A lot of Battlefield fans are eagerly anticipating the next Battlefield game to be revealed when 2018 rolls around, but there is also rising concern over how EA and DICE might handle the forthcoming title. One of the many issues happens to center around Battlefield 2018’s campaign and if the devs will ditch it for a more “engaging service-type” and “monetized” multiplayer?
Rumors surrounding Battlefield 2018 is nothing new, but concerned gamers have raised some points about the upcoming game after the current fiasco that is Star Wars Battlefront 2. One of those points relate to EA and DICE scaling back on Battlefield 2018‘s story mode or not adding one to the game so that they can capitalize on monetization practices.
Way back on October 10th, 2017, itemization, progression and rewards seemed to be a heavy focus when it came to new job listings regarding BF2018.
Back on October 18th, 2017, Patrick Söderlund, EA’s executive vice president, went up with a post on ea.com detailing why Visceral’s Star Wars Rag Tag game scope must change from linear to a broader design:
“Throughout the development process, we have been testing the game concept with players, listening to the feedback about what and how they want to play, and closely tracking fundamental shifts in the marketplace. It has become clear that to deliver an experience that players will want to come back to and enjoy for a long time to come, we needed to pivot the design. We will maintain the stunning visuals, authenticity in the Star Wars universe, and focus on bringing a Star Wars story to life. Importantly, we are shifting the game to be a broader experience that allows for more variety and player agency”.
Looking over to November 16th, 2017, we can read EA’s CFO Blake Jorgensen stance on Battlefield 4 and microtransactions, thanks to publication site GameSpot:
“During the call, Jorgensen spoke generally about EA’s approach to the games-as-a-service model. He said Battlefield 4 was a missed opportunity in this regard. It is consistently in the top 10 most played games for EA, Jorgensen mentioned, adding that the game could have made even more money if it had a “live service” component.”
Looking over to Jorgensen’s latest response on single-player games and linear story driven titles, which can be traced over at a Scottsdale, Arizona, presentation for investors at the Credit Suisse 21st Annual Technology conference, he feels that gamers “don’t like them as much as they did five or ten years ago” in regards to single-player games.
So with all of the above now on the table, will EA and DICE focus more on monetizing Battlefield 2018 and providing more luring content behind loot-boxes and microtransactions than its story mode?
Another thing worth pondering over, will Battlefield 2018 veer from its dynamic system of bullet drop and technical side of altering weapons to a more simplified setup to appeal to more gamers as a means to introduce them to an “engaging live-service”?
