Electronic Arts (EA) has issued a warning to playtesters this weekend – stream, post, or otherwise leak footage of Battlefield 2042 and face the consequences. As reported by Eurogamer, multiple videos and photos from within technical test for EA and DICE’s next entry in the Battlefield franchise were leaked. This content violates the NDA all playtesters have to sign to play.
NDAs, or non-disclosure agreements, are documents to prevent information developers and game publishers from going public. It is a very standard practice within the entertainment industry for closed betas or early screenings for movies to sign an NDA. Those that break the NDA are liable for legal action or lifetime bans from future opportunities from a specific company.
Despite the potential consequences, some have streamed and posted footage of Battlefield 2042 over the last two days online, which has prompted EA to issue the warning. EA is still attempting to take down the footage, some of which lasts well over 10 minutes (though not the most riveting footage in some cases.)
EA Studios Europe community manager Adam Freeman said that offenders of the NDA “don’t want to share your account information with folks… that’s going to end badly for you. Super Badly,” on Twitter.
|6.| Break the rules, expect to lose access to both the Technical Playtest, future EA Tests, and potentially access to 2042 itself when it releases.
We've already removed plenty of people from the Playtest in these past 48 hours, and they won't be able to play this weekend. pic.twitter.com/EIWaIHIMT2
— Freeman (@PartWelsh) August 13, 2021
It remains to be seen whether or not those violating the NDA will heed the warning or invoke the wrath of EA’s copyright teams. Accounts flagged for violating NDA also need to worry if they are a content creator. Streamers and YouTubers could see their accounts hit with copyright claims or get suspended if caught.
Another test for the multiplayer-only Battlefield 2042 is planned for September in open beta, where most leaks will be impossible. The current technical test has PC and Xbox players (not in crossplay yet), with another test weekend planned for PlayStation after a “critical error” canceled this weekend’s test. It is still unclear what error has caused the problem for PS5, but it is believed to be resolved by next weekend.
Source: Eurogamer, Twitter/PartWelsh
