By Martynas Klimas @ Wargamer
Call of Duty 2 released so long ago, the series has left WW2, gone ‘Black Ops’, come back to WW, and now is leaving it again with a reboot of Modern Warfare. However, it still remains possibly the best single-player FPS set within that particular conflict. And for many, it’s still the greatest Call of Duty multiplayer experience. With that in mind, where does the recently released Battalion 1944 stand?
Square Enix Collective is pleased to announce that Battalion 1944 has launched alongside a major new update Battalion 1944: Eastern Front and will feature integration with FACEIT, the largest global online competitive platform.
Big things are happening in Battalion 1944 as Bulkhead Interactive are also releasing an exciting update that introduces the highly anticipated Russian faction.
Other new features included in this update are:
With currently more than 12 million users and over 100,000 concurrent players, the FACEIT platform aims to empower and grow the competitive ecosystem of the game titles it integrates with. The integration between FACEIT and Battalion goes deeper than ever before: thanks to in-game widgets and an in-game overlay, players will be able to access the main FACEIT features, including competitive matchmaking, rankings and leaderboards, without leaving the game. For those players who prefer the traditional FACEIT experience, Battalion will be available through the FACEIT client and website at www.faceit.com/en.
“We are excited to work with Bulkhead Interactive to provide the Battalion 1944 community with an engaging and rewarding competitive experience at launch. For the first time we will manage the entire competitive life-cycle of the game which will be accessible within the game client as well as the FACEIT platform, ensuring players have the most seamless experience to play competitively. This will be the first integration of this kind with many more to come and I can’t think of a better partner to be the first developer to take full advantage of the series of developer tools that we have built through the years,” said Niccolo Maisto, CEO & Co-Founder of FACEIT.
Joe Brammer, CEO of Bulkhead Interactive, is eager to let fans get hands-on with the full launch of Battalion. “I’m so excited. Early Access isn’t easy but the feedback from the community has been imperative to this massive overhaul of the game. I love that we took a step back and pivoted to target people’s core issues such as Time To Kill and wanting the game to be more like the older classic titles. We’ve kept sprint in the game, but there are so many new features that will feel familiar to classic FPS players.”
Brammer also goes on to talk about how the studio has grown and learnt a lot during their early access period. “We had a lot to improve on but I think it shows in the full release of Battalion 1944. Personally, I’ve learned a lot about being accountable to players and communicating issues from the players across all social media to the developers who are toiling away on the game. I think that link between the players and devs is now more important than ever in 2019.”
Watch the Battalion 1944: Eastern Front Release Trailer HERE.
Battalion 1944 is available out of Early Access on Steam for £15.99/$19.99/€19.99.
New Game Mode, Graphics Overhaul, and BattleRank System are Go!
Old recruits, new recruits, stand to attention! Players of Bulkhead Interactive’s ambitious old-school WW2 shooter Battalion 1944 are about to feel the force of a fairly hefty ammo drop, opening up a new game mode, a slick new graphics overhaul, and a brand new free progression system called BattleRank, amongst scores of other major updates.
Rolling out on 12th July 2018, this package of updates is the latest in a line of tweaks and improvements being worked on by the Bulkhead Interactive team as they continue to manage the game’s run through Early Access – a process bolstered by the team’s decision to solicit feedback from the Battalion 1944 community, helping to improve the game’s stability by testing the latest version.
Leading the line is a brand new competitive game mode Wartide 2.0, a new matchmaking system, a complete visual overhaul (including brand new character models, an impressive graphics revamp, and a total rework of character movement), a new map, a new sound engine, and a massive rebalancing of the game’s weapons.
This new update will also see the launch of BattleRank, which is designed to make Battalion 1944 an even more engaging and rewarding prospect. Split into seasons of roughly three months each, BattleRank will unlock new exclusive rewards and weapon skins that can only be acquired during that period. Continued play will enable gamers to build up their experience points (XP) in order to unlock new levels of rewards. Unlike ‘battlepass systems’ in other games, however, BattleRank will be free.
