An image render for a grenade firing crossbow weapon for Battlefield 1 appears online under the profile of DICE lead weapon artist Peter Olofsson Hermanrud.

Even though the massively popular online shooter Battlefield 1 takes the franchise back to World War I, the game still manages to cobble together an interesting list of weapons available for players to use. Though the guns are no where near as technical or advanced as guns in the previous couple of games, players can use classics such as the Martini-Henry, M1911, and even the odd ball but real gun called the Kolibri. If the rumors are true, DICE may have plans to add a few more interesting weapons into the mix.