Battlefield Interview with Gordon Van Dyke
Posted: 08 Dec 2008, 11:05
Total Battlefield recently had the chance to speak with Gordon Van Dyke, Associate Producer at DICE, to ask him some questions our members had submitted regarding Battlefield: Bad Company. Several of these questions were things the DICE team had not thought of so, to our members, feel proud when you start playing Karkand on the PS3 or 360.
Total Battlefield: Could we see new Downloadable Content such as weapons, new games modes, possibly a new faction in the upcoming patch?
Gordon Van Dyke: No. What we want to do, we just wanted to focus on getting our update to fix some of the major issues out there, one of them being the dog tag lag. It’s an issue that a few have had while collecting dog tags, including myself. And what we want to do is kind of also include with that update some content and we wanted to focus improving the game, to have some really nice rounds with Goldrush.
TBF: Does DICE have any plans for adding a ‘Mute’ function and clan support?
GVD: That’s actually a functionality that would have to be added into the PS3; that’s actually not controlled by us.
TBF: Battlefield was traditionally a PC franchise and a lot of BF Fans really feel left out. Well we be seeing a PC version of Bad Company?
GVD: There’s no plans for Bad Company to go onto PC. For the avid fans they might’ve caught in July I think it was, our Executive Producer Ben Cousins mentioned that there were other projects in the works and that we haven’t forgot about the hardcore PC group. That’s about all I can say.
[img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/2_th ... s_01_1.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/2_th ... n_01_1.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/2_th ... n_02_1.jpg[/img]
TBF: I know it might be hard for you to comment, but some members were wondering if Bad Company was being used as a test bed for BF3.
GVD: No, Bad Company is not being used as a test bed for anything. And, there is no BF3, that’s just a rumor. But it’s not a test bed for anything. It was more of picking at the next level for the console area. DICE is a very large studio so when there is one project in the works it doesn’t mean that everything shuts down for the rest of the company. There are different teams working on different projects (Including Heroes, Mirror’s Edge, and so on).
TBF: What was the reason for the lack of clan support in Bad Company?
GVD: There was just a decision that was made by the team making the game at that time. It wasn’t something that they wanted to have. Now, in hindsight I think they would have liked to have added it. So I know that in any future projects that come, that is not something that will likely happen.
[img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/2_th ... d_01_1.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/2_th ... d_02_1.jpg[/img]
TBF: Is there a plan to add clan support in the future?
GVD: We’ve been looking at it. Though it’s technically challenging to add such a functionality on a console game. We are looking at trying to see how we could/ if we can.
TBF: Is there a possibility of adding keyboard support to Bad Company (Similar to UT3)?
GVD: You know, that’s a good question. It hasn’t really come up so I couldn’t really answer that but it’s definitely something I’ll take note of.
TBF: Are there any talks of bringing 1942 to XBLA?
GVD: That hasn’t been discussed either. I’ll take note of it.
TBF: Could you give us some info on the new maps?
GVD: I’ll give you a quick breakdown.
The maps are Par For The Course, which will have a strong vehicle focus. With tanks and helicopters and of course the golf carts, which are actually a lot of fun. Outrunning a tank and actually dodging them and knowing that the guy knows that he had that one hit and he was going to get you.
There’s Acta Non Verba. Acta Non Verba is only infantry, there’s not a single vehicle. And it’s some of the most intense infantry fighting that I’ve experienced in Bad Company.
Ghost Town also has infantry focus but it kind of draws on some of the cool things about Karkand. We threw in a tank for each team. You fight over the city and you have the two bridges and you’ve got the dried out riverbed in between. You get some really really insanely close battles.
And the last one is Crossing Over which is very very strong and quite wide open. You will have a total of three helicopters that are accessible on that level, along with tanks jeeps, etc.
[img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/2_th ... e_01_1.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/2_th ... d_03_1.jpg[/img]
TBF: That brings up another question we have. Would it be possibly to see a port of the more popular BF2 maps such as Strike at Karkand or Sharqi Peninsula?
GVD: That’s something that I have heard some of the guys discussing. Then you get into the technical aspects of bringing those vehicles in. So you never know what the future can bring, there’s so many things that we can do. I wouldn’t rule it out as a possibility.
TBF: As you were saying, many of our members are hardcore PC gamers who are all just curious about the rumored BF3 but I can understand why you can’t say anything.
GVD: I came from playing Battlefield on the PC but now that’s not my area. I think that people should just be patient. Like it’s been mentioned by several of the senior guys over at DICE is that we haven’t forgot the hardcore PC gamer. So, don’t worry.
To the hardcore guys - Patience. That’s all I can say.