“This is the biggest round of updates we’ve released for Battalion 1944 to date, and is the result of our mission to make the game as absorbing and captivating as it can possibly be,” says Joe Brammer – Studio Lead at Bulkhead Interactive. “We’ve been listening to our players and taking their feedback into consideration as we look to build the game in a way that both meets their expectations and offers a few surprises for them along the way, too.”
The update follows on from Square Enix Collective® and Bulkhead Interactive’s previous unveiling of a four day long, $50,000 tournament, set to occur September 27-30 of this year. The best Battalion 1944 players will head to the Esports Game Area to compete amongst open qualifiers victors and an invited team for an opportunity to win prizes from a total prize pool of $50,000.
Click here for the full changelog and view the new Major Update 2 trailer.
Battalion 1944 is currently available on Steam via Early Access for $14.99/€14.99/£11.39.
Having made a big splash entering Early Access on Steam® earlier this year, Square Enix Collective® and Bulkhead Interactive™ are excited to announce that Battalion 1944 players will be treated to a huge, comprehensive update ahead of a four day long $50,000 tournament later this year – all as part of the ongoing commitment to support and update the game throughout its Early Access period.
The update is set to roll out on June 12, 2018, which includes a complete overhaul of the game’s main competitive mode (better known as Wartide 2.0), a new map, Savoia, set on the streets of Italy, and a new ‘BattleRank Season’ where gaining XP unlocks new skins – much like ‘battlepass’ systems in other games but, in this case, completely free.
All this comes alongside significant matchmaking improvements, new character models, a new sound system, a reworking and rebalancing of some of the game’s guns, and an extensive visual overhaul and performance upgrade, amongst various other updates and new additions.
With Battalion 1944 fully tooled up with a brand new arsenal of toys and tricks, regular players will be able to spend the following few months mastering the fresh gameplay ahead of the first official Battalion 1944 Blitzkrieg Major Tournament, heading for the Esports Game Area between September 27-30, 2018. The event will feature both open qualifiers and invited team, with a total prize pool of $50,000.
“If launching Battalion 1944 has taught us anything, it’s that a game where anticipation is high offers a steep and very public learning curve – both for the studio as a whole, and myself personally,” says Joe Brammer – Studio Lead at Bulkhead Interactive. “Listening to the community has been our most powerful tool and a lot of what’s in this update is based on suggestions – from improving the graphics to making certain weapons more powerful. We’ve listened, and considered everything to try and push play forward in the way players want.”
It’s as a result of a lot of this feedback, Brammer claims, that Bulkhead decided to both modify and add to Battalion 1944’s existing roadmap for the future, building on the studio’s bold plans.
“Fans of the studio know I don’t tend to hold back, so I’d like to offer a genuine thanks to players who have helped to improve Battalion 1944 these last few months. We’ve been listening, and we’ve been working hard.”
The huge update this June will include:
Battalion 1944 is currently available on Steam on Early Access for $14.99/€14.99/£11.39. You can watch the latest teaser trailer for the update HERE.
Square Enix Collective is delighted to announce that Battalion 1944, the old-school WW2 FPS from Derby based studio Bulkhead Interactive, has entered Early Access on Steam.
The shooter – which is designed to replicate the feel of the best FPS games from the 1990s – albeit with all the extra grunt and gloss of a modern day game – recently enjoyed a successful beta weekend as a sign off before its Early Access debut. Now, however, is when things ramp up.
“It’s no exaggeration that Battalion 1944 is the game I’ve always wanted to make,” says Joe Brammer – Studio Lead at Bulkhead Interactive. “We’ve enjoyed success at Bulkhead before, but we’re all gamers who grew up playing the best FPS games, so the idea of making one that stripped things back to the competitive nature of the shooters of old has been a dream come true. “What’s even better is seeing the reaction of the gamers who have been able to play it so far – it seems they’re as excited as we are.”
Bulkhead Interactive previously worked on The Turing Test back in 2016, a celebrated puzzler also published by Square Enix Collective.
