new battlefied and it might be free...sorta :)

[Premonition]

http://www.battlefield-heroes.com/home.asp

BATTLEFIELD HEROES LEADS THE WAY FOR EA?S NEW
?PLAY 4 FREE? BUSINESS MODEL

Unique Cartoon Shooter Introduces a New Way to Play Battlefield

Chertsey, UK January 21, 2008 ? At the Digital, Life, Design Conference (DLD) in Munich, Electronic Arts Inc., (NASDAQ: ERTS) today unveiled Battlefield Heroes?, an all-new Play 4 Free cartoon-style shooter that will bring classic Battlefield gameplay to an all new mass audience. Available for download at www.battlefield-heroes.com this summer, Battlefield Heroes is EA?s first title that is offered completely for free, and features a built-in matchmaking system to ensure that players of equal skill are paired together for fair play. Developed by DICE in Stockholm, Battlefield Heroes is leading EA?s new web-focused free to download, free to play business model which generates revenue through advertising and micro-transactions. With zero barriers to entry, now anyone can be a hero on the battlefield!

?Online gaming garners a massive audience,? said Gerhard Florin, EVP Publishing Americas-Europe at EA. ?People want to play games in new ways, with easier access that is quick to the fun. With Battlefield Heroes, EA brings its first major franchise to North America and Europe with a new distribution model and pricing structure adapted to the evolving way that people play.?

Battlefield Heroes is a brand new game from the team behind Battlefield 1942? and Battlefield 2?. It?s fun cartoon-style graphics and gameplay caters to players of all skill levels. It is easy to pick up and play but with robust character customization and a deep online meta-game, gamers can spend hours building up their characters and conquering the world.

?We put a different twist on this Battlefield game going with the cartoon-style graphics and gameplay,? added Ben Cousins, Senior Producer at EA DICE. ?There?s something here for all types of players -- be it our core Battlefield fans or casual gamers. With the new online model, we will continually add new content to keep the game fresh and keep players engaged, while integrating player feedback in real time. As a game developer, it is such a cool new way to make games.?

Battlefield Heroes will be released for the PC as a free download in summer 2008. This product is not yet rated by PEGI or ESRB. For more information on EA DICE, please visit www.dice.se or www.ea.com.

EA`s answer to tf2 i guess.

[CarbonFire]

lol, was just going to post this

And you gotta love EA for originality

As for "free".....

Developed by DICE in Stockholm, Battlefield Heroes is leading EA?s new web-focused free to download, free to play business model which generates revenue through advertising and micro-transactions. With zero barriers to entry, now anyone can be a hero on the battlefield!

Translation:It'll be free to download and play, but as soon as you start playing, you'll be horribly raped by all the other players that have paid for upgrades to their "free" game (microtransaction weapons and such). And of course, every ten feet you'll have to dodge a billboard advertising televisions or hamburgers.

Here's a shot of one of the character models

[CarbonFire]

The above character shot and more details can be found in this story:

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/21/te...gy/21game.html

[Grisu]

Looks like a TF2 clone.

Pay:
$ 10 for a pistol
$ 20 for a sub machine gun
$ 30 for a rocket launcher
$ 50 for a body armor

I think I know where this is going...

[Thrashdragon]

According to this article, you can only upgrade your appearance with money, not your weaponry, and ads will not appear in the game, only when loading:

Ben Cousins, senior producer at Dice, told BBC News that no adverts would be appear in the game itself.

"They wouldn't work inside the fictional world. Instead, adverts will appear on the website and the 'front-end' of the game."

Gamers will be able to buy items which customise their appearance in the world, but will not be able to seek an advantage through buying weapons.

Mr Cousins said Battlefield Heroes was about exploring new revenue models as well as making a game more accessible.

"I've always felt there was some really good fun core gameplay which was locked away by several barriers to entry: the game is complex, it is full of skilled people, you need quite a high-end PC on which to play and you need to go to store to purchase a copy."

"We're removing all barriers to entry and we hope there is broader audience for the title. You will be able to play this game on grandma's laptop."

Mr Cousins said EA expected 95% of people who played the game never to spend any money.

"If you look at Korea and Asia this is a model that works. Given the enormous explosion in web-based gaming products, this is going to be a real source of growth in the industry and Battlefield Heroes is the first step towards doing that in West."

I find that bolded statement pretty humorous and not even remotely believable coming from the company that put ads inside BF2142. However, I'll try anything that's free.

From: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7199881.stm

[CarbonFire]

According to this article, you can only upgrade your appearance with money, not your weaponry, and ads will not appear in the game, only when loading:

Ben Cousins, senior producer at Dice, told BBC News that no adverts would be appear in the game itself.

"They wouldn't work inside the fictional world. Instead, adverts will appear on the website and the 'front-end' of the game."

Gamers will be able to buy items which customise their appearance in the world, but will not be able to seek an advantage through buying weapons.

Mr Cousins said Battlefield Heroes was about exploring new revenue models as well as making a game more accessible.

"I've always felt there was some really good fun core gameplay which was locked away by several barriers to entry: the game is complex, it is full of skilled people, you need quite a high-end PC on which to play and you need to go to store to purchase a copy."

"We're removing all barriers to entry and we hope there is broader audience for the title. You will be able to play this game on grandma's laptop."

Mr Cousins said EA expected 95% of people who played the game never to spend any money.

"If you look at Korea and Asia this is a model that works. Given the enormous explosion in web-based gaming products, this is going to be a real source of growth in the industry and Battlefield Heroes is the first step towards doing that in West."

I find that bolded statement pretty humorous and not even remotely believable coming from the company that put ads inside BF2142. However, I'll try anything that's free.

From: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/technology/7199881.stm

I also find the assertion that they won't offer weapon upgrades for $ is a bit hard to swallow. In the NYT article they site their target as their Korean FIFA game that allows stat-buffing for cash, not to mention EA's penchant for unlockable/earnable weapons and upgrades in the other BF games.

Also, lowering the barrier for entry means simplifying the gameplay until its the Fisher-Price version of battlefield. No skill, lots of quick rewards, feed the endless need for stimulation for all the Ritalin addicts out there. I'm guessing it will be like the PopCap version of Battlefield

[Thrashdragon]

I'm guessing it will be like the PopCap version of Battlefield

Well, that'd be one way to get the girlfriend to play it...she loves PopCap games!

[Dead_And_Gone]

Joy... Not sure I want another EA product at this time...

[jaspurr]

I'm guessing it will be like the PopCap version of Battlefield

Well, that'd be one way to get the girlfriend to play it...she loves PopCap games!

Careful you probably have to pay extra for that option

[Rand{CLR}]

Yeah...so...thanks, but no thanks for this game. I'll be staying well away.

-Rand

[Slaughter]

Oh, you want bullets too? Hehe...

[Premonition]

Oh, you want bullets too? Hehe...

lol... good point.
I can see it now fire off 6 rounds and see "reload" you click r on the keyboard and a message appears "please enter credit card number now"

[paceman]

Head on down to the BF Army/Navy store and pick up your boxes of ammo.....

[Dead_And_Gone]

Shhhhh... Don't give them ideas..

[-Bar]

boring...