Battlefield Heroes
EA today announced Battlefield Heroes, a new free-to download and play game. It's essentially Battlefield, only now it has a new art style -- a pretty significant departure from the realistic look of other Battlefield titles.
Other changes include a more casual friendly design. Most importantly, revenue for the game will be generated from ads and micro-transactions. One can customize their character with new outfits or weapons. Senior Producer Ben Cousins even states that new features and content will be added over time:
"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." Thanks Shacknews.
I think the game is a fantastic idea. For starters, it's a pretty bold and risky move to make a game featuring a non-realistic visual style. It's hard to pull off and it's something the majority of game developers aren't doing. I'm pretty sure I've read the Valve guys say that Team Fortress 2's brilliant art style was a fairly large risk that really paid off. I think it's just a good, smart change for EA. Things need to be shaken up from time to time.
I also think the casual friendly focus is a great one. Nintendo has proven time and time again that more casual friendly games can lead to great design innovations and are frankly great for business. My parents, great uncle and girlfriend all love the Wii. They have zero interest in my Xbox 360. That's important.
I also love that the game is free. Sure, ads can be annoying, but we have no idea how they will be shown. On the website you get the game from? No problem. In game every time I die? Less awesome. I also love Downloadable Content when it's done correctly. I've purchased at least 20 songs for Rock Band already. I've purchased a few picture packs to customize my Xbox Live Avatar. The ability to add new storylines, quests and game features for $1.89 a pop in Oblivion were also very appealing. I honestly think that the DICE guys can provide great content for a reasonable price. I always found the Battlefield booster packs worth my money, so I'm hoping that trend continues.
Most of all, it's great that EA is trying a new business model. Games sell at $60, and will continue to do so. But I think it's very wise to pursue other revenue types. It's good to remove some of the barriers to entry and try to introduce others to games.
It all saddens me to see the internet just rip the idea apart though, simply because it's EA. Updated: Seems Kotaku isn't so negative.
(posted by grant at 1/21/2008)
