After the Twitter statement shared by DICE General Manager Oskar Gabrielson and his push for #Everyonesbattlefield, another veteran DICE developer spoke on the authenticity issue in Battlefield V raised by some fans.
Alan Kertz, currently Design Director at DICE on BFV and previously credited as a designer on every mainline Battlefield game since 2142, replied yesterday on Battlefield's Reddit channel and revealed to have pushed for BFV to be more inclusive.
I knew this was going to be a fight when I pushed for female soldiers in Battlefield. I have a daughter, and I don’t want to ever have to answer her question of “why can’t I make a character that looks like me” with “because you’re a girl.”
I fundamentally feel to my core this is the right way and I will find myself on the right side of history.
And I think many people will play the game despite their reservations. And maybe learn something about either history or themselves. That is part of the making games art.
I can’t speak for that timing, I know personally that I wasn’t in a position of enough influence to make it happen. I also know a lot in society has changed and for me personally I grew up a bit and looked at the world with new eyes. From within the industry we’ve seen so much male domination, for whatever reasons, and I work for a studio and a company that recognizes the value of diversity in what we do as game makers. That’s been a big deal for me also.
Sometimes just enough things come together to make it happen. It felt like an inevitability. The excuses were running out and the support was there... so it happens now.
In a subsequent Reddit post, Kertz went on to highlight that there are other great first-person shooter games whose entire premise is focused on being authentic to World War 2, while Battlefield always took a more liberal approach.
I think there are some great authentic WW2 experiences out there, from Day of Defeat to Post Scriptum each offers its own flavor. Let’s not forget the first Battlefield WW2 game had a Jetpack DLC, and the Russians used an MP18/Japanese SMG... We want to create the most immersive experience we can create, and that pushes us towards physical and some authentic elements. We also want it to be engaging in the long term and person. That’s always a balancing act. I am sure we hit that mark, not for everyone, but we will hit the mark.
Finally, he also said a few words regarding a fellow DICE employee who overreacted when prompted by fans on Twitter and then apologized.
I know at least one of them personally. I know he had a poor moment. It’s hard to be human without resistance and harder still to be in the face of adversity. You tend to throw up defensive walls and sometimes it feels like the best defense is a good offense. He apologized. I know that to be genuine, and I hope that the community can give him a new chance.
Our first look at BFV's multiplayer gameplay will be during the EA Play conference, set for June 9th at 11 AM Pacific Time.
About the author: With over two decades of experience in gaming journalism, Alessio Palumbo has led the gaming vertical at Wccftech since August 2015. He started working at a young age for Italian websites like Everyeye.it, Gamestar.it, Nextgame.it, and Multiplayer.it before kickstarting the indie English-language publication Worlds Factory as its founder and Editor in Chief. In the last decade, he has coordinated the overall output of Wccftech's gaming section, managed PR relations, assigned reviews, produced daily news coverage, edited gaming content as needed, and delivered game reviews. Arguably, his trademark content is the long series of exclusive developer interviews that have been cited by Wikipedia and by the biggest news media and gaming publications. His passion for technology also makes him knowledgeable when it comes to gaming hardware and tech. His favorite genres include RPGs, MMORPGs, and action/adventure games.
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