New Battlefield: Heroes trailer available

A new trailer from Battlefield: Heroes has been released by EA, showcasing more details and ingame footage from this free-to-play, advertising-supported addition to the Battlefield franchise. Initial impressions are that the game looks very bright and vibrant, with the influence of Team Fortress 2 clearly visible in the non-realistic style graphics. New information in the trailer includes details of an online territorial meta-game, that will see players fighting over a virtual continent, attempting to wrest control from the opposition.

We'll bring you more details from this interesting title as they surface, but for now you can check out the new trailer below (thanks IGN).

Battlefield Heroes details emerge

Sneaking up on the control point this afternoon is this post on the official Battlefield Heroes blog, from Producer Ben Cousins. For those not paying attention, Battlefield Heroes is a new entry in the popular Battlefield franchise, using an upgraded Battlefield 2142 engine, with a twist. The game will be free, instead being financed by advertisements and a series of microtransactions during gameplay- ie. you would have to pay real money to upgrade your weapons etc. In the post, details about the high-level goals of the game are revealed:

1. We wanted to return to the crazy unrealistic feel of Battlefield 1942 and Codename Eagle, games which we had both been fans of.
2. We wanted to make sure that players could ‘get to the fun’ easier this time - faster, cheaper and easier.
3. We were committed to ensuring that the gameplay would still feel like a legitimate part of the Battlefield franchise, with the core elements and feel preserved.

Head over to the official site to check out the rest of the details!

EA announces Facebreaker - it's boxing, with added Team Fortress 2 influence!

Hot off the press at 1Up this afternoon is an announcement by EA of a new boxing game called Facebreaker. Featuring Team Fortress 2 style cartoon shading, Facebreaker promises to be a more lighthearted and arcade-style boxing game than previous efforts from EA (Fight Night). Promising features such as 'real time facial deformation', we can't wait to see more. According to 1Up, more details can be expected in the March 08 issue of EGM. Head over there for the rest of the announcement.

First Valve released Team Fortress 2, then EA announced that Fifa Street 3 would have cartoon-style graphics, then Battlefield Heroes was announced to contain exaggerated characters with non-photorealistic rendering. Now comes Facebreaker. You have to wonder, are EA going to 'toonise' all of their franchises?