The most popular battle royale titles are often those with a free-to-play model. Games like Fortnite and Apex Legends amassed massive amounts of players due to that major reason. The question is will EA follow suit by adopting the model for Battlefield 5‘s firestorm battle royale mode?

Unfortunately, the answer is no, for now, that is. In an interview with VG247, Criterion Games senior designer John Stanley said:

“At the moment, it’s really important for Firestorm to come out and be part of Battlefield 5. Obviously, there are multiple links when you are playing Firestorm that tie back into Battlefield 5, so any XP you earn ties back into Tides of War and Chapter Ranks and all these kind of things.

The same applies to weapons and vehicles that you use in Firestorm. It’s really important for that to be a part of this at this point and be a way for Battlefield players to experience something different in the Battlefield universe. That’s where we’re at.”

The firestorm battle royal mode is slated to arrive on 25 March 2019 as a free add-on for existing owners of Battlefield 5. However, the fact remains that Battlefield 5‘s 7 million or so player base will pale in comparison to Apex Legends‘ current 50 million.

In the meantime, check out this new official gameplay trailer for Battlefield 5 Firestorm below.

[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxGMp3h9S7w&w=560&h=315]