Tag Archives: DICE

Train2Game news: DICE detail how open beta changed Battlefield 3

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Train2Game students were among the millions who took part in the Battlefield 3 open beta.  Developer DICE have has thanked everyone who took part, and has detailed some of the changes to Battlefield 3 as a result of the open beta.

“On behalf of the entire team at DICE, I wanted to say thanks to everyone who played and participated in our Battlefield 3 Open Beta. The information that we’ve gathered from your play time is invaluable. It will help to make Battlefield 3even better!” DICE’s Tommy Rydling wrote on the PlayStation Blog.

“But before I leave you, here is a short selection of just some of the hundreds of changes and additions we are making to the game before launch, as a direct result of your feedback in the Open Beta:

Improved Squad Functionality

There will be improved squad functionality in the retail game (including but not limited to): the ability to create squads prior to launching into a game, sticking with your squad when joining a game and continuing together through future games (if team balance on the server allows it), inviting friends to a squad, and changing squads once in game.

More Accessible Settings Menu

The ability to modify your settings via the deploy screen has been added into the retail game.

Improved Kill Cam

In the Open Beta, the Kill Cam would sometimes behave erratically. This has been fixed for the launch of the retail game.

Netcode Optimization

The netcode is one of the many things that we tested as part of the Open Beta and it was not necessarily reflective of the final retail game. The DICE team appreciates, and has heard, the feedback you’ve provided and is further optimizing online play.

Train2Game students will be aware that beta tests can be a hugely important part of game development, but as previously reported by the Train2Game blog, DICE believe players who complained about bugs didn’t understand the meaning of a beta test.

Train2Game students can get an in-depth look at the importance of beta testing as part of a huge Train2Game blog interview with Trion Worlds.

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts of DICE’s reaction to the Battlefield 3 beta? What are your thoughts about the changes? And are you looking forward to Battlefield 3?

Leave your comments here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

[Source: PlayStation Blog] 

Train2Game news: Battlefield 3 game design “grounded in authenticity”

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Train2Game students who recently took part in the Battlefield 3 beta, or indeed any Train2Game student will be interested in this; DICE’s Battlefield 3 producer Patrick Bach has been speaking to Industry Gamers about the goals of Battlefield 3, and it isn’t to be realistic, rather authentic.

“We are not trying to create a simulator. But the feeling that what happens in the game is plausible and looks real and authentic is important to us.” Bach told Industry Gamers.

He said that the game design of Battlefield 3 has been heavily researched in order to make the story as authentic as possible.

“We have a story tell and want to carry that story across in a unique style and tone grounded in authenticity. Researching authenticity is extremely important for us and it’s impossible to make this stuff up without risking our desired style and tone,” he said.

“I don’t see it as a race to be the most realistic shooter – realism, as opposed to grounded in authenticity, is not our end goal with Battlefield 3 and probably never will be. Having said that, with greater graphics capabilities comes a greater need to focus on visual details.” Said the DICE man.

However, Bach admitted that developed needed to build a brand new engine in order to achieve what they wanted to do, because nothing strong enough was available. He believes that it’ll give the entire FPS genre to evolve.

“When we set out to do Battlefield 3, we realized that no existing game engines would be able to handle what we wanted them to do. That’s why we built Frostbite 2, and that’s why I think the genre will take a leap forward.”

As seen earlier today on the Train2Game blog, that’s different to rival shooter Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3 which has just seen its predecessors engine tweaked.

Bach thinks that it’s an exciting time for FPS developers, with the potential for the genre to grow even further.

“On the arena as a whole, I think we are at a very exciting point in time. I think this year will see a huge growth in the total FPS market.”

He added that social devices will also change how people play games. Battlefield 3 has a ‘Battlelog’ service which Bach believes “will make a huge difference in how people perceive where the game starts and ends.”

Games, especially FPS titles with their deep persistence and team play are no longer just hard-coded discs. They are transforming into a service.” he added.

As reported by the Train2Game blog, Battlefield 3’s rival, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3, so features a social system, Call of Duty Elite, and publisher Activision also believe social will become a huge part of gaming in future.

Earlier this year, the Train2Game blog reported that EA believe Battlefield 3 will be superior to Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 3.

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts on Battlefield 3 being ‘authentic’ rather than ‘realistic’? Are you impressed by the Frostbite 2 engine? And could it ultimately topple Call of Duty?

Leave your comments here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

[Source: Industry Gamers]

Train2Game news: Gamers misunderstand meaning of ‘beta test’ say DICE

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Train2Game students – at least a few of them are – are likely to involved with the current Battlefield 3 beta, which a runs through to 10th October.

