Battlefield 3’s Patrick Bach: “biggest benefit for the console has been that we’re leading on PC”

EA/DICE executive producer Patrick Bach sat down and had a big chat with us about imminent uber military shooter Battlefield 3 . Obviously, it's one of those cross-platform war shooters people seem so fond of these days, but did the limitations of the console hamper its development as a PC game?

Resoundingly, no, according to Bach, who believes that leading the game on PC has a positive trickle-down effect for console gamers. “Our biggest benefit for the console has been that we're leading on PC,” said Bach. “It has forced us to push the limited technology of consoles compared to the PC to a new level, because we set the bar with what we wanted to create on PC and said, 'How the heck are we going to do this on consoles?'”

Developing primarily on PC made DICE prioritise its decisions on what to ditch in the console version. The PC version can include things that are “really cool but not key for the gaming experience,” said Bach. “You know it's easier for you to make those decisions when you have a robust PC build to look at, and the console versions look great because of the PC.”

When quizzed on whether or not Battlefield 3 could have had more than 64 players per map, Bach said, “Games are about having fun, it's not about doing the most you can do...If we can jump two meters it must be better to jump four meters. No. 64 players is kind of the maximum where it's still fun and you can still control the Battlefield. It's like I can understand where I got shot from and why.”