Florian Le Bihan, Competitive Designer on Battlefield 1

When did you realize you were good enough to become a pro player?

When I started playing Battlefield 3 competitively, I continuously improved and ended up becoming one of the best French players. When transitioning to Battlefield 4, I committed myself to improving even further. This led me to win a few tournaments and eventually realize I was quickly reaching the pro level, and ultimately, joining Fnatic is what truly defined me as a pro player.

What stands out about your time playing with your team Fnatic? Any highlights or memories?

Playing for Fnatic on Battlefield 4 was truly one of my best experiences. We won 6 consecutive major tournaments (5 being on Battlefield 4) but if there is one that stands out, it is probably winning the ESL One Fall Season 2014 Finals against Epsilon. We were down 0 – 2 and ended up clinching a 3 – 2 victory, with a really good comeback.

It’s in the moments like this, where your mental strength really gets pushed and you create your truly best moments. 

What was your daily routine as a FPS pro player?

During the week, I would get home from school and warm up for an hour or so, before jumping into 3 or 4-hour long sessions of practice matches against other teams. During weekends, I’d play small tournaments.

How do Battlefield pro players train to better play as a team?

We learn to communicate better with each other, it’s one of the most important factors to having a great team. We also try to understand the strengths of all the players on the team, to build a solid cohesion between everyone.

You participated in the Battlefield Game Changer program. How did you contribute to the Battlefield games development?

I attended Battlefield Game Changer events to provide Battlefield dev teams with feedback from a competitive standpoint. One of the things that matters most to me, is the whole core gameplay experience. It’s what will always get me to come back to the game if it feels rewarding, challenging and fun to play.

You were a part of the Battlefield 1 Squads event at EA PLAY 2016. What stands out about that experience?

The Battlefield 1 Squads event was a great opportunity for me to get in touch with content creators and other Game Changers, to share experiences, ideas, moments etc… It really showed me that we all shared the same experiences. It also taught me that not everyone wants to be a competitive player, but everyone always loves to be challenged.

When did you realize you wanted to be a part of the Battlefield franchise?

Since I really started making Battlefield my main game to play, I’ve always been looking forward to the franchise including a real competitive experience. For a lot of years Battlefield attracted tons of players to play competitively without a true support for something they really loved organizing on their own. 

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How did you join the Battlefield team? What was that transition like?

After playing Battlefield 4 competitively for Fnatic, I moved to a management experience for about a year, where I had the opportunity to learn more about the esports industry.

This is something I was really passionate about and I wasn’t really looking to move away from that… Until, I received an offer for a position at DICE.

It was a bit of a cornelian dilemma, making a choice between two things you really are passionate about is not easy. I told myself I would probably not have this opportunity again with DICE and I would regret not accepting it. To this day I don’t regret that decision!

Tell us about your role with the Battlefield team.

My title is Competitive Designer. On a daily basis, I work on creating designs for a large variety of aspects of the game including gameplay, game modes and map design and for Battlefield 1 and Battlefield 1 Incursions.

I also look at the entire Battlefield experience and evaluate how we can make our game a more challenging experience, where the gameplay is exciting enough to make you want to become better and better. I am not specifically working on only one aspect of the game, I tend to work across multiple fronts. One day I could be working on map design, another day on core gameplay and another day on game modes.

What is it like working on Battlefield?

It’s a truly great experience. I get to work with some of the most talented people in the gaming industry and more importantly, there isn’t a day that goes by where I don’t learn something new. It’s amazing to know that you can change what Battlefield is, and what it can be in the future.

Are there any quick tips or tricks you can share with players looking to get better at Battlefield?

Play Battlefield 1 Incursions, you will get to play against some of the best players and you will learn from them quickly! 

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