It might be fast approaching its first birthday, but Battlefield 1 is showing no signs of slowing down any time soon. On the contrary, during its Gamescom 2017 presentation, EA announced that a brand-new, 10-person competitive mode titled ‘Incursion’ is currently in development.

‘Incursion’ pits 2 teams of 5 players against each other in specially designed, intimate maps providing “fast, strategic gameplay”. Additionally, the scoring system has been re-jigged in order to ensure every point matters and has a noticeable impact on the outcome of the match, while, by asking players to select their kit (sub-divisions of the existing quartet of classes, complete with unique abilities, equipment etc.) before the contest begins, there’s an even heavier emphasis on teamwork. “Kit play is going to be one of the most important factors, which brings in something we haven’t seen in any other competitive game” says Battlefield 1 fan Hussain Al-Abedy aka Doom49. Not sure I totally agree with the second half of his statement, but still, sounds interesting.

EA has also claimed ‘Incursion’ will be as fun to watch as it is to play, signalling the publisher’s intent to tap the burgeoning eSports market with Battlefield 1.

Unfortunately, the new mode is “super early” in production, according to associate producer Jojje Dalunde, so it’ll probably be a fair while before it’s available for general consumption. However, a closed alpha is scheduled to commence next month on PC for those who’re eager to give it a try. To register, click on this link to the official site.

In the meantime, 3 additional DLC expansions are due to release over the coming months, following on from They Shall Not Pass: the first such update which introduced the French army, 2 new ‘Operations’, and 6 maps. And no, I don’t understand either why we had to wait months for the French to be included in a game set during a war in which they played an active part from start to finish.

Those who own a base copy of the game can pick up the $49.99/£39.99 season pass if they’re interested in experiencing this and everything else Battlefield 1 has to offer, otherwise, as revealed by EA during yesterday’s conference, a game of the year-style edition titled Battlefield 1 Revolution is now available for purchase. Adhering to the usual paradigm, this particular version includes both the game itself and the aforementioned season pass, and will set players back a hefty $59.99/£54.99.