Battlefield 4 Is Really Real, Beta Next Year
Just in case you thought I was pulling your leg/was a gullible tool when we posted about the apparent leak of Battlefield 4, EA have stopped pretending it didn't happen and officially 'fessed up. They've confirmed that, yes, people who pre-order Medal of Honor: Man Who Fights Wars will get priority access to the beta of the next Battlefield, and that's scheduled for 'Fall 2013.' Which I'd be willing to guess suggests a release date of October or November 2013, as has been EA and Activision manshoot tradition for many years now. But I might be wrong. I often am. Why, I was wrong about something only yesterday.
DICE have tried to allay fears this could mean BF3 gets dropped like a hot starchy vegetable product by taking to Reddit and declaring that " “There are several teams at DICE. Starting work on Battlefield 4 does not mean that we will be abandoning Battlefield 3 or working any less hard to bring you the best expansions we can.” They (by which I mean BF3 community manager Ian Tornay) also addresses the issue of BF4 seeming to be uncomfortably hot on the heels of BF3 in the eyes of some.
"I think it's worth noting that DICE has released a Battlefield game every two years or sooner AND Mirror's Edge at least every two years. I truly believe that we're in one of the best positions to be creating our next title - Frostbite 2 has matured, we've been gathering fan feedback like crazy, Battlefield 3 continues to expand with features which we can learn from, and we've got more data about how people play than ever."
Well, that's true, but the core, numbered Battlefield series has been much further apart than that - here have been Bad Companies of 2142s and Vietnams and all sorts in between. The question is whether the 4 denotes a true move up to new tech and new ideas, as has been the case for 1942, 2 and 3, or an interation a la the CODs. We shall see. In about 18 months. I really would prefer only hearing about videogames a couple of weeks before they're released, I think.
Oh yes, and apparently Warfighting won't be the only way to get on the beta. That'll be a big old 'phew' for some, perhaps.