I saw this last week on the EA site when it came out, but didnt realize that there was so much information about the mod tools that DICE is creating for BF2. DICEs Battlefield Mod Coordinator Lawrence Brown (Formerly of Trauma Studios) has put together a quick introduction to the mod tools. What seems like it will be the greatest improvement is that it is an all in one package for mapping and modding existing objects. New models and animations will still need to be done in a 3rd party software such as 3DMax or Maya, but everything else can apparently be accomplished in the different subsections of the modding program.

You can read all of the details in the February 4, 2005 Community Update.

It is being reported that a few execs from EA mentioned BF2 was going to be delayed until First Quarter of their Fiscal Year 06. Before you completely panic, that is April-June 2005. We can only speculate why this delay is happening. Here are a few things to consider.

– EA has officially made public they are purchasing DICE.
– A recent bug has been exposed that affects BF42 and maybe BFV. We have no info if this same bug affects BF2, but it would be wise to fix it before releasing the game.
– EA is a stock driven company and may be looking for a boost to their First Quarter earnings and feel BF2 will do that.

We will keep an eye out for more info, but in the meantime, enjoy our upcoming Custom Map Blowouts next month and lets hope BF2 comes out in early April (just in time for my B-day).

It seems EA has set their sites on creating an European Development group. First, they announced they were buying 90% of DICE, but that didnt work out. Then they started purchasing shares of Ubisoft, in what some have termed as an unwanted partnership. Now, they have waived all requirements for the percentage of stock they must buy in DICE and are simply focusing on purchasing as many shares as possible.

I had really hoped the little guy would hold out, but it seems EA is too big and powerful and will stop at nothing to get what they want. I can only hope it doesnt ruin our beloved Battlefield series.

Read More for the full Press Release regarding this situation. Continue reading EA Not Giving Up On Acquisition of DICE →

Well, at least everything they have told us so far.

Fizban30 w/ help from king0rism have assembled all publicly known information regarding BF2 in a single location. This includes basic information, map info, weapon and vehicle details, videos and screenshots. Here is a portion of the information under “Basic Info”

Basic Info

* Release Date: 03/24/2005
* Demo possible in Feb., not confirmed
* 64 players max, 30 vehicles, 11 maps, 7 classes
* U.S. vs Chinese, vs Middle East Coalition
* New gameplay engine, realistic physics and dynamic lighting, Material penetration feature, destructible environments
* Maps scales to number of players (16, 32 or 64 players) and provides ideal vehicle-to-player ratio
* Native PunkBuster support
* CTF undecided
* SP is beefed up
* Requirements will be around – 1.4GHz, 512MB RAM, shadermodel 1.4 supporting gfx card
* Ingame Squads –
o Squad leader can use T key to issue commands
o Squad leader in a vehicle becomes a mobile spawn point for squad members
o Can be password protected
o Max of 6 players and leader
o Squad leader can set waypoints
o Temporary spawn points can be made

The site can be found here and is “under construction”, but is pretty cool.

It seems Electronic Arts (EA) is intent on buying Swedish games developer Digital Illusions (DICE). EAs recent offer required them to purchase 90% of the companies stock, but 2 major investors held 28% of DICEs stock and did not want to sell. That offer was set to expire on December 16th. That time has passed and EA has made a new offer. From the article:

…extended the acceptance period until January 20th 2005 in a move that demonstrates the publishers determination to acquire the firm

However, EAs latest move conditions the offer upon a lower acceptance level of more than 50 per cent of the total number of shares…

Get the full scoop here.

In a suprise twist of events, 2 groups of shareholders representing 28% ownership of Digital Illusions (DICE) have declined the offer by Electronic Arts (EA) to buy Digital Illusions.

From the article at GameIndustry.biz:

…enough to prevent the acquisition from happening, according to Swedish financial news site di.se, which explains that 90 per cent of shares must vote in favour of the deal for it to be passed.

