Battlefield 1942

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Battlefield 1942
Battlefield 1942 box cover Battlefield 1942 box cover
Developer(s)	Digital Illusions CE
Publisher(s)	EA Games
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows, Apple Macintosh
Release	September 10, 2002
Genre(s)	First-person shooter
Mode(s)	Single player multiplayer

Battlefield 1942 is an expansive first-person shooter (FPS) set in World War II developed by Digital Illusions CE and published by Electronic Arts for the Microsoft Windows (2002) and Apple Macintosh (2004). The game can be played single-player against bots (or cooperatively with other humans and bots versus other bots), but most of the focus has been on its support for large-scale, multiplayer Internet games. On average, there are more than 1,500 servers running Battlefield 1942, with up to 64 players playing on each.

Battlefield 1942 combines realistic 3D computer graphics with gameplay more extensive than the average FPS. The game was revolutionary in the fact that players are not limited to just running on foot. Players are able to fly fighter aircraft and bombers, captain battleships and aircraft carriers, man coastal defenses, drive tanks and jeeps, or just fight as one of several classes of infantry. Some believe that Battlefield 1942 had one of the most realistic physics and game engines available in FPSs on the market when it came out in 2002. Each battle takes place on one of several maps located in a variety of places and famous battlefields in both the Pacific and European Theaters. While the combat is always Axis Powers versus Allies, the location determines which specific armies are used (for example, on the Iwo Jima map, it is Japan versus the United States, while on the Battle of Britain map, it is Germany versus the United Kingdom). Although based on real battles, Battlefield 1942 is not entirely historically accurate. For example, the game incorrectly displays Americans fighting the Battle of Arnhem, which was fought by the British. The gameplay also has a more cooperative focus as it is not only important to kill the opposition but to also hold certain "control points" around the map. These control points allow players and vehicles to respawn as well as reduce the enemy's reinforcement pool if enough are held.

Expansion packs

The creators of Battlefield 1942 have released expansion packs entitled Battlefield 1942: The Road to Rome and Battlefield 1942: Secret Weapons of WWII. Both add various new gameplay modes and design concepts. Road to Rome features a focus on the Italian battles and Secret Weapons of World War II focuses on prototype, experimental, and rarely used weapons. Downloadable patches fix bugs in the game and sometimes add extra content (such as the aforementioned Battle of Britain map).

Mods

Since its release on September 11, 2002, there have been a large number of mods (modifications) developed by independent gamers and studios (see list of Battlefield 1942 mods). Each mod changes the gameplay by adding new content, gameplay balance, or both. There are dozens of a large content total conversions and many times that number of smaller gameplay, texture, and sound modifications. The most famous of these, Desert Combat, moves the setting to modern combat in the Middle East. Desert Combat itself has been the subject of several modifications such as Desert Combat Realism Mod, and other gameplay and realism mods.

BF1942 mods have greatly aided the success of the game, driving sales and popularity of the game later into its life cycle. Players of the many modifications typically outnumber those playing the original game online (see Bftracks Europe mod statistics, Bftracks North America). Early on there was little mod support by the developers and no SDK to work with. The release of a Battlefield Mod Development Toolkit (MDT) offered some support, though early versions were criticized as not being extensive enough. Battlecraft42, a tool for creating maps (also for Battlefield Vietnam), was also released for the game. BF has also spawned a modding wiki for the game.

Development

Battlefield 1942 was a development of the less successful Codename Eagle (2000) computer game which was set in an alternate-history World War I. It featured single and multiplayer modes. The earlier engine had more arcade-style physics and a less realistic focus than its sequel. A fan-made port of the game to the Battlefield 1942 engine, compatible with the 1.45 patch was made though. In continuation of the series, Digital Illusions developed a sequel to Battlefield 1942 called Battlefield Vietnam. It has conceptual similarities to the Desert Combat mod, except that instead of present-day helicopters and tanks, it features Vietnam War-era weapons comprising the game's arsenal. Its new features include a new game engine that heavily uses normal mapping, multiple weapons for most classes, and new maps. The most recent game in the Battlefield series is Battlefield 2 which has a Desert Combat-like theme, some changes to gameplay, and a updated graphics engine. It recently caused havoc, as servers around the world crashed with the numbers of people attempting to download a demo version.

More patches and maps may still be released in the future for Battlefield 1942, and a Macintosh compatible version of BF1942 was also made and released in mid 2004. A huge amount of content is available in the form of its many mods, with a unknown amount still to be added. With the release of new battlefield games, another full-blown expansion pack for 1942 is unlikely. The Macintosh port did add a new influx of players as do the periodic release of mods.

Gameplay statistics and player rankings

BF Tracks provides nearly real-time and historical gameplay statistics for all public Battlefield 1942 servers in North America and Europe. All such servers are continuously monitored and statistics from games played on each server are recorded in a database. Each player seen playing online is individually recognized within the database and players are ranked according to their "skill" based on a formula that incorporates various parameters of the player's performance during gameplay. The BF Tracks website provides a searchable interface to the database where players can view their statistics and see how they compare to every other player in the database. This is all performed automatically without the player needing to register themself with the service.

Another major tracking website is GameTrack, located at gametrack.org. This site differs from BF Tracks in that it collects server/player data more often, resulting in true realtime tracking. In addition, it separates players into Rookie, Seasoned, and Veteran ranking classes depending on how much time they have in-game and how many maps they have played. GameTrack's ranking formula gives each game played a ranking, heavily depending on flags taken, kill:death ratio, and kill rate. This ensures that team players get better rankings and veteran players are ranked against their peers.

Milestones

June 28, 2004 - Aspyr begins shipping the Apple Macintosh Version of Battlefield 1942
March 15, 2004 - 3 million copies sold, BF1942's sequel, Battlefield Vietnam released
October 10, 2003 - 2 million copies sold
September 4, 2003 - Secret Weapons expansion pack released
August 8, 2003 - Battlefield 1942 Secret Weapons demo released (Hellendorn map)
February 2, 2003 - Road to Rome expansion pack released
2003 - 6th annual Interactive Achievement Awards, BF1942 receives awards for:
- "Online Gameplay"
- "Innovation in PC Gaming"
- "PC Game of the Year"
- "Game of the Year"
September 10, 2002 - Battlefield 1942 released
August 16, 2002 - Battlefield 1942 multiplayer demo released (Wake Island map)
July 19, 2002 - Battlefield 1942 single-player demo released (Tobruk map)