BATTLE WORN

How DICE redefined multiplayer, and gave up on singleplayer

- Jeremy Peel

At a certain point, a name like DICE becomes ironic. The Swedish studio behind Battlefield and Battlefront isn’t famed for taking great gambles in the field of interactive entertainment. Instead, it’s known for facilitating one thing: large-scale multiplayer shootouts. Nestled deep in EA’s corporate bosom, it’s in no position to be agile or surprise anybody. Shareholders don’t especially like surprises.

The last time DICE took a real risk was over a decade ago, with Mirror’s Edge. At the time, it was looking to expand its portfolio beyond Battlefield. “It’s important that you play to the strengths of the studio,” then-creative director Ben Cousins told GamesIndustry.biz in 2007. “I don’t think we’d do a dancing game, for example. So we’d be looking for something fresh and interesting, something that’s commercially viable, something that, if there’s a gap in EA’s portfolio, would slide in there – but something that fits the experience of the studio.”

DICE found its answer by tapping into the international craze for parkour. It wasn’t alone – in the following months, both Bond and Assassin’s Creed would do the same. But only DICE recognised the importance of the POV perspective to freerunning footage; the one-to-one connection that provides the vicarious thrill of tumbling between rooftops. The studio had already long specialised in immersive first-person movement, and Mirror’s Edge advanced the craft with flailing arms and sliding legs – on-screen elements that oriented and grounded the player in its platforming levels.