Battlefield V Physical Sales Down 63% Compared to Battlefield 1

Megalith

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While blame could be placed on the shift to digital sales, Battlefield V has managed to sell less than half the physical copies Battlefield 1 did upon launch. Eurogamer, which called the game “a mess,” suggests there is no legitimate excuse for those numbers: “it sold fewer than half the physical copies of this year's Call of Duty: Black Ops 4.” Others say Battlefield V is the latest victim of the “get woke” initiative, as DICE made things political and antagonized fans by telling them not to buy the game. The company even mocked critics during the game’s launch party, parading quotes such as “Genderfield 5!” and “White Men! White Men! White Men!” on a display.

Historically, AAA games that get off to horrible sales starts usually don’t recover. Sometimes they’re able to retain a playerbase if they can fix things up nice and neat, but they almost never go on to become a sales force, with the rare exception of Ubisoft’s Rainbow Six: Siege. But beyond that anomaly, most other games that falter off the starting line just sink lower from there. And given that Battlefield V has been revealed to be nothing more than social engineering from DICE and EA, and that the company told gamers that they were “uneducated” for not buying into the agitprop, it’s unlikely that sales will ever kickstart for the game.
 
Eh, by the time you hit the 5th iteration, a not insignificant percentage of your customer base isn't likely to be quite as fired up about a new release. That isn't to say they might not pick it up a bit later, but the urgency isn't there.

Not to say that waving the virtue signaling flag as vehemently as EA did, wasn't responsible for some gamers just calling it a miss, as I'm sure that choice did impact sales.
 
Eh, by the time you hit the 5th iteration, a not insignificant percentage of your customer base isn't likely to be quite as fired up about a new release. That isn't to say they might not pick it up a bit later, but the urgency isn't there.

Not to say that waving the virtue signaling flag as vehemently as EA did, wasn't responsible for some gamers just calling it a miss, as I'm sure that choice did impact sales.
I agree.

Look: I don't care so much about political differences - this is just a commercial transaction. However, they handled this about as well as telling people, 'What, you don't have phones?'

I support voting with your wallet. Not that I agree to disagree with the action here. BF1 wasn't my kind of game. BF4 had the most fucked netcode of any AAA release that I'd played up to that time. So. Meh.
 
Battlefield 1942, Vietnam, 2, 2142, Bad Company, Bad Company 2, 3, 4, 1, 5...

I count 11 iterations of Battlefield. 12, if the bite-sized 1943 is counted.

And the best one is still the 3rd iteration, Battlefield 2.


The problem is that DICE have been dumbing down the series with each next release, basically since Battlefield 2 released, or, since Battlefield 3 released and including Battlefield 3 (which is majorly dumbed-down from Battlefield 2). Battlefield 4 was a nice momentary reprieve of a bit of complexity to the game, though it still wasn't near Battlefield 2's level of detail and scope.

The games are just too simplistic and reduced to mindless ADHD running and gunning to be any real fun now.
 
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Eh, by the time you hit the 5th iteration, a not insignificant percentage of your customer base isn't likely to be quite as fired up about a new release. That isn't to say they might not pick it up a bit later, but the urgency isn't there.

Not to say that waving the virtue signaling flag as vehemently as EA did, wasn't responsible for some gamers just calling it a miss, as I'm sure that choice did impact sales.

You sure? Then explain the 100th iteration of FIFA and Call of Duty and 5th iteration of Grand Theft Auto...
 
It looks good on them. Just take a massive dump on your primary customer base and still expect to have good sales? Fucking idiots running the camel show.
 
You sure? Then explain the 100th iteration of FIFA and Call of Duty and 5th iteration of Grand Theft Auto...


Sports games aren't in this argument as fans will constantly pay for the roster changes, new plays, new stadiums etc... GTA where yes on their 5 iteration has major strides and differences between them all with years in between their release cycles. Heck the first two were top down play. COD is the only one that can touch the repetition of BF, and their sales are showing it. They are all copy pastes of the previous successes made worse over time.
 
I played BF4 since day one and never understood the complains about its netcode. That game is a masterpiece just like RE7B and a few others in comparison. BFV has failed and no matter how they change it and how many more youtubers try to sell it to you. Its not even half baked at release.
 
They have the audacity to act surprised when the last WW2 FPS that came out was met with a deafening MEH by the gaming community, so naturally...let's just pump another WW2 game into that *feeding frenzy*, eh DICE? :p

Ramp up the Rhetoric before game launch and then deliver a game experience that can be summed up as "You've played this all a half dozen times before, but like the World War 1 game, it's pretty to look at. Then again, so is the WW1 game, and you already own that."
 
Battlefield 1942, Vietnam, 2, 2142, Bad Company, Bad Company 2, 3, 4, 1, 5...

I count 11 iterations of Battlefield.

And the best one is still the 3rd iteration, Battlefield 2.


The problem is that DICE have been dumbing down the series with each next release, basically since Battlefield 2 released, or, since Battlefield 3 released and including Battlefield 3 (which is majorly dumbed-down from Battlefield 2). Battlefield 4 was a nice momentary reprieve of a bit of complexity to the game, though it still wasn't near Battlefield 2's level of detail and scope.

The games are just too simplistic and reduced to mindless ADHD running and running to be any real fun now.
I would put bad company 2 just below BF2 tbh. Last time I was in love with a BF for sure.

They have the audacity to act surprised when the last WW2 FPS that came out was met with a deafening MEH by the gaming community, so naturally...let's just pump another WW2 game into that *feeding frenzy*, eh DICE? :p

Ramp up the Rhetoric before game launch and then deliver a game experience that can be summed up as "You've played this all a half dozen times before, but like the World War 1 game, it's pretty to look at. Then again, so is the WW1 game, and you already own that."

Honestly they are releasing too many BF games too soon for them to be special anymore. Take a break. Wait for ps5, and deliver something that we can't live without.
 
Problem is the game kind of sucks. The menu is a damn mess. I cannot check unlock progress without exiting the server to the main menu. I do not even know what weapons or equipment there is to unlock without going to the main menu. The server browser is garbage, hardly works and only displayed about 10-12 servers at a time. 1/3 of my screen, at best, is dedicated to the server list. On battlelog I can see around 30 different servers at once. Horrid use of screen space.

Then there is other gameplay nonsense like auto picking up ammo. I stopped playing after I was aiming down my sights in a corridor shooting an enemy. Had them down to 90 damage when my character stepped on an ammo pack. The pick up animation automatically plays, so my player stops aiming, picks up a pack of ammo and shoves it in his face. Great, I can't see the enemy now, I am not aiming. I get killed because my last shots go off to the side as the player automatically tilts there weapon to see their shiny new ammo box. Fucking stupid.

Also, DICE hates tanks.

BF4 had a lot of issues and took almost 2 years to get it to where it should have been but DICE peaked with BF3/4. BF1 and BFV are trash.

physical sales.....

well yea, wtf can I even buy a physical copy?

I imagine the majority of players on consoles (where the majority of sales are) still buy physical. So yes it is an important metric.
 
Battlefield 1942, Vietnam, 2, 2142, Bad Company, Bad Company 2, 3, 4, 1, 5...

I count 11 iterations of Battlefield.

And the best one is still the 3rd iteration, Battlefield 2.


The problem is that DICE have been dumbing down the series with each next release, basically since Battlefield 2 released, or, since Battlefield 3 released and including Battlefield 3 (which is majorly dumbed-down from Battlefield 2). Battlefield 4 was a nice momentary reprieve of a bit of complexity to the game, though it still wasn't near Battlefield 2's level of detail and scope.

The games are just too simplistic and reduced to mindless ADHD running and running to be any real fun now.

BFV is supposed to be a return to the skill curve and removing the "dumbing down" aspects that the "be more like Call of Duty [ADHD shooter]" craze brought with it. BF3/4 had way too many lock-on / less-skill weapons. Problem is, this title is early access. It was not ready to launch and I think a lot of players are going to wait for it to be out of beta this time. I've been waiting for a return to WW2 in this series and I was turned off by the way they handled some of this as well as the current condition of the game.

I think a lot of gamers are fed up with paying full price for an AAA early access title, which is what EA has started pushing these past few years. Less development up front, ability to charge full price, tack on some Mx, and then abandon development early if sales don't come. That's not going to fly for anyone but indie developers.
 
While blame could be placed on the shift to digital sales, Battlefield V has managed to sell less than half the physical copies Battlefield 1 did upon launch.

