The next entry in EA's Battlefield franchise abandons the series' traditional military setting in favor of the urban battlegrounds patrolled by civilian police officers, according to a handful of assets leaked by the publisher alongside its latest Battlelog update.

Unlike past entries in the series, Battlefield Hardline will not be developed by DICE, but is instead being crafted by Dead Space developer Visceral Games. Despite this, and the change of setting, the game includes at least four distinct character classes, a multiplayer map dubbed "Downtown" and game modes with such names as "Blood Money" and "Bomb Squad." The fan-favorite "Carrier Assault" mode was also listed among the Battlefield Hardline assets.

The Battlefield Daily Twitter feed also found images representing the awards to be found in Battlefield Hardline. Each icon looks similar to those found inBattlefield 4, though in lieu of that game's military theme, these awards feature handcuffs, bags of cash (complete with cartoonish money symbols) and a grappling hook - implements you'd expect to see in a bank heist, but not in a Chinese warzone.

There's currently no word on when Battlefield Hardline might debut, though it seems very likely that EA will share more on the game at the upcoming E3 conference. We've attempted to contact the publisher in the meantime, in the hopes that it might want to shed light on things a bit early, but have so far received no response.

http://www.joystiq.com/2014/05/27/fa...ice-themed-sh/