Players are going back to where the Battlefield franchise started with DICE’s next title; Battlefield V is heading back to World War II. However, DICE promises that this will be a never before seen portrayal of WWII with new locations and new aspects of the conflict. Players should be able to create their own Battlefield moments thanks to new effects, an overhauled movement system and a renewed destructive system. We have all of the details for you.
First, the team started with the gameplay modes and multiplayer was the best place to begin. A new gameplay mode, Grand Operations, was introduced. These are like the Operations from Battlefield 1 but are bigger. They cover multiple game modes, take place over multiple maps, and they’re all wrapped up in a four-day narrative journey that covers historical moments from World War II. The example that the team gave was an Operation that began on the first day where the team jumps from a plane, and the objective is to destroy enemy artillery, all while the enemy is digging in to protect their equipment. Your success completely depends on your actions from the day before — use up too many lives and you’ll have nothing left for the end, but be too efficient and you’ll never see the last stage. In this Operation, day four is a final stand situation with no resources left. Unless the teams get stuck in a stalemate situation where lives are lost and ammo is used up, this final stage will never be seen. More of this mode will be shown at EA Play on June 9th.
The single player War Stories mode will also be returning and continues the anthology format of Battlefield 1. Once again, the aim of this mode is to bring war into perspective with untold stories of real and relatable characters and their experiences. Players will meet new characters, the men and women who changed history. One of them will be told from the perspective of a female Nowegian Resistance fighter, battling against the German occupation.
Alongside the expected multiplayer modes and the returning single player War Stories, co-op gameplay will be returning to the franchise. Known as Combined Arms, this mode allows up to four players to team up online and take on the roles of the pathfinders and paratroopers that go behind enemy lines. Here, players only have each other to rely on and detection might mean death. Resources will be scarce and it’s up to the players to find their way to the objective. If they don’t think they have the resources to continue, they can extract, but then that would mean starting from the beginning again.
The team then moved on to the weapons and vehicles in the game. The team wants to mirror the vast arsenal of the second World War. This means planes, tank battles, and secret weapons from the period that were powerful enough to turn the tide of battle. One new aspect will be Fortifications. Whereas every player had a gas mask in Battlefield 1, now every player will have a toolbox. This allows support players to focus on objectives rather than direct combat. They can build reinforcements like foxholes instead of mounted guns. In previous games, battles that have taken quite a while often mean that the entire map is levelled thanks to the game’s destruction systems. Fortifications allows players to counter that and make it still possible to advance.
Players are bound to have their favourite weapons and vehicles. The new Company feature allows players to create their own collection of soldiers, weapons, and vehicles, and to customise them as they see fit. These customisations will not only affect how the item looks, but also how it plays. As a soldier progresses, he/she unlocks more abilities and perks specific to their class. As weapons are used, they’re levelled up and can be customised more specifically to your style of play to create what would feel like a personal arsenal. All of this can only be earned by playing the game — there will not be any pay to win.
Continuing on the theme of paid content, Battlefield V will not have a Premium Pass. Players will no longer have to pay for additional maps or game modes, and DICE hopes this will keep the game’s community together. Instead, through Tides of War, the team hopes to create an evolving and diverse game that introduces different theatres of war in the months following the game’s launch. These themed chapters will cover new battles and new fronts, spanning key moments of the WWII conflict. These may span several months of gameplay, but they will certainly bring new rewards for players — new vehicles, weapons, dog tags, emblems, face paints, and skins for weapons and soldiers. The first Tides of War chapter will focus on the fall of Europe, specifically on the German mechanised war machine that’s pushing its way into Europe.
The reveal trailer showcases just how chaotic this game is likely to be, and what it means to create your own Battlefield moments.
Battlefield V launches on October 19th. The Tides of War content starts in November.