The shareholders who oppose the deal believe that the developers performance and future prospects are strong enough to make remaining independent into a more attractive option, in particular given the planned launch of Battlefield 2 on the PC and Battlefield: Modern Combat on current and next-gen consoles next year.

Not that this hasnt been posted elsewhere, but for those of you who depend on us for your Battlefield news, here is some info on the upcoming Battlefield 2 from the guys over at the Northern Brigade Clan:

“On Thursday 18th November some of us guys in Northern Brigade went to the DICE office for a little BF2 visit. We met the BattleField 2 crew, the EA folks and of course, we got to play the game 🙂
The purpose of this little drill was for DICE to get some external feedback on the game. They also wanted us to tell the rest of the community about how BF2 is shaping up. And guess what? There´s not one, but TWO movies recorded ingame as we play. All edited up for you by mr KOiN, so enjoy.”

There is quite a bit of information in this article as well as two movies
Article and Movies

To play the movies, you will need the DIVX codec which you can get here.

It was fun while it lasted. Thats right. Im giving up the ghost, so to speak. You see, EA has tendered an offer for all the outstanding shares of Digital Illusions (DICE), supposedly to give DICE access to gaming platforms currently in development. What lesson have we learned when EA buys a studio? Heres a hint. Take a look at EAs past acquisitions…

Origin – Ultima
Maxis – SimCity
Westwood – Command &Conquer
Bullfrog – Dungeon Keeper

Thats just from the top of my head. Where are they now? I would look for BF2 to be the last viable PC game put out by DICE, unless EA screws that up as well.

So long DICE. Its been nice knowing you. If you really want the full details, click Read More for the Press Release from EA. Continue reading So Long Battlefield →

Just one of many question here:

Question sent in by: MaSaKaRi
Its been mentioned that a player can select different looks for his character, as well as weapons. What does this mean exactly? Will we have a kit system like Battlefield Vietnam, but expanded? Or will a player class be able to fully outfit himself from a list of weapons and clothes (like, choosing from 5 pistols, 6 machine guns, etc, a real list of items)?

Scott Evans: Players will go up in rank from Private through the various military officer ranks. As players do so they will unlock new weapons and equipment which they can outfit their soldier with. Better players will naturally progress more quickly. However, we are changing the scoring system to reward those previously thankless people who role played within their kit. Rewarding engineers who repair vehicles and medics who heal teammates fosters a greater sense of teamwork.

Read all the Q&A here.

Check out 12 new screenshots. 6 are below and the other 6 are in the gallery, located here.

We have some new screenshots from Battlefield 2. This game looks incredible. I cant wait to play it.

I just got home from work and what do I find in my inbox? 5 Hot new screenshots from EA for Battlefield 2. The detail of the last one with the city is absolutely amazing. Click and Enjoy!

In addition to the screenshots, they have a small interview with Josh Hendren, producer of the Console Game, Battlefield: Modern Combat. Get the full scoop here.

Everyone is trying to learn as much as possible about the upcoming DICE game, Battlefield 2. We are no different than you my friend. We want to know everything we can get our grubby little hands on. (Dont believe the rumors, small hands and, well you know….) To help feed the frenzy, we put together a mini FAQ of sorts from our various news sources. These are the tidbits we thought were unique to BF2 and interesting. We even included classes and weapons.

One thing is for certain, this in not your Grandfathers WWII Battlefield Game
Continue reading Battlefield 2 Information Update →

GameSpy sends us word about not one, but three videos taken of Battlefield 2 at E3.

A few things I noticed right off the bat:

– Destroyable Objects
– Movable objects, like barrels
– Shoot through certain materials, like Aluminum buildings
– Heavy Machine Gunner is firing standing up. (Come on guys, learn from the M60 in BFV)
– Team Communication has switched to an on screen radius type selector
– More options when choosing class
– Feel appears to be more like BFV than BF42

FilePlanet.com has all three for download. If youve got the time, check them all out. If you want to see class selection, watch video 1. If you want to see destroyable objects, watch video 2. If you want a good shot of movable objects and an Airstrike, watch video 3.