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Battlefield 2: Special Forces – Developer Interview By: Dan Friedman 1: Before we begin, can you introduce yourself and tell us what you do? My name is Mike Doran and I’m an associate producer on the Battlefield franchise. I’ve worked on every Battlefield game to date—from Battlefield 1942, its expansions to Battlefield Vietnam, and the most recently released Battlefield 2. 2: What is new in BF2: Special Forces? Battlefield 2: Special Forces brings new maps, weapons, vehicles, and armies to the table. Our most notable new additions are the zip line, grappling hook and nighttime levels. 3: Tell us about the new maps. How many will there be and what will they feature? Battlefield 2: Special Forces features eight new maps—five of them are daytime levels and three of them are nighttime levels. All of the maps have been designed from the ground up to make use of the grappling hook and zip line. At the same time, the new levels stay true to the Battlefield core franchise values—including the ability to pilot vehicles in wide-open areas. 4: Tell us about the night vision. The night vision in Battlefield 2: Special Forces has been implemented with careful attention paid to making night vision fit in the rock-paper-scissors philosophy that is such an important part of Battlefield. Any of the kits in the game come with night vision (on the three nighttime levels). You can toggle the night vision either on or off with your ‘7’ key, and night vision has a battery that depletes over time. The battery automatically recharges whenever night vision is not in use. As I said before, Battlefield 2: Special Forces features three nighttime levels. Night levels in Special Forces are not implemented like they were in previous Battlefield games. In the older Battlefield games that had ‘night’ levels, they were actually just extremely dark daytime levels. For Battlefield 2: Special Forces, we’ve built true nighttime levels—there are plenty of dark spots that can be used as cover, as well as ambient pools of light that turn having your night vision turned on into a disadvantage. Firing your weapon from a dark area will also light up the area and call attention to your hiding place. 6: What new vehicles and weapons can we expect in Special Forces? Battlefield 2: Special Forces features a variety of new vehicles. There are new ground vehicles (ATVs, the BMP3 APC), new air vehicles (The Hind and the Apache) and even a jet ski that’s more agile than the boat from Battlefield 2. There are also a variety of new weapons that are spread across the kits used by the six new armies. 7: Can you elaborate on the new armed forces? Battlefield 2: Special Forces features six new armies, including the SAS, Insurgents, Spetsnaz, SEALs, Rebels, and MEC Special Forces. 8: Will there be graphical improvements and higher PC requirements? Battlefield 2: Special Forces has the same PC requirements as Battlefield 2. There are a number of new visual effects to support the nighttime levels and night vision. In addition to that, Battlefield 2: Special Forces features flashbangs and teargas that cause their own visual effects when a player is exposed to them. 9: When is the game due for release? The game will be on store shelves 11/22/05 in North America. As an alternative, you can also purchase Battlefield 2: Special Forces via the recently launched EA downloader, at the following URL: downloader.ea.com 10: How much will the expansion pack cost? The expansion pack will retail for $29.99USD. 11: Thank you for your time, Mike, is there anything else you would like to share with us? We can’t wait to see people playing Special Forces online—see you on the Battlefield!
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