“For us, Battalion 1944 represents a step into an entirely new genre,” offers Phil Elliott, Director of Indie Publishing at Square Enix Limited. “Square Enix Collective was set up with the intention of releasing indie games from a wide range of studios working on a diverse line up of titles, and Battalion 1944 and its focus on an old school FPS ethic is something we’ve never done before. We’re sure it’s going to be a major asset in our line-up for years to come.”
Battalion 1944 will retail on Early Access for £11.99/€14.99/$14.99. Those who backed Battalion 1944 back when it was on Kickstarter will get exclusive skins and multiple cosmetic and vanity focused loot crates.
Battalion 1944 is available on Early Access today.
More game info available at the Battalion 1944 website.
Worldwide reveal trailer and beta weekend marks rollout
Having set out on a mission to reignite the spirit of the old-school shooter, Bulkhead Interactive and Square Enix Collective are both proud and excited to announce Battalion 1944 is heading for Early Access on Thursday 1st February.
Derby-based studio Bulkhead Interactive, which previously developed The Turing Test, has created an experience designed to both capture and build upon the close combat mastered by FPS games in the early 90s. With the genre having since shifted direction, Bulkhead took to Kickstarter to bring together a community of gamers eager to jump back into the old-school multiplayer arena.
Now Battalion 1944 is ready to entertain its loyal following, with the studio coupling this announcement with the launch of a brand new worldwide reveal trailer, both setting the scene for the WW2 inspired action ahead and featuring actual gameplay from the latest build.
“It feels good to get Battalion 1944 into the hands of gamers after working on it so hard,” says Joe Brammer – Studio Lead at Bulkhead Interactive. “We’ve been testing the game behind closed doors with our Kickstarter backers. It’s now time for us to extend our testing to Early Access to help what I believe can one of the best competitive FPS games ever.”
Ahead of this, Bulkhead Interactive will also be running an exclusive beta of Battalion 1944. Kicking off from Friday January 19th through to Sunday January 21st. For a chance to take part, head on over to beta.battaliongame.com. Any Kickstarter or Humble Bundle backers will automatically gain access to the beta, with streaming and content creation using the beta allowed.
“We’re going to be using the beta to run domination on the Manorhouse V1 map, as well as showing off our new competitive mode ‘Wartide’ on the map Liberation,” continues Brammer. “It’s one last chance for us to test out our wares with FPS players before we make the leap to Early Access.”
What players won’t fail to notice during the beta is the combination of tightly crafted multiplayer maps and perfectly honed weapons designed for well-balanced encounters with an aesthetic that taps into an authentic WW2 feel.
“Getting to grips with the intense nature of the Second World War is something that’s been key to our process,” offers Howard Philpott – Creative Producer at Bulkhead Interactive. “That’s something I also think comes across in this new reveal trailer – the action in a Battalion 1944 encounter is as feverish as it is credible. We’ve looked to bed the play down in maps that are both competitive and authentic, for which our trips to Normandy proved immensely useful”.
The Early Access version of Battalion 1944 will come with six modes, to be announced later down the line.
Last month Bulkhead Interactive and Square Enix Collective revealed Battalion 1944 will retail for £11.99/€14.99/$14.99. As previously noted, that’s actually less than the bottom tier during the game’s Kickstarter campaign. As a result, those who backed Battalion 1944 when it was being crowdfunded will gain access to unique backers only skins, multiple cosmetic and vanity focused loot crates.
Battalion 1944 will hit Early Access on Thursday 1st February. You can watch the worldwide Battalion 1944 Early Access Trailer HERE.
More game info available at the Battalion 1944 website.
With the scars of warfare still littered all over its landscape, there are few exercises more worthwhile for a developer working on a game anchored around the defining battles of World War II than a trip to Normandy.
Throughout the development of Battalion 1944, the team behind it – the talented folk at Derby-based studio Bulkhead Interactive, who previously developed The Turing Test – have visited the north of France for inspiration. Indeed, their latest venture across the English Channel forms the basis of a brand new behind-the-scenes video that details both the development process, and exactly what the studio hopes to achieve come launch.
