Battlefield 1 is taking military shooters back in time for the first time in years, but to a period where many think conflict was rather stale. The first World War is commonly known for its slow trench warfare, held back technology and generally lacklustre skirmishes in comparison to the war that followed. And a heck of a lot of misery. For a game that is all about big action set-pieces, it’s a little worrisome – but that type of negativity is something developers DICE don’t understand.
Speaking to Gamespot, Design Director Lars Gustavsson spoke about how the new setting is allowing DICE to explore facets of war that previous games haven’t. Even though the first World War isn’t exactly known for its combat , DICE says there are many major advancements and battles that they’re able to draw from.
“There’s this common misconception that WWI was just muskets or something. But it wasn’t. It was a time of new weapons–bolt-action rifles, automatic rifles, semi-automatic rifles. The freedom we have is massive.”
This freedom is allowing DICE to engage with things like gruelling trench warfare and climatic dogfights that aided troops on the ground. Gustavsson equates a lot of what happened in the first World War as the reason for many modern day conflicts, and his team are committed to building a narrative around some of those events and its big influencers.
“I always thought the battle for oil started later, in the Second World War, but it started within this era. So we went from the picture you’re painting, but realized that there’s so much more to World War One than trench warfare. There was the invention of new technology, the need for new weapons, the creation of light machine guns.
“The world changed during WW1. There were four great empires that ceased to exist just because of it. Lots of great inventions came about during it, even things you don’t think about like trench coats and zippers and teabags.”
He’s right, and it’s often an oversight by many to consider the first World War boring. Even I admit to initially wondering what could possibly exciting for a videogame in this setting, but after seeing things like horseback warfare in the desert, naval warships engaging ground targets and zeppelins becoming ominous visions of death, I’ve had my interest piqued.
Battlefield 1 is out later this year on Xbox One, PS4 and PC.
Last Updated: May 12, 2016
Pariah
May 12, 2016 at 10:36
WW1 – Tanks became a thing. Planes became a thing. It was indeed an exciting period for pioneering. WW2 saw the evolution of things, rather than the invention of things – and that to many is much more exciting. There was more plane warfare, more exciting well-known battles.
But WW1 was gruelling and cruel like WW2 didn’t understand. And there was a lot of ground-work laid during it (pun not intended).
Either way, Biplanes!!!!!
geel slang
May 12, 2016 at 12:20
The germans invented the V2 rockets during WW2 that basically led to the yanks landing on the moon…
james, lord of devonshire
May 12, 2016 at 13:21
the Apollo rockets were just upgraded V2s with better technology, pretty much.
they were also yet another of Werner Von Braun’s creations.
HvR
May 12, 2016 at 13:29
That is like saying a Bugatti Veyron is just a upgraded Ford Model T, pretty much.
james, lord of devonshire
May 12, 2016 at 13:35
that’s true, the model is descended from cars of that age but there’s a whole load more to the car.
geel slang
May 12, 2016 at 14:29
Not quite, the Bugatti and Model T dont have the same inventor.
Strawman Jim
May 12, 2016 at 12:39
Biplanes!! The Red Baron!!
Pariah
May 12, 2016 at 13:30
FINALLY! I was waiting for someone to reference him. Like, one of the most famous war pilots in history. +1 to you, good sir!!!
Pariah
May 12, 2016 at 10:38
No piss off. I need to stop reading this shit. This year has too many games that are exciting to me.
Admiral Chief in New York
May 12, 2016 at 10:39
I’m all for those OLDSCHOOL planes!
Fox1 - Retro
May 12, 2016 at 11:19
As a PC gamer you must have played Secret Weapons Over Normandy then?
Admiral Chief in New York
May 12, 2016 at 11:58
Nope, never got to it
Fox1 - Retro
May 12, 2016 at 12:03
Check it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqmLRDKeBqM
Admiral Chief in New York
May 12, 2016 at 15:27
Nice, Lucasarts FTW
Greylingad[He Charges!]
May 12, 2016 at 10:48
“What! what! men, dodging this way for single bullets! What will you do when they open fire along the whole line? I am ashamed of you. They couldn’t hit an elephant at this distance.” – General John Sedgwick, not his last words, contrary to popular belief…
Anyway, horseback WARFARE!!! I hope, to all things involving war that they’ll have the sense to include the Chrismas Truce, even if it is only a very small bit of it, in this game, then, and only then, will it really be worth playing.
Admiral Chief in New York
May 12, 2016 at 10:49
Horse armour DLC sold separately…
Greylingad[He Charges!]
May 12, 2016 at 10:50
HAHAHA!! At $60 a pop?
Deceased
May 12, 2016 at 10:51
I’m still waiting, and firmly believe, that EA will be the pioneers inventing DLC for your DLC, so you can have DLC while you play DLC
Greylingad[He Charges!]
May 12, 2016 at 10:51
It’s coming, don’t worry, they’ll find a way…
Pariah
May 12, 2016 at 10:52
Valve have already done this. Both Dota and CS:GO were DLC’s from other games. And they both charge for DLC.
Greylingad[He Charges!]
May 12, 2016 at 10:54
This is true!! But then again, CS:GO is the extension of a game that started close to 16 years ago… Shit… that’s a very long time ago…
Pariah
May 12, 2016 at 10:56
Counter Strike was a mod for Half Life. Half Life 1. And Dota was a mod for Warcraft 3. Both very old games.
Greylingad[He Charges!]
