'Star Wars: Battlefront' news: DICE defends 40-player cap

Star Wars: BattlefrontEA Games/DICE

When news and information about the upcoming "Star Wars: Battlefront" surfaced when it was officially unveiled during the Star Wars celebration event, fans took to the Internet to air their views about the gameplay, particularly the limit set on the number of players for the online mode.

According to developer DICE, the game will only allow up to 40 players for the online battles on the upcoming "Star Wars: Battlefront" title. This is to maximize the effective of the frame rate and to give players enhanced gameplay without sacrificing the satisfactory experience. However, most fans took umbrage and said that with the player cap in place, the upcoming title will look more like a "Battlefield" clone.

DICE defended its decision to limit the number of players, saying on Reddit that with their experience for the latest "Battlefield" title, 40 is the number that delivered the best experience for the game.

A community manager for DICE said, "'Battlefront' is not 'Battlefield'. That's never been the intention; our intention with 'Battlefron't is to build a game that feels and is very different from 'Battlefield'. His '40 is the sweet spot' remark is only in regards to Battlefront and the type of game we want 'Battlefront' to be."

In addition, the huge maps that are reported to be included in the "Battlefront" title refer to the number of areas that would be made available, and not on the map areas. The maps would instead reflect the maximum number of players, and DICE included the 40-player cap in designing the playable maps in the upcoming game.

Moreover, the set limit for players is only considered as the maximum amount, and would not be a requirement for players to play online. This means that players would still have the choice on the number of players for their teams, whether it be a 16-vs.-16 online matchup or a more intimate eight-person battle between friends.