It seems like every time I've seen Battlefield Heroes at one EA event or another, it's been on the verge of actually, finally coming out. EA and DICE have been talking up this cartoonish, free-to-play spin-off of the core Battlefield series for well over a year now, but the date for open sign-ups--which will effectively serve as the release date--keeps slipping back.
Now, EA reps assure us Heroes' open beta will really, truly begin within the somewhat nebulous period of "summer," which I'm guessing translates into "sometime in the next four months." They say they'll provide a more specific date in the next couple of weeks.
That's good news, because what I've played of Heroes so far is good, clean fun that hearkens back to the early days of Battlefield: players riding on the wings of planes, dudes getting blown sky-high by tanks blasts, all that kind of silliness. The big unknown with Heroes is how EA will handle the microtransactions that support the game's continued availability. Convenience items like double experience points are one thing, but I hope we don't see people running around with bigger, better guns just because they opted to throw down some coin.
If you've been living under a rock, here's the latest trailer to show you what Heroes is all about.
As for microtransactions as a form of payment I'm gonna guess players will be able to pay money to buy outfits and run around dressed as a pirate instead of the drab, dark basic uniform that is the default outfit. For items everyone seems to be on a level playing field in that, the more kills and matches won the more XP you have to spare on new items, abilities etc.
The downside is that you only get to use / keep these items / abilities or outfits for a finite time. I think one gun I bought with my XP had a 1 week lifespan before it would be removed and I'd have to buy it again.