DICE and Infinity Ward discuss MW3 and BF3 rivalry, separately

Kevin O'Leary, brand manager for Battlefield 3, and Infinity Ward's Robert Bowling have each spoken to Kotaku regarding the rivalry - be it real or fan imagined - between the two shooters slated for autumn, and both developers are resigned to the fact that "passionate" fan reaction comes as part and parcel with the territory.

Battlefield 3

Speaking in an interview with Kotaku, O'Leary said he doesn't see the game and Modern Warfare 3 as competitors, at least not for the people who play both shooters. Instead, O'Leary feels this is going to be a "fantastic year" for gamers regardless due to all the games coming out.

"Our game focuses on this battlefield experience," he said. "Even if it's not a big map it feels like a big map. We give you so many tools; you can choose your vehicles, your weapons, your class.

"People can go for this sort of first-person shooter or that first-person shooter or say ‘Do I want both?' We expect that a lot of people will go for both."

O'Leary believes those who will purchase both are what he calls, "ultra-hit buyers," which are those who purchase a game because it's really popular or because it what their friends are buying.

"We want to win over the hardcore guys who may be on the fence," he said. "We want to do that with Frostbite 2. It's 30 frames per a second on console, but we have destruction, vehicles, a new animation system. It's not about a number. It's about the full experience."

Modern Warfare 3

"Any game that has two very different audiences, you're going to see [negative fan reaction]," said Infinity Ward's Robert Bowling."Every game has its passionate userbase. We see it from everybody."

Speaking with Kotaku at a different venue, Bowling said such ardent fan vocalization on both ends  of the BF3 vs MW3 spectrum is to be expected and just pretty much "is what it is."

Bowling also said negative reaction to the Modern Warfare games also gives the Infinity Ward team a bit of perspective, if it's constructive criticism.

"We may have the number one selling game,,we may have, at times, the number one most played game," he said. "So it's very easy to sit back and say: 'We've done our jobs perfectly. We have the best game ever created. Look at the numbers.'

"But then you can get online and have people kick dirt in your face constantly every day about anything that they may not like about the game. It allows you to have a gut check and a perspective that this is where we still need to go. This is work that we still need to do.

"[Twitter] was the best thing I've ever done from a development standpoint. It allows you to not rest on acclaim alone, whether critical or commercial, and makes you realize that there are still audiences out there that want to enjoy your games that may not even play shooters, that may not be into the type of game you make. "

You can read the full thing for each through the links.