Today has been a busy day for DICE; the studio launched Firestorm, the long-awaited battle royale mode for Battlefield 5. They also officially started Trial by Fire, the third chapter of the Tides of War post-launch content. However, while Battlefield 5 is getting a ton of new content, Battlefield 1 will actually be losing some. In an announcement today, DICE informed fans that they will be ending the ongoing Battlefield 1 Incursions.
DICE Will Remove Battlefield 1 Incursions by the End of April
Battlefield 1 Incursions was originally released post-launch and designed based on community feedback. The mode featured 5v5 battles without vehicles with a lobby-based matchmaking system and other features. However, DICE will be sunsetting the mode on the 25th of April, next month. On that date, Incursions will no longer be playable. “Battlefield 1 Incursions will no longer be accessible or available to download,” explains DICE; “Players who’ve already downloaded Battlefield 1 Incursions will not be able to start or join matches and no further development will be made on this experience.”
The Battlefield 1 Incursions mode has been one part of Battlefield 1 without a direct equivalent in Battlefield 5. However, DICE recently announced two new Tides of War chapters for their latest game, and the next one, coming in June, may be adding something very similar. The focus of the ‘Defying the Odds’ chapter is on close-quarters combat; it will be bringing two new maps, one of which is for a 5v5 urban combat mode, the title of which has yet to be revealed. Certainly, the move to end Incursions now could be to encourage fans of the mode to shift to Battlefield 5 once that content arrives.
Indeed, DICE mentions in the post announcing the end of Incursions how much the mode was an influence on Battlefield 5. “Player input on Battlefield 1 Incursions made its way into aspects of Battlefield 5,” they explain; “such as sharply reduced 3D-spotting, changing suppression to be audio-visual only, and more predictable gunplay that rewards high-skill players. We want to thank the Battlefield community for providing that feedback, joining those play sessions, and digging into Battlefield 1 Incursions to improve the competitive experience for new and hardcore players alike.”