Total Battlefield would like to thank Gordon Van Dyke for taking the time to answer our questions. Stay tuned for more!
Source: Total Battlefield Website
Total Battlefield: Could we see new Downloadable Content such as weapons, new games modes, possibly a new faction in the upcoming patch?
Gordon Van Dyke: No. What we want to do, we just wanted to focus on getting our update to fix some of the major issues out there, one of them being the dog tag lag. It’s an issue that a few have had while collecting dog tags, including myself. And what we want to do is kind of also include with that update some content and we wanted to focus improving the game, to have some really nice rounds with Goldrush.
TBF: Does DICE have any plans for adding a ‘Mute’ function and clan support?
GVD: That’s actually a functionality that would have to be added into the PS3; that’s actually not controlled by us.
TBF: Battlefield was traditionally a PC franchise and a lot of BF Fans really feel left out. Well we be seeing a PC version of Bad Company?
GVD: There’s no plans for Bad Company to go onto PC. For the avid fans they might’ve caught in July I think it was, our Executive Producer Ben Cousins mentioned that there were other projects in the works and that we haven’t forgot about the hardcore PC group. That’s about all I can say.
[img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/2_th ... s_01_1.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/2_th ... n_01_1.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/2_th ... n_02_1.jpg[/img]
TBF: I know it might be hard for you to comment, but some members were wondering if Bad Company was being used as a test bed for BF3.
GVD: No, Bad Company is not being used as a test bed for anything. And, there is no BF3, that’s just a rumor. But it’s not a test bed for anything. It was more of picking at the next level for the console area. DICE is a very large studio so when there is one project in the works it doesn’t mean that everything shuts down for the rest of the company. There are different teams working on different projects (Including Heroes, Mirror’s Edge, and so on).
TBF: What was the reason for the lack of clan support in Bad Company?
GVD: There was just a decision that was made by the team making the game at that time. It wasn’t something that they wanted to have. Now, in hindsight I think they would have liked to have added it. So I know that in any future projects that come, that is not something that will likely happen.
[img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/2_th ... d_01_1.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/2_th ... d_02_1.jpg[/img]
TBF: Is there a plan to add clan support in the future?
GVD: We’ve been looking at it. Though it’s technically challenging to add such a functionality on a console game. We are looking at trying to see how we could/ if we can.
TBF: Is there a possibility of adding keyboard support to Bad Company (Similar to UT3)?
GVD: You know, that’s a good question. It hasn’t really come up so I couldn’t really answer that but it’s definitely something I’ll take note of.
TBF: Are there any talks of bringing 1942 to XBLA?
GVD: That hasn’t been discussed either. I’ll take note of it.
TBF: Could you give us some info on the new maps?
GVD: I’ll give you a quick breakdown.
The maps are Par For The Course, which will have a strong vehicle focus. With tanks and helicopters and of course the golf carts, which are actually a lot of fun. Outrunning a tank and actually dodging them and knowing that the guy knows that he had that one hit and he was going to get you.
There’s Acta Non Verba. Acta Non Verba is only infantry, there’s not a single vehicle. And it’s some of the most intense infantry fighting that I’ve experienced in Bad Company.
Ghost Town also has infantry focus but it kind of draws on some of the cool things about Karkand. We threw in a tank for each team. You fight over the city and you have the two bridges and you’ve got the dried out riverbed in between. You get some really really insanely close battles.
And the last one is Crossing Over which is very very strong and quite wide open. You will have a total of three helicopters that are accessible on that level, along with tanks jeeps, etc.
[img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/2_th ... e_01_1.jpg[/img] [img]http://www.clusterwars.net/userpix/2_th ... d_03_1.jpg[/img]
TBF: That brings up another question we have. Would it be possibly to see a port of the more popular BF2 maps such as Strike at Karkand or Sharqi Peninsula?
GVD: That’s something that I have heard some of the guys discussing. Then you get into the technical aspects of bringing those vehicles in. So you never know what the future can bring, there’s so many things that we can do. I wouldn’t rule it out as a possibility.
TBF: As you were saying, many of our members are hardcore PC gamers who are all just curious about the rumored BF3 but I can understand why you can’t say anything.
GVD: I came from playing Battlefield on the PC but now that’s not my area. I think that people should just be patient. Like it’s been mentioned by several of the senior guys over at DICE is that we haven’t forgot the hardcore PC gamer. So, don’t worry.
To the hardcore guys - Patience. That’s all I can say.
Total Battlefield would like to thank Gordon Van Dyke for taking the time to answer our questions. Stay tuned for more!
Source: Total Battlefield Website
