How many more months for this game to be old news?

[Vreki]

GameSpy's general statistic tracker has been around for many years and is very useful. It doesn't only track GameSpy-based games, and is a reasonably objective look at player counts.

game-monitor has the same info if you follow the links, I was just too lazy to type out everything.

Battlefield: Vietnam is by no measure still a particularly popular game, with less than 300 players online. This is a stark contrast to Battlefield 2 with almost 12,000, and Battlefield 2142 with around 5,000.

Note that these numbers will probably double or triple in the evening since I'm posting this now in the morning.

Yes, but in the morning where? Games are global today.
Take a look at this graph from game-monitor, it goes back more than half a year, and confirms that BF Vietnam is not played much.

[Ryan Williams]

In Europe, which would make it even more in the morning for the US. Europe is the only one that really matters to me though.

I'm not sure why you felt the need to go further with your claim, though. I actually backed up your assertion that Vietnam isn't a very popular game. It is clearly far less popular than the newer Battlefield games if they have thousands more players even in the morning, and indeed many other online games.

I was just pointing out that your statistics were based on servers, which can be incredibly inaccurate. It's quite possible to have hundreds of servers but only a few dozen players, as Tribes: Vengeance admins painfully discovered a few years ago.

[Vreki]

I'm not sure why you felt the need to go further with your claim, though. I actually backed up your assertion that Vietnam isn't a very popular game.

To much time on hand
I just wanted to point out that the time of day is not that relevant when the game spans most timezones.

[RMcLeod]

I would have to say 2142 is the most inconsistant, buggy, and all around worst put together of all of them.

If you think that, you obviously didn't have the misfotrtune of trying to play BF2 with the 1.3 patch!

[elrik2142]

There was an article a couple of months ago on PC Gamer magazine, if I am not mistaken, where its author was exploring possible scenarios for the Battlefield franchise.

One of the things he mentioned was that the next game for the Battlefield series could be set in space and possibly making it a mix of wing commander (see battles in space) while at the same time maintaining the core features of battlefield. Of course this is not something confirmed, neither the author had any EA insider's info - It was more like a prediction article like the thread here.

Below is an abstract from another article from IGN that was released before BF2142 was announced but I think it gives a better idea about the lifecycle of the BF series. Take a look...

Life Cycle of Battlefield Franchise:

We believe the life cycle of the Battlefield Franchise follows the below pattern:

Battlefield 1942 Life Cycle: Battlefield 1942, two Expansion Packs -> Road to Rome & Secret Weapons of WII.

Battlefield Vietnam – The x.5 Product. There are improvements made on the engine to add new features, etc.

Battlefield 2 Life Cycle
Battlefield 2, two Expansion Packs (one cancelled and two booster packs created instead) -> Special Forces, Booster Pack: Euro Force & Armored Fury.

Battlefield 2142 –> Northern Strike* (I added NS)

Battlefield 3 – From the information we have gathered, Battlefield 3 is supposed to be set a couple of years further in the future than Battlefield 2.

Only time will tell I guess!

[Vreki]

There was an article a couple of months ago on PC Gamer magazine, if I am not mistaken, where its author was exploring possible scenarios for the Battlefield franchise.

One of the things he mentioned was that the next game for the Battlefield series could be set in space and possibly making it a mix of wing commander (see battles in space) while at the same time maintaining the core features of battlefield. Of course this is not something confirmed, neither the author had any EA insider's info - It was more like a prediction article like the thread here.

I don't see how you can have space battles and battlefield battles in the same game. Or rather I don't see how they will interact with each other, it might as well be two separate games.

Life Cycle of Battlefield Franchise:

We believe the life cycle of the Battlefield Franchise follows the below pattern:

What pattern? There is no pattern there at all, just a list of previously released battlefields.
I might as well say that I believe my grocery list.

Journalists: Overpaid even when unpaid

Battlefield 3 – From the information we have gathered, Battlefield 3 is supposed to be set a couple of years further in the future than Battlefield 2.

Gathered by reading intestines no doubt.

Only time will tell I guess!

That is the truth, but then you are not a journalist

[MrChris_CJ]

seeing as this is the latest battlefield game and is readily available it should last a while until the next in the series appears, Battlefield 2 i noticed had a lot of servers but it was tricky to find a full one...well not really but a lot of servers were empty so the player to server ratio is a tad off whereas in 2142 there are less servers that are usually full

unless i cant actually remember precise server numbers and players

[ebevan_91]

The timeline he speaks of is BF going from the past (1942), then a few years later (BFV) then present (BF2) and future (2142), so the next battlefield will likely be even further into the future.

[Quemical]

I think it would be pointless to skip 1000 years deeper into the future, just add that crap to 2142.

[Vreki]

The timeline he speaks of is BF going from the past (1942), then a few years later (BFV) then present (BF2) and future (2142), so the next battlefield will likely be even further into the future.

What timeline? Please use quote, otherwise it gets confusing

If you are talking about "Life Cycle" then thats is something completely different from "timeline".
And BF3 doesnt fit into the progressive timeline model, since they place it a few years after BF2

[ebevan_91]

What timeline? Please use quote, otherwise it gets confusing

If you are talking about "Life Cycle" then thats is something completely different from "timeline".
And BF3 doesnt fit into the progressive timeline model, since they place it a few years after BF2

Ugh... I mean the "Life Cycle" or "Pattern" that elrik2142 spoke of.

[Quemical]

If BF3 was going to be just a few years after BF2, i think it will be crap. If DICE wants to tell a story about stuff shortly after BF2, they should have made it a BF2 Expansion or Make that crap before Releasing 2142.

Why take a step backwards? A future BF game without the cool unlocks we have on 2142 will blow. It's going to be like equipping us with spears and crossbows, lol.

[elrik2142]

It's going to be like equipping us with spears and crossbows, lol.

Battlefield 942 B.C here we come! :laugh::laugh::laugh:

[Dangerdog]

I’ve read that “Battlefield 3 will be couple of years after Battlefield 2” and I’ve also read things along the lines of “We would love to redo BF1942 with better graphics”.

I seriously doubt they’ll send the series into space, the Battlefield games are all about giving people choices like playing infantry, driving or flying vehicles. A “Wing Commander” type Battlefield wouldn’t fit that style. I also can’t see it going into some crazy fantasy sci-fi venture like making it into something like an Unreal Tournament style game, with alien races in far off distant galaxies.

I’d love to be surprised and find out that Bad Company is also coming to the PC; I can’t believe they’re shutting out the base of people that helped make them who they are today.

I wouldn’t mind either BF2 or BF1942 with better graphics but I’m sure it would draw strong criticism from people in either case. Pre-WWII era Battlefield games would be extremely boring to me and again not fit the mold, unless it involves lots of cool guns, tanks, jeeps, and flying vehicles I don’t think it’s a Battlefield game.

[MrChris_CJ]

i dont think they wanted 2142 to be a bf3 because like a lot of the community said it used no new engine, i think with a game like bf3 Dice/EA will want to make it radically different which i hope will mean a new engine (no bugs plz) and a modern day setting

but balanced this time

the thing is if you went back to a bf2 style setting, modernish with near future weapons which is cool and all people might suffer withdrawal from not having their trusty spawn beacon or accipter style drones

bet they copy frontlines and have drones following people and some sort of AA battery powered spawn beacon :p