Battlefield 1 Dev "Blown Away" By Positive Reaction to Announcement

Battlefield 1's announcement event last week was a momentous, record-breaking occasion for EA and developer DICE. Today, EA shared some specifics that speak to how the announcement was received. Additionally, Battlefield's global community manager has spoken out to say the team has been "blow away" by the positive reaction from fans to the announcement.

First, the numbers. Last Friday's livestream announcement event attracted some 2.1 million views, with 505,000 peak concurrent viewers. This is good for the "largest game reveal" so far in 2016. With E3 right around the corner, this record may not stand up for too much longer, however.

"EA has been a power user of Twitch for years, spanning everything from events to showcasing their latest games," Twitch senior manager of partnerships John Imah said in a statement. "As a result of their strong relationship with our community, we witnessed over half a million users tune in for Battlefield 1, establishing an impressive 2016 concurrent viewership record for a single game reveal. This new milestone--which is one of the biggest reveals to date--reflects both the high level of excitement for Battlefield and the growing audience on Twitch."

On YouTube, Battlefield 1's announcement video reached 20.6 million views in its first 72 hours. By comparison, the announcement trailer for DICE's other recent big game, Star Wars Battlefront, took a year to reach 23 million view. Battlefield 1's video also has more than 1.1 million likes, with only 20,000 dislikes; that comes out to a .01 percent negative reaction. The video was also trending on YouTube on Sunday.

Gallery

Speaking of trends, EA said #Battlefield was a top-trending topic on Friday and made it into the Twitter Moments section. The publisher also mentioned that press wrote 3,370 articles about Battlefield 1 in the first 72 hours after its announcement.

Battlefield global community manager Dan Mitre thanked fans for their support, also mentioning that DICE will share more details on Battlefield 1 at EA's E3 event in June.

"Everyone at DICE and across EA are totally blown away by the awesome reaction gamers have had to Battlefield 1," Mitre said. "Last week, we pulled back the veil to show everyone what we've been working on, and we bore witness to incredible support from fans.

"We thank the amazing Battlefield community for making the Battlefield 1 announcement one of the biggest reveal events this year. Up next is EA Play where the game will be hands-on playable for industry and fans in both LA and London. We can't wait for everyone to experience it for themselves."

Battlefield 1 launches on October 21, though people with an EA/Origin Access membership or those who pick up the deluxe edition can get in on October 18. Additionally, a beta will be held sometime before launch.

In other news, Battlefield 1's announcement trailer is the most-liked trailer on YouTube, while Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare's is the most disliked. Additionally, DICE has confirmed the game will have a server browser, while it's also been announced that some of the game is set in the Italian Alps.