.Fenriz. says:
If this game brings nothing of interest gameplay-wise then it’s gonna be a terrible waste of ingenious marketing moves. Casual is good but i will not play something i already played before just because it’s free and it has cutsie cartoonish style.
29/02/2008 at 16:27 Daniel says:
I must admit that when BH was first announced, I wrote it off as a TF2 knock off and didn’t really have any interest. However, that trailer really made me want to play it… :)
29/02/2008 at 16:31 Rich Powers says:
Me want. Battlefield 1942 is still the most-played game on my machine precisely because I can quickly join a game and Alt-F4 out with zero system lag. In other words, it’s perfect for the 20 minutes of gameplay I enjoy between other activities. Subsequent BF’s are too complex and clunky for me tastes. Oh ya, I can also Alt-Tab out of the game without my system grinding to a halt.
Devs should realize that multitasking is part of the PC’s allure. As such, games should be designed as one part of the whole multimedia experience, not monolithic processes that can’t easily be started or quit.
Oh ya, the utter over-the-top ridiculousness is a bonus too.
PS: Has it surprised anyone else that more games haven’t use a skill-based matchmaking service?
29/02/2008 at 16:32 Fat Zombie says:
What a hilarious trailer.
This is Battlefield by way of Team Fortress 2 and Advance Wars. And it looks brilliant.
The only thing I’m not sure about is the playing from a website. I like my games playable offline. But the rest? Awesome.
29/02/2008 at 16:39 Razor says:
After seeing the trailer, I’m a bit more excited for this one. So long as the ad nonsense doesn’t totally F it up. Although I’d like to see a choice of 1st and 3rd person perspective.
29/02/2008 at 16:43 The_B says:
I’m firmly on the looking forward side of people with this one, and my inital scepticism has faded.
I also am agreeing that the trailer is pretty damn good, and I think is a really good reponse to those that claim that EA ‘aren’t in touch’ with gamers anymore…
29/02/2008 at 17:14 Cyren says:
Allow me to echo all the comments praising the trailer. Genuinely funny and does a good job of showing what the game is about.
As long as they don’t succumb to the temptation to allow microtransactions that effect gameplay, this should be pretty awesome.
29/02/2008 at 17:36 FaceOmeter says:
I’m all over this. Especially after the “15 year old boy” line.
29/02/2008 at 18:05 Jives says:
That trailer made it seem like there are no rag doll physics. If so, i call blasphemy
29/02/2008 at 18:50 Gylfi.Fenriz. says:
unreasonable fanboyism, here and everywhere :)
29/02/2008 at 19:03 SwiftRanger says:
“BF2 and ETQW went too far in making their classes varied and versatile”
Accessibility is good and all but keeping it too simple makes for a boring game, some folks might not want to hear this with all the recent “let’s expand gaming so everyone can enjoy it!”-hype but more complexity in a shooter from time to time wouldn’t be bad at all.
Battlefield Heroes looks cool though (especially sitting on those plane wings), let’s see how it plays.
29/02/2008 at 19:23 Jim Rossignol says:
“I’d like to see a choice of 1st and 3rd person perspective.”
Yeah, I’d be amazed if there wasn’t a choice by the time the game hits.
29/02/2008 at 19:27 Fazer says:
I wonder how will they solve it so that I will not be getting shot in the face repeatedly by a swearing, ultra-skilled 15 year old boy who plays the game every day for 8 hours. Because what I’ve seen so far was getting killed with one shot or being run over by the tank appearing out of nowhere.
29/02/2008 at 19:35 Nuyan says:
Holy shit. An EA trailer that is actually hilarious?
29/02/2008 at 19:53 Mike says:
Okay. A few things. First of all – I’m one of those sad bastards who thought the best thing about Battlefield 2 was the realism. So I’m not whooping as much as I might be over this, because, I dunno, I kind of just wanted Battlefield 1943.
But I think this is great for gaming in general. They’re a confident bunch, though, if they think their servers can hold up to the initial push. It’s going to be staggering.
01/03/2008 at 01:47 Lh'owon says:
The whole sitting on the plane’s wings and shooting while it attacks pretty much just sold me the game.
01/03/2008 at 02:01 Gulag says:
We’re going to be whistling that theme tune on the bus by the end of Summer…
01/03/2008 at 04:30 Catch.153 says:
I’m sorry, but I just can’t think about the game without muttering “Team Fortress 2 rip-off” under my breath. Maybe it’s comparing Addams Family and Munsters, but, my word, another military “cartoon shooter”? Rip. Off.
I love you, Valve!
01/03/2008 at 05:23 Justin Sherrill says:
The tubby tanks are – dare I say – cute?
That isn’t necessarily a negative.
01/03/2008 at 07:49 Garth says:
Goddamn third person shit. Who decided that was a good idea? Who I ask you!
01/03/2008 at 08:35 terry says:
Good trailer, I especiially like the very gentlemanly shootout.
01/03/2008 at 08:58 Junior says:
There’d better be sitting slots on the tanks too!
Or there’ll be HECK to pay!
01/03/2008 at 08:58 Optimaximal says:
Didn’t they announce a few weeks ago when everyone kicked up a fuss about ‘fucking console third-person schwag’ that, whilst a lot of the screenshots/footage is in third-person TO SHOW OFF THE ENGINE, there will be a first-person mode?
01/03/2008 at 10:48 Jim Rossignol says:
Conversations elsewhere made me realise: third person is there because your characters get customised. It’s because they’re trying to do WoW fancy dress for soldiers. If it’s not third person you can’t appreciate it.
02/03/2008 at 05:57 Winterborn says:
Really beautiful art style. I hate to say this, but I think I like the look they’ve gone for more than the TF2 look. Blasphemy I know.
07/03/2008 at 15:48 Crispy says:
Anyone else hear the Metal Gear thing at the end?
07/05/2008 at 04:51 Grandstone says:
I think the look and the gameplay (if it’s anything like BF1942) are distinct enough from TF2 that the “Rip-off!” crowd can settle themselves down. Can’t wait for it to come out to see if it lives up to the high bar it’s setting for itself. If not–hey, it’s by DICE, and it’s free. No problem there.
25/01/2009 at 10:23 Highlord Asehujiko says:
The entire video translated to EA/DICE screaming ME TOO!!! while running after the TF2 bandwagon. Need i cite Their countless mmo’s, Armies of Exigo, Mirror’s Edge, cnc3, ra3 and alot of things i’m forgetting that sold purely on similarity to a sucessfull game and turned out to be absolute crap? I’m skeptical over the third person camera too. It has repeatedly proven to be very glitch prone and in games where the option between 1st and 3rd exists, 1st is the norm because you don’t shoot walls you can look over but your character can’t. I’m off playing TF2 again, a game i technicly got for free too, as it came in the $40 orange box, while EA would have charged $60 for ep2 alone and not include the other 4 games at all. Or, if mirrors edge is any indication, 60$ for the first quarter of ep2 alone.