Battlefield 3 Caters To 4Chan With Dinosaur Reference

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The Life Vicarious

By James Hawkins in Misc Nonsense

Monday, June 13, 2011 at 4:00 pm

One of E3's most breathtaking game videos was the Battlefield 3 tank video, an eight minute showcase of the realism of the game, emphasizing the physics of Frostbite 2. And, it started off perfectly -- a dinosaur toy back-lit by an off-screen sun and the clear desert sky. But that imagery isn't simply a surreal tranquility before the hell of war. It has a meaning behind it.

No, not deep meaning. It isn't a metaphor, or some sweet nod from a developer to his young kid. Instead, it is pointed right at the 4Chan community. Why, you ask, are they doing this? Well, to protect their PC sales, of course. I'll explain to you after the jump.

Activision's Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 succeeded hugely on consoles, and not so hugely on PCs when it came out in 2009. After (relative to the rest) modest sales numbers, a rep from Activision posed an inquiry on the internet's most notorious forum, and the folks at 4Chan responded with a big, fat troll.

They told Activision that the game sucked because it didn't have any dinosaurs in it. Not because of the numerous bugs, overpriced DLC, or lack of support after the game was launched. It was because of dinosaurs. DICE got word of this, and made sure to reach out to the folks at 4Chan. Those gamers want dinosaurs? They got 'em.

Not that this really impacts anything at all, really. But now you know. Consider it like a Public Service Announcement. The game drops October 25, 2011. You can pre-order now.