Yeah, you might also say NVIDIA can't even give it away ;)
 
You people do relize this about consoles more then PC? Meansnl console players don't even want this shit.
 
Battlefield 1942, Vietnam, 2, 2142, Bad Company, Bad Company 2, 3, 4, 1, 5...

I count 11 iterations of Battlefield.

And the best one is still the 3rd iteration, Battlefield 2.

For me the best was 1942 with the DC mod. It felt good and I enjoyed the learning curve of the controls for air units. Also had a really fun group of peoiple to play with.
 
So they insult their most loyal player base with WW2 facts and now they try to lure us in with skill vs cod which is a joke. Let me get this straight. You are basing your benchmark on COD.... thanks , but no....:D
 
BFV is supposed to be a return to the skill curve and removing the "dumbing down" aspects that the "be more like Call of Duty [ADHD shooter]" craze brought with it. BF3/4 had way too many lock-on / less-skill weapons. Problem is, this title is early access. It was not ready to launch and I think a lot of players are going to wait for it to be out of beta this time. I've been waiting for a return to WW2 in this series and I was turned off by the way they handled some of this as well as the current condition of the game.

I think a lot of gamers are fed up with paying full price for an AAA early access title, which is what EA has started pushing these past few years. Less development up front, ability to charge full price, tack on some Mx, and then abandon development early if sales don't come. That's not going to fly for anyone but indie developers.

Regardless of what it's supposed to be, Battlefield 5 is nowhere near a departure from ultra dumbed-down Battlefield. It still has no physical bases, it has Battlefield 1's horrendous arcadey vehicle spawns, there are very few weapon unlocks and customizations...

Some aspects of Battlefield 5 are even more dumbed-down than Battlefield 1 was: In Bf5 you can't choose when to throw out ammo or health etc, but can only throw it when a teammate in front of you needs it. Can't throw it around a corner or in preparation someplace where it will be useful. Also, squads have been reduced to 4 players on PC when even Bf1 had 5-player squads on PC. Also, now every player is a part-medic, reducing the value of the medic class and taking away the emphasis of playing well since everybody can pick everybody back up.

Battlefield 5 is only the most tiniest bit less dumbed-down that Battlefield 1 was. But, it's still squarely a dumbed-down Battlefield game.


For me the best was 1942 with the DC mod. It felt good and I enjoyed the learning curve of the controls for air units. Also had a really fun group of peoiple to play with.

1942 with the DC mod was indeed amazing. The people that made the DC mod helped make Battlefield 2. Then DICE or EA fired them when EA bought DICE out shortly before the release of Bf2.

Battlefield has never again been as good as it was with the DC / Bf2 team.
 
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I often wonder if the game production team just completely ignores their fans and feedback. Sort of like the Lucas syndrome where nobody could suggest anything to George. They said that's the problem with the new Harry Potter verse movie. JK Rowling is just too big for anybody else to get a word in edgewise
 
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Battlefield 1942, Vietnam, 2, 2142, Bad Company, Bad Company 2, 3, 4, 1, 5...

I count 11 iterations of Battlefield.

And the best one is still the 3rd iteration, Battlefield 2.

Growing up 56K (until around 06) never got into most of them. But I had a ton of fun with Bad Company 1 and 2. I’d rather they made a real sequel to those. The buddy platoon war dynamic isn’t played out and the humor wasn’t bad. But again, 56k, I like single player or co-op.
 
Battlefield 1942, Vietnam, 2, 2142, Bad Company, Bad Company 2, 3, 4, 1, 5...

I count 11 iterations of Battlefield.

And the best one is still the 3rd iteration, Battlefield 2.


The problem is that DICE have been dumbing down the series with each next release, basically since Battlefield 2 released, or, since Battlefield 3 released and including Battlefield 3 (which is majorly dumbed-down from Battlefield 2). Battlefield 4 was a nice momentary reprieve of a bit of complexity to the game, though it still wasn't near Battlefield 2's level of detail and scope.

The games are just too simplistic and reduced to mindless ADHD running and running to be any real fun now.

Still remember "You have your gun? Good I have mine!" What a game BF2 was.
 