May 12, 2016 at 11:02
Again, very true! but both spawned cultures in gaming that have now turned into multi million dorrar industries…
Pariah
May 12, 2016 at 11:03
Yup. From mods. And yet, for some fucked up reason, so many devs try to stop people modding their stuff. Seriously… Makes no sense to me. I miss the 2000’s gaming culture.
Greylingad[He Charges!]
May 12, 2016 at 11:05
Funny you should mention that, a huge part of that culture stemmed from where the first proper fps game came from, DOOM, the modding, side I mean…
Pariah
May 12, 2016 at 11:06
That made me smile, then it made me sad because I won’t be able to get the new one. 🙁
Greylingad[He Charges!]
May 12, 2016 at 11:08
That’s ok, I won’t be able to get it either, but there’s always next Steam sale?
Pariah
May 12, 2016 at 11:09
If I can get a graphics card upgrade, maybe.
Admiral Chief in New York
May 12, 2016 at 11:11
I’m selling my workhorse later this year, wanna go from 2GB to 8GB.
Interested?
Pariah
May 12, 2016 at 11:13
Part of the reason I’m in this situation is that I don’t buy 2nd hand stuff. Ever. It’s like an OCD thing, but I just can’t bring myself to do it.
Admiral Chief in New York
May 12, 2016 at 11:15
Well, I’ve taken, and still am, taking very good care of it.
But I see your point
Pariah
May 12, 2016 at 11:16
Oh listen, it doesn’t matter how well it’s been looked after or how much sense it makes to buy it. I can’t.
I know. I make no sense. >_<
Admiral Chief in New York
May 12, 2016 at 11:17
I know you make no sense in general, good to see you are sticking to your guns.
Pariah
May 12, 2016 at 11:18
LOL. Bastard. 😛
Admiral Chief in New York
May 12, 2016 at 11:49
xD
Alien Emperor Trevor
May 12, 2016 at 11:08
Mods extend the lifespan of a game, which is why many don’t cater for it – you won’t buy the next annual sequel if the old one is still alive & kicking with mods.
Pariah
May 12, 2016 at 11:11
Yeah but who’d want to mod CoD or AC?
Greylingad[He Charges!]
May 12, 2016 at 11:12
What do you mean? Don’t the Devs mod their own games and then sell them afterwards?
Pariah
May 12, 2016 at 11:13
Mod? Maybe the occasional engine upgrade, and a reshuffle of the assets with some new voice-overs. Ok, yeah maybe.
Admiral Chief in New York
May 12, 2016 at 11:16
CoD [insert_version]+[current year] is basically TC Mods.
Core stays the same (crap) but it gets a slap of paint, some marketing hubbub, and there you go
Alien Emperor Trevor
May 12, 2016 at 10:51
Preorder DLC for DLC.
Greylingad[He Charges!]
May 12, 2016 at 10:52
Not included in the Season pass….
Deceased
May 12, 2016 at 10:52
Multi-upvote
RinceThis
May 12, 2016 at 10:55
You stop! Or you get mustard gas!
Pariah
May 12, 2016 at 10:56
Don’t ham it up.
Alien Emperor Trevor
May 12, 2016 at 10:58
I’m immune to mustard gas, I’m part of the mustard race.
RinceThis
May 12, 2016 at 11:16
Oh dear…
RinceThis
May 12, 2016 at 10:54
Pretty sure the people in the first world war didn’t find it ‘boring’ 0_O
Greylingad[He Charges!]
May 12, 2016 at 11:00
Yep, mostly war is quite frightening, even the impact on the civilian side of things is where the biggest issue comes in, for the soldiers things get bad very quickly…except for the Anglo Zanzibar war…
Alien Emperor Trevor
May 12, 2016 at 11:02
I wonder if the game will include the care packages soldiers received from home at the front, which included handy stuff like cocaine.
Greylingad[He Charges!]
May 12, 2016 at 11:03
Or the opium cigarettes, there’s an old story of people exchanging them to relieve themselves from guard duty alongside the trenches…
Andre Fourie
May 12, 2016 at 11:30
Booooooring. Won’t be wasting my dosh.
Raptor Rants
May 12, 2016 at 12:22
War. War never changes.
Also, boring is a bit of a horrid statement. People dying is not boring. Nor is it exciting. It’s horrible. We really should stop making it seem like war is meant to be fun.
miaau
May 12, 2016 at 12:35
Um, most of the soldiers involved in WW1 were deep in the trenches, millions of men. Although it is called World War 1, most of the soliders were in Europe. There were less soldiers fighting in the “colonies”.
But hey, war is war: (and death too) because they are trying to glorify war for the purposes of the game.
Strawman Jim
May 12, 2016 at 12:38
What? There are actually people out there that think WW1 was boring? Poor uneducated cretins… It was the war that should have ended all wars – 4 horrifying years of hell. It reshaped Europe and changed the world!
#ShakesHead
miaau
May 12, 2016 at 13:19
And tore the Ottoman Empire apart, leading to changes in the Middle East, that set the scene for later events.
Avithar
May 12, 2016 at 13:43
Can we nuke the enemy if you play as commander….? if we can this game is going to be the best
Crayven
May 18, 2016 at 23:45
Everyone who enjoys sitting and camp and wait for 20 minutes for a target to pop and then shoot it will love this game.
Those of us who wish to clear buildings in quick assault teams will cringe at this camp fest.
In reality it WAS a static war. Neither side could break the stalemate without literally getting fuckloads of men KILLED so they can take a position.