core-gameplay
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September's Battlefield 4 update strengthens its core
The next update for Battlefield 4 is targeted for September, and focuses on core gameplay improvements, Dice revealed this week. Soldier movement in the game is being tweaked so it "closely matches the one in Battlefield 3, but without compromising the visual fidelity." Dice said the changes will make it easier to escape "undesirable firefights." The update will also clean up and "de-clutter" the game's HUD to "only show what is important." This will involve giving players more options to select what they want to see on the screen in battle. The developer also focused on tuning vehicle and weapon balance and making revives easier to use. For instance, when reviving other players, a sound effect will play when the defribrillator paddles are fully charged. Dice also made improvements to the Rush, Obliteration, Obliteration Competitive, Capture the Flag and Carrier Assault game modes. Remember, those that don't have Battlefield 4 yet can play the game for free for one week through Origin. [Image: EA]
GamersFirst talks APB core game changes
Fans of All Points Bulletin are in for a treat this week as GamersFirst has dropped a ton of new info about the game in its latest APB Reloaded blog entry. Zak "Qwentle" Littwin (former QA Lead at Realtime Worlds and current designer at GamersFirst) devotes a lot of virtual ink to APB's closed beta tweaks, and also hints at "much more extensive changes" in store for the game's open beta and release clients. Littwin teases a new game mode called Turf Wars as well as APB's first proper expansion which will feature a new district for the city of San Paro. First things first though; the meat of the blog entry concerns core gameplay adjustments that GamersFirst wishes to test in the closed beta. These include cheat detection (via Punkbuster as discussed last week), weapon modifications, and sweeping changes to the old game's progression curve. A few of the game's vehicles have also been modified. The original version of APB received a fair bit of criticism related to its driving mechanics, and GamersFirst is looking to rectify this in part by "giv[ing] each vehicle a lot of individual personality and specialisation and unique benefits, rather than everyone rushing straight to the Cisco/Bishada/Jericho/T25." Finally, Littwin touches on premium accounts and the challenge inherent in differentiating them from free-to-play services without unbalancing the game. Grab a cup of your favorite beverage and read all about it at the official APB Reloaded blog.