“Throughout development it’s been so important for us to study every element of World War II,” details Howard Philpott – Creative Producer at Bulkhead Interactive. “The main thing for us is to really understand the brutality and the visceral nature of the Second World War. We’ve been working so damn hard just to make sure we can capture the intensity of these weapons, and making that translate to a mouse and keyboard. It’s been a challenge, but I feel like we’ve really nailed it.”
The video sees the team take a look back at the personal impact working on Battalion 1944 has had on their lives, with Joe Brammer – Executive Producer and Director at Bulkhead Interactive – opening up about the positive influence the game has had on him during some difficult times in his personal life since development began.
“With Battalion 1944, I’ve found a place where I can focus on something I really love doing,” says Brammer. “Sitting down, reading the forum, and seeing the Battalion 1944 community coming together has been quite something. With the game now close to coming out, there are only good things on the horizon.”
This, however, is just the beginning. As revealed by Brammer in the video, Tuesday 9th January will see Bulkhead publish the game’s worldwide reveal trailer, building up to Battalion 1944’s release not long afterwards.
Bulkhead Interactive and Square Enix Collective can also reveal that Battalion 1944 will retail for £11.99/€14.99/$14.99. Keen-eyed observers will notice that’s actually less than the bottom tier during the game’s Kickstarter campaign. As a result, those who backed Battalion 1944 when it was just a spark in Brammer’s synapses, will be rewarded with unique-to-backers only skins and multiple cosmetic and vanity-focused loot crates.
“The market has changed so much since we first started work on Battalion 1944, and as players we felt like we wanted to see a fairer approach to pricing in-development video games,” adds Brammer. “In an effort to have a better relationship with our community, Battalion 1944’s run in Early Access will see it priced as a game that’s still in development, and one that requires a growing community to help design and refine it. We also really want to reward the existing community who have been behind us since the beginning, so with this approach we want to give something back to the game’s first loyal supporters.”
Bulkhead’s next big reveal is set for January 9th for the worldwide reveal of Battalion 1944’s latest gameplay trailer.
More game info available at the Battalion 1944 website.
Square Enix Collective®, the platform that brings diverse and quality indie titles to market, has inked a deal with Derby-based Bulkhead Interactive™ to exclusively publish ‘old-school’ multiplayer WW2 shooter Battalion 1944 on PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
This time last year Battalion 1944 smashed its crowdfunding campaign with a promise to recapture the core action of classic multiplayer FPS game and propel WW2 into the next generation. Having grown up playing the sensational WW2 shooters from the turn of the century, the designers at Bulkhead Interactive have utilized the most up-to-date industry technology to create a visceral and heart-thumping multiplayer experience featuring raw, skill-based infantry combat across tight, focused, and competitive maps.
After the huge success of last year’s The Turing Test™, Bulkhead Interactive chose once again to partner with Square Enix Collective for their latest title. Fans are the heart of multiplayer games and by choosing to work with Square Enix Collective, Bulkhead Interactive knows the task of expanding and nurturing Battalion 1944’s community is in very experienced hands.
To announce their partnership, the team at Bulkhead Interactive released this video explaining why Square Enix Collective is the ideal publisher for Battalion 1944.
Fight in real world locations such as the streets of Carentan, the forests of Bastogne and many more in our spiritual successor to the great multiplayer shooters of the past. Precise aim with your Kar98, covering fire with your M1 Garand and quick thinking with your Thompson are key to your success, all packaged into a competitive multiplayer environment. In short, Battalion 1944 is an infantry based first person shooter with an emphasis on raw skill. No grinding, no ‘exosuits’, just you and your skill as a player.
More game info available at the Battalion 1944 website.
Stretch Goals are now LIVE!
Developer Bulkhead Interactive have announced the eagerly awaited Stretch Goals for the successfully funded World War 2 shooter ‘Battalion 1944’ including responding the community requested British and Russian forces as well as new competitive maps based on the events of D-day. At the time of writing the game is currently 247% funded on Kickstarter with 6 days left to go and Bulkhead have just released a new stretch goal reveal trailer.
