Battle Royale is coming to Battlefield 5. During today's EA Play livestream, DICE confirmed a battle royale mode coming to Battlefield 5. That's about all the information we got about the new mode, though we learned that it will be different (somehow) from any battle royale game out now, with all of the things that make Battlefield distinct, such as destructible environments and vehicles. Many people seem to think that we already have a saturated battle royale market for some reason, despite having just two actual contenders in that space. You could hear some audible groaning in the crowd when the battle royale mode was announced. The thinking seems to be that battle royale is a trend and that trend-chasing is foolish.

EA and DICE pulled the curtain off of Battlefield 5 today, bringing the large-scale shooter back to World War 2 after its successful foray into World War 1. It looks, from what we've seen so far, like classic Battlefield with some new twists and the promise of continuing stories told over the course of several months, something made possible by the fact that the game will have no paid maps/modes. Unlike most World War 2 games, the developer wants to place the focus on some of the less well-known battles of the conflict -- most of what we saw today looked European, but there would always be room for the Pacific theater later. The most interesting part of the reveal was probably the new Combined Arms mode, a cooperative mode that places the player in a squad of 4 and complete various tasks before extracting: from what it sounds like, there's a risk/reward mechanic about whether to press on or extract, something that sounds a little like The Division's Dark Zone. There was a rumor that Battlefield 5 would have a battle royale mode to match Fortnite and PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, not to mention Call of Duty: Black Ops 4. That rumor turns out to be true and not true. If players manage to fight to a stalemate in the Grand Operations mode, it will trigger a final, fourth round called Final Stand, where resources are running low and soldiers are left with one clip, fighting until "the last man standing," in the words of the developer.

We've already seen Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, and now it's time to get a look at the competition. EA, DICE and The Daily Show host Trevor Noah are set to reveal Battlefield 5 today at 4:00 p.m. ET, pulling back the curtain on EA's flagship game for the fall release season. We know some things about Battlefield 5, but there are some big questions as well. The first thing to watch for is the setting: it's widely rumored that DICE will be following Battlefield 1 with a game set in World War 2, an idea that the developer appeared to confirm with a teaser featuring WW2-specific iconography. The series started in 2002 with Battlefield 1942, adding in the franchise's signature large-scale combat to what was at the time the standard setting for a AAA shooter.

We recently got a look at Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, and tomorrow it's time for EA and DICE to pull the curtain off of Battlefield 5 in a reveal stream hosted by The Daily Show's Trevor Noah, of all people -- it seems the events department got the memo about the charming if very strange Battlefield 1 reveal in 2016. The Battlefield 5 reveal stream is happening tomorrow, May 23 at 4 p.m. ET. We don't know exactly what to expect, but a new teaser posted on Twitter today would appear to confirm earlier rumors that the series is returning to World War 2 for its 2018 installment, following the successful throwback to World War 1 for Battlefield 1. The teaser isn't all that specific, but as Eurogamer points out the HUD at the top of the screen shows both the British Union Jack and the German Balkenkreuz, used from 1935 until the end of World War 2. The teaser would appear to confirm one big rumor, and the other one is all but assumed to be true at this point. Battlefield 5, already known for large-scale conflict, is expected to add in a battle royale mode to attempt to follow the massive success of Fortnite and PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds.