Battlefield 1 Story Won't Be One Singular Campaign

Postcards from the Front.

By Joe Skrebels

Battlefield 1's newly-revealed single player mode will take the form of an anthology of short stories, rather than the expected single character arc.

Announced on the Battlefield blog, DICE explained that the game will feature multiple "War Stories: personal stories focusing on different protagonists with unique backgrounds and skills."

We've seen many, or even all of those protagonists in yesterday's single-player trailer (above), including the young soldier, Danny Edwards assigned to a British tank crew in a section titled 'Through Mud and Blood'.

"Our protagonist has no experience of these modern war vehicles and needs to learn – and learn fast," reads the blog. "Our hero is also struggling with earning the trust of his fellow crew members, so there’s a social dynamic in the story, making the whole thing something personal.

"Danny Edwards, our driver character, is not an ace sniper. He’s not a crack pilot. He’s not a demo expert. He’s a former chauffeur – a volunteer new to the war. He can drive and he can fix things. That’s where we start."

DICE also explains that you'll encounter real-life historical figures like Lawrence of Arabia and the Red Baron in the course of the War Stories. One Story will have you playing an Arab rebel who works with Lawrence to take down the Ottoman Empire's armored train (which has been seen previously in the Battlefield beta).

The blog also says that the single player mode will embrace systemic gameplay, aiming to bring some of the improvisation and open nature of the series' large-scale multiplayer to the campaign.

DICE points to a section in 'Through Mud and Blood' where an enemy base is protected by field guns and a tank - you could destroy them to protect you, or kill their crews and use them for yourself.

The move to a more fractured storyline is, in essence, to help represent as many elements of the Great War as possible:

"There were so many different perspectives and characters in World War 1 and we wanted to cover as much ground as possible [...] We felt that to have one character hopping through those different settings wouldn’t be as immersive or totally respectful to the setting."

Battlefield 1 is due for release on October 21, but EA Access and Origin Access subscribers could be playing on their Xbox Ones and PCs as early as October 13.

Joe Skrebels is IGN's UK News Editor, and he hopes one of those War Stories is "Melancholy Postman With a Gammy Leg". Follow him on Twitter.

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