Battlefield Subreddit Bans 'Historical Accuracy' Posts
By Michael Kan - PC Magazine
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Battlefield V's addition of female World War II soldiers has sparked so much arguing in the gaming community that a Reddit page is banning discussion on the topic.
"No more bitching about historical accuracy," the moderators for the Battlefield subreddit wrote on Thursday. "It's a game, not a history book."
The culture war over the upcoming World War II shooter started last month when the first trailer for the game dropped; it prominently features a woman soldier, fitted with a prosthetic arm, fighting alongside her squad mates against an advancing army. Some gamers were outraged; negative comments flooded YouTube and Reddit with claims that Battlefield V was sacrificing historical accuracy for political correctness.
"The game you are creating is a joke. I call on all of you, DO NOT BUY THIS GAME," wrote one Reddit user who claimed to be a World War II historian only to be outed as a fake.
The Battlefield subreddit moderators say they're sick of the controversy; they've been cracking down on any posts talking about the inclusion of women in the game.
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"We get that y'all have valid criticism about Battlefield V and the customization options within the game," they wrote on Thursday. "Sadly, this subreddit has proven to be unable to have a civil discussion about these things without devolving into name calling and slapfights."
The moderators instituted the new rule as game's publisher, Electronic Arts, defends the inclusion of women soldiers. "The common perception is that there were no women in World War II. There were a ton of women who both fought in World War II and partook in the war," EA's chief creative officer Patrick Soderlund told Gamasutra this week.
The decision to feature women in Battlefield V also comes as the gaming industry attempts to address feminism, diversity, and politics in their products. EA Dice's goal is to create a game that is inclusive to all.
But in that same interview, Soderlund took a shot at the game's critics. "These are people who are uneducated —they don't understand that this is a plausible scenario."
The moderators on Battlefield's Reddit page say they're not affiliated with EA. But as a concession, they opened one dedicated forum thread to let critics talk about the game's historical accuracy.
Nevertheless, gamers on Reddit are likening the crackdown to censorship. "Telling an entire subreddit community with 120K+ users that nobody is permitted to discuss a topic and state their opinions is wrong," wrote one user.
Battlefield V will be released on Oct. 19 for the PC, Xbox One, and PlayStation 4.