And while Train2Game students – especially the QA Testers – will understand that beta tests are an important part of game development, there filtering out bugs and tweaking gameplay, it seems gamers in general are less aware of this!

Some have criticised the bugs that have appeared while playing Battlefield, or the fact that’s only one map, but according DICE’s Patrick Liu, it’s because these people don’t get the reasons for an open beta.

“I think there’s been a misunderstanding of the term ‘beta test’!” the Battlefield 3 producer told The Guardian.

“We ran the alpha tests with a rush map and we wanted to have some sort of reference so we could compare results – so we needed to have more-or-less the same map.”

“But we do understand the concerns that we didn’t show a conquest map, but we have demoed Caspian Border, and we did run a conquest map as a limited PC-only test.

According to Liu, one of the main reasons for the Battlefield 3 beta test is to make sure the backend systems work when the game is release.

“He just wanted to know it wouldn’t crash and burn at launch” he said.

“It was horrible with Battlefield 1943 – it sold ten times the numbers we thought it would, and it was down for three or four days which is really bad. We don’t want to go through that again.”

As reported by the Train2Game blog, DICE have stated that positive feedback from the open beta is helping them tweak the multiplayer aspect of Battlefield 3.

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts on Liu’s comments? Do gamers misunderstand the meaning of a beta test? And have you been testing Battlefield 3?

Leave your comments here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

[Source: The Guardian]

Train2Game news: Battlefield 3 beta aiding game development

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Train2Game students will be aware of the importance of testing games during development, and the significance of this is already being displayed in the Battlefield 3 Open Beta.

According to the Battlefield blog, the feedback from players is providing useful information to developers DICE when it comes to improving the game.

“The amounts of people flocking to our Open Beta is fantastic! We are happy to see so many players enjoy this Open Beta, and giving us their valuable feedback on the experience on the Battlelog forums,” the blog post says.

Train2Game students can see the Battlefield 3 blog for a full rundown of the changes that have been made as a result of testing during the Open Beta, and DICE say they’ll be updating the blog with further tweaks they make as more people provide them with feedback about Battlefield 3.

The Battlefield 3 beta for Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and PC runs through to October 10th, and Train2Game students who wish to get involved can find out how to do so here on the Train2Game blog.

It could provide Train2Game students, especially those on the QA Tester course, with experience of properly testing a game in development.

Last week, the Train2Game blog reported that Bioware also feel that playtesting is an essential part of game development.

So Train2Game, are you involved with the Battlefield 3 beta? Have you spotted any bugs? How important do you think this Open Beta is to the development of the game?

Leave your comments here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.

[Source: Battlefield blog]

Medal of Honor “didn’t meet quality expectations” say EA

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An EA executive has revealed that Medal of Honor “didn’t meet quality expectations” of the publishing giant.  However, EA exec Patrick Soderlund also says that the Danger Close and DICE developed Medal of Honor is a better game than the reviews are suggesting.

When quizzed on the sales success of Medal of Honor during an interview with Eurogamer, Soderlund replied:

“I’m not going to comment on the sales because EA has an earnings report going out and we will unveil sales in that meeting,”

“What I can say is the game didn’t meet our quality expectations. In order to be successful in that space, we’re going to have to have a game that is really, really strong.

“Medal of Honor is to some extent judged harsher than it should be. The game is better than today’s reviews are indicating.”

Medal of Honor currently has an average review score of 75 on Metacritic, which isn’t a bad score at all. When asked by Eurogamer what score Medal of Honor should have got, Soderlund said:

“I’m not going to say a specific number. I’m proud of what the game is and proud of what the team did. I just think the market is obviously telling us they think the game is X. We need to convince the market we can make something they appreciate more, particularly to be able to compete.

We’re looking at that clearly. We’re taking that seriously. I’m not at all saying Medal of Honor is a failure. It is a successful reboot of that franchise. We’re going to be strong in the future.”

The newest Medal of Honor title has been quite successful, selling over 1.5 million copies worldwide, and spending a week at the top of the UK Chart. Medal of Honor currently sits sixth in the latest sales table. You can check out the launch trailer for Medal of Honor here.

Previously, EA has said that Medal of Honor could beat Activision’s Call of Duty as the number one shooter franchise, but with the hype surrounding Call of Duty: Black Ops upcoming release, it seems unlikely that EA will beat Activision this year.

So Train2Game, what are your thoughts on Patrick Soderlund’s comments about Medal of Honor? Should EA have released Medal of Honor if they weren’t convinced by the quality on release? And what do you think about the comments about reviews, are they what put you off buying Medal of Honor?

You can leave your thoughts about Medal of Honor and review scores here on the Train2Game blog, or on the Train2Game forum.