Fans of the Battlefield gaming franchise are no doubt looking forward to the release of Battlefield Hardline on March 17, 2015. For those that want to get in early, beta testing will soon be available, possibly at the beginning of February.
According to VG 24/7, Viscaral Games, who developed Battlefield Hardline in collaboration with EA Digital Illusions CE, has announced that the Battlefield Hardline beta will be open to everyone, and available on all platforms. By all platforms, it means the PS4, Xbox One, PS3, Xbox 360, as well as the PC.
Another report from VG 24/7 has revealed that the date for Battlefield Hardline beta will be February 3rd. The source is an email sent by Ronku, an EA sponsorship program that pays YouTube subscribers for providing game coverage of EA games through various assignments. The email to various YouTube subscribers says that there will be both a YouTube and Twitch assignment for this beta launch.
We do not have any confirmation yet on whether or not the email by Ronku is accurate, but IGN reported a blog post from the game's executive producer, Steve Papoutsis. He has said that there is not a cap on the max progression level, which means that players can go as long as they can. There is a lot of encouragement for beta testers to try out all kinds of classes, as well as every kind of weapon. Papoutsis wants players to "play this beta to death" and to "help us take a look at ways we can ensure we deliver the most stable launch you deserve". This may have been an allusion to Battlefield 4, which had a little bit of trouble upon its initial release.
The participants can start off in two modes: Conquest and Hotwire. Conquest is a 64-player cops and criminals mode that is similar to the same mode contained in Battlefield. Hotwire is combined warfare with "all-out vehicular speed".
Those that are unfamiliar with the Battlefield franchise should know that Battlefield Hardline differs from the previous Battlefield incarnations. The series has been made famous because it focuses on large maps, teamwork, and vehicle warfare, and it focused on a lot of combat situations such as the time of war, with a lot of military involvement. The first in the series was Battlefield 1942, and the series has had a lot of gameplay dealing with World War II scenarios. Battlefield 4 moved the military action into a future world of 2020, with a multiplayer mode of 3 playable factions: China, Russia, and the United States.
Battlefield Hardline focuses on something different: the war on crime. There are lots of fights on the streets of Miami and L.A., and the player can be a criminal, or a cop taking down criminals.
As stated before, Battlefield Hardline will be released on March 17, 2015. It will be rated M and is available for pre-order on the official website.
