After the multiple waves of rumors, EA has finally confirmed where and when Battlefield 5 is taking place. It will take place during World War II and come out October 19th on PC, PS4, and Xbox One. EA Access subscribers will be able to play the game on October 11th. Players who pre-order will get access to the eventual beta.
DICE confirmed at the reveal event that they are showing people a “never before seen portrayal of World War II” in their “most immersive Battlefield ever.” It will have a few more multiplayer modes like Tides of War and Grand Operations as well as the return of cooperative play. Co-op will support four players and will be a tense experience. A battle royale mode was not announced or shown.
The single-player campaign will continue the War Stories trend that Battlefield 1 started. They showed concept art from a Norwegian resistance soldier and her journey to combat Nazi occupation. DICE said they wanted to set context and show the player some perspective of the war through this campaign. None of the other campaign stories were shown during the reveal event.
There will also be no premium pass where players can pay for maps. DICE said they wanted to listen to the players and how adamant they were in not wanting a paid premium pass. This is most likely a response to Star Wars: Battlefront 2‘s daunting microtransactions that pervaded the game and drove players away. However, they didn’t say how often the maps would come out.
Players will be able to customize their soldier, weapon, and vehicle in multiplayer. DICE emphasized multiple times during (and after) the presentation how important customization was in Battlefield 5. They said they wanted players to inject a soul into their avatar.
The trailer shows that players can shoulder barge through doors move and shoot while crawling backwards. It also showcases the soldier customization in action, as evidence by the woman’s hook-like hand.