Battlefield Blog: Meet the Shoutcasters: A Week of Battlefield 4 Moments

Shoutcasters Corey Dunn and Alex Mendez spent the gamescom week commenting dozens of Battlefield 4 rounds played by eager fans. After an intense week of daily live streams, the duo told us about the crazy Battlefield Moments they experienced in the Obliteration and Conquest modes.

 

http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/BShLy0XCMAA73aJ-640x448.jpgOne of Corey’s and Alex’s daily, two-hour long live streams. Apart from commenting Battlefield 4 rounds, the duo also interviewed the DICE team about design choices and intricate game details.

Thanks for an amazing Battlefield 4 live stream! Having spent one week commenting the game, what are your lasting impressions?

ALEX: I love it! It’s really fun, there’s always something going on in the matches. And that’s important; this time there’s no downtime like there can be in other shooters. This is actually the most fun I’ve had both commenting and playing a FPS in a long time.

 

COREY: One unique thing from this experience has to be that naval warfare actually exists now. Before, the boats used to exist only as transport vehicles. In this though, especially on the Paracel Storm map, the attack boats, the RHIB boats and everything really has an impact – especially when the level dynamics kick in with Levolution.

 

You must have seen tons of crazy occurrences during your live streams. Tell us about your best Battlefield Moments!

COREY: One personal favorite was when we saw an attack boat being chased by a RHIB boat. This happened after the bad weather hit

and the waves were really high. The attack boat went over one huge wave but then backed up once it landed. So the RHIB boat flew over the top of the attack boat, and suddenly the hunter had become the prey! The attack boat ended up picking up the kill and winning that fight. These crazy things seen to happen all the time.

 

http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/coreyisready1.jpgCorey Dunn’s personal bodyguards protect the shoutcasting celebrity from hordes of fans.

What are your impressions of commentating and playing the all-new game mode Obliteration?

ALEX: It was very intense. Going into it, I anticipated there was going to be lots of action on that main island. But I didn’t expect it to be like this – basically non-stop excitement –  and it’s cool to bring this mode to the fans to show the craziness of it all. Obliteration has lots of potential to become a multiplayer favorite in Battlefield 4. It certainly has been a pleasant surprise and great addition to the game.

 

COREY: Although Conquest is what we play time and time again, Obliteration really brings out something completely new. It’s a real focused gameplay and players who’ve tried Obliteration like the fact that they’re seeing the bomb all the time, which allows you to plan and focus. Fans also like the fact that the bomb timer is so short. You’re not able to disarm the bomb if you’re not right beside it and that’s a really good component: you shouldn’t be able to rush towards where that bomb was planted – but you’re always able to anticipate where the plant is going to occur.

 

http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/IMG_0022-640x426.jpgCorey Dunn on a break after a day of shoutcasting, keeping an eye on the 64-player Battlefield 4 battles at gamescom.

You have been interviewing a lot of DICE developers during the week. Who was the most interesting to talk to?

COREY: I don’t know if there’s one person in particular, but the main thing they’ve all got in common is passion. I’m impressed by the love of the game, and the fact that the developers are such fans of the game. It doesn’t matter if you’re talking to an executive or a level designer, the main thing that they all portrayed in the interviews is passion.

 

ALEX: I love working with DICE, especially in how open everything is. With other games, a lot of gamers complain that they don’t get that direct communication you get with this studio. During the live streams I really liked that feeling of community, to be able to forward a question from someone on Twitter directly to a developer.

 

What are the fans’ most prominent questions that was answered on your live stream?

COREY: I would say tiered reloading.* That’s a very specific issue that the community members and I weren’t too sure about earlier. It was awesome that we could explain something like that, and now everybody knows it and understands it. The community is so astute when it comes to these small details, so it’s great we took care of that question.

 

ALEX: One good thing is that the community is so diverse. Battlefield can be so dense with all the classes, weapon systems or vehicle mechanics, but the community has such collective knowledge, which is great for us. To be a vessel and a voice for the community is great.

 

http://blogscdn.battlefield.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/BSQ0lyGCYAA4VRH-640x480.jpgDICE veteran and Battlefield 4 Creative Director Lars Gustavsson going into detail about Obliteration Mode in BF4.

After a week of hard work at gamescom, what’s next for you?

COREY: For me, it’s kind of interesting. I’ve done a lot of events this year, shoutcasting and directing, and that has been for one reason: to put down money for a ring, and propose to my girlfriend. Gamescom was sort of the final piece of the puzzle before that.

 

Congratulations! And what about you Alex?

ALEX: I’m not going to do any of that! I’m already married so I’m going to save my money (laughs).

 

* Tiered reloading is a feature in Battlefield 4 that makes reloading more efficient when switching between weapons. We will take you through tiered reloading in greater detail here at the Battlefield Blog soon. Stay tuned!

 

Head to Twitch.tv for replays from the Battlefield 4 gamescom live stream. Pre-order BF4 Digital Deluxe Edition to get access to the exclusive beta, 12 Gold Battlepacks, and the China Rising expansion pack at no additional cost.

 

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