As a few mentioned already, the inclusion of females into the game isn't the reason the game didn't sell well, it barely registers on the radar. The dumbing down of Battlefield that started with Bad Company, is what killed sales. Combine this with the disasters known as Battlefield 1, and pay to win Battlefront 2, Battlefield 5 had a lot going against it from a PR standpoint and EA did nothing to address it. Even ignoring these problems though, I've been playing it on and off with the EA access trial. The games time to death leaves no time to take cover, and should you manage to get to cover, the terrible netcode and lag compensation of BF3/BF4 is back, so you'll die behind walls again. (Which is really frustrating when I have 5 ping on most servers) Then, the game overall is even more run and gun like Call of Duty than previous iterations on maps that aren't even remotely Battlefield like except for 1 or 2. Fans want good and deep Battlefield 1942/Vietnam/BF2/BF2142 gameplay. Not the all flash no substance Call of Duty version that's been forced on us since Bad Company, or that lame attempt to steal thunder from GTA with Hardline. Every year we see sales getting worse and worse, I wonder how much more the greedy shareholders are going to put up with before demanding change and (hopefully) a return to its proper roots.
 
I didn't realize people still bought physical copies of any game. I can't remember the last time I used my DVD drive. With Steam, Origin, Uplay my whole collection is digital. Hell BF2 was what 6 CD's? I never want to go through please insert disc 1 of 6 again. AAA games are usually 40+ GB these days. I'm enjoying BFV, the lower TTK took some getting use to but I enjoy the mix up from what i've known from the series. Pretty sure the only people buying physical are going for some collectors edition with a figurine or some nonsense, since you'll still probably just download the game with an auth code on a DVD.

I know a ton of people that went in for Origin premier just to play a week earlier, then canceled their subscription. Effectively paying for a month of Origin premier just to play one game a week early.
 
Thank goodness Patrick Soderlund is gone from DICE. He totally mismanaged the series basically throughout the entire history of DICE. The same might also be true for Patrick Bach, who left DICE shortly after Battlefield 1 released. Battlefield 1942 and the game that preceded it featured what was genuinely a great, simple concept. But, it was the Desert Combat team that fleshed it out with DC and then even more in Battlefield 2. However, ever since EA bought DICE and DICE consequently disbanded the DC team, DICE have been churning out various limited combinations of the expansive set of mechanics and features that already existed altogether in Battlefield 2. Even the squad vehicle / supply drop feature in Battlefield 5 is in Battlefield 2 - and, like with most of the Battlefield 2 feature re-hashes (like Commander mode and squad controls), it's done better in Battlefield 2.
 
Thank goodness Patrick Soderlund is gone from DICE. He totally mismanaged the series basically throughout the entire history of DICE. The same might also be true for Patrick Bach, who left DICE shortly after Battlefield 1 released. Battlefield 1942 and the game that preceded it featured what was genuinely a great, simple concept. But, it was the Desert Combat team that fleshed it out with DC and then even more in Battlefield 2. However, ever since EA bought DICE and DICE consequently disbanded the DC team, DICE have been churning out various limited combinations of the expansive set of mechanics and features that already existed altogether in Battlefield 2. Even the squad vehicle / supply drop feature in Battlefield 5 is in Battlefield 2 - and, like with most of the Battlefield 2 feature re-hashes (like Commander mode and squad controls), it's done better in Battlefield 2.

Biggest mistake DICE made was when they got rid of the DC team and I never forgave them for it. Fuck them and I relish in their failures.
 
Since people figured out how to play BF2142 again, after Gamespy was murdered, I've been having fun with it again.

Jihadi Jeeps FTW!! LOL.
 
When you go al sjw and shit what do you expect those sjw arent buying your game just saying.
 
I wouldn't mind women in the game, as long as they look fuckable and not butch.
......wait, do they mean the women in the game aren't "side play hookers" and they are, in fact, "operators"???

lololololololololol.

Yeah that's not reality.
 
So there's Battlefield V, Fallout 76, Diablo Immortal, and Assassin's Creed Odyssey. The AAA gaming industry might be pulling an E.T. here.
 
I hate the SJW bullshit that surrounds this title, and is perpetuated here...could it be that the 5th entry in a franchise is just stale and uninteresting? Could it be that the game actually sucks? No, let's just blame it all on the anti-SJWs out there and further a BS narrative for why it's not selling. Shame.
 
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