For £325,000 the British forces will join the fight with full character sets, animations and cosmetic variation alongside iconic British weapons such as the Lee-Enfeild bolt action rifle and the Sten sub-machine gun. For a further £400,000 the Eastern front will be added to the game, with entire character sets for the The Red Army and German Wehrmacht of the eastern front and will include gritty Soviet favourites such as the PPSh-41, all the way to the Mosin-Nagant used by the famous female Russian snipers of WW2, raising the bar of authenticity and acknowledging the role that women played in the defence of cities like Stalingrad and Moscow and in the destruction of The Nazi Regime in Europe.
If both British and Russian stretch goals are hit, Battalion 1944 will allow players to fight in maps based on both the British and Russian campaigns, expanding Battalion’s competitive map pool to include historical battlegrounds from around the world.
Bulkhead Interactive are also planning on implementing an offline ‘Behind Enemy Lines’ mode, in which players can play competitive maps offline against AI bots and compete for high scores against their friends.
Other interesting stretch goals include; a ‘Currahee Bootcamp’ training map where players can practice or learn the weapon mechanics and movement in an offline environment. A competitive map focused on the events of D-Day, as well as even more cosmetic unlocks and character variation for the main game. For £600,000 the team even aim to add The Pacific Theatre to the game, giving Battalion a breadth of environments to choose from when it comes to competitive map design. The entire list of stretch goals can be seen on the Battalion 1944 Kickstarter page.
Finally, one of Battalion 1944’s most requested features was a single player campaign, which would require a significantly larger development budget. For £1.2 million players will be able to experience events from the allied campaign from the eyes of the soldiers themselves in a fully-fledged single player mode.
“We’ve been closely listening to all the comments we’ve received from the Battalion community, and we’re responding directly through our stretch goals. This was the reasoning behind waiting so long for stretch goals, to give us a chance to listen to our community. We’ve taken the most requested community features and added them to our development checklist with realistic funding goals. This is the sort of money that can help us challenge the modern shooters.” – Joe Brammer, Executive Producer at Bulkhead Interactive.
All the funding received through Kickstarter will be put directly into overall budget of the game. Battalion 1944 was also recently Greenlit on Steam, receiving 18,417 votes from the community to become officially greenlit in just over 1 week.
Watch the Battalion 1944 Final Sprint Trailer here.
More game info available at the Battalion 1944 website.
Recently announced World War 2 shooter ‘Battalion 1944’ has reached its initial funding goal within under 3 days of being announced. The Bulkhead Interactive team have released a new heart felt thank you trailer including clips of all the support they’ve received from content creators and press as well as new unseen footage from the work in progress pre-alpha.
The team have also announced that Battalion 1944 will be launching additional stretch goals very soon, promising to satisfy some of the biggest community requested features in line with their ethos of direct community driven development. Whilst large AAA developers are so focused on the monetization of extremely large scale shooters, it’s great to see that a tight, gritty and focused shooter like Battalion 1944 can still capture the hearts of gamers worldwide.
“Thank you for backing Battalion 1944. The team you’re investing in are ready to build the next big first person shooter. We couldn’t have done it without you, the community. We have an incredible opportunity over the next 26 days to give this game the best budget it can possibly have. All of the funds from the campaign go straight towards the making of Battalion. Please don’t hesitate to become a part of this amazing community of players and a part of Battalion’s history.” – Joe Brammer, Producer at Bulkhead Interactive
Battalion 1944 recaptures the core of classic multiplayer shooters and propels WW2 into the next generation. Battalion 1944 utilizes the most advanced industry technology to create a visceral and heart-thumping multiplayer experience that has been crafted by the designers who have grown up playing Medal of Honor and Call of Duty 2.
Bulkhead Interactive have promised to invest a minimum extra of £100,000 of their own money into Battalion 1944. All the funding received past the initial funding goal will be put towards their soon to be announced stretch goals and the overall budget of the game.
Watch the Battalion 1944 Thank You trailer here.
More game info available at the Battalion 1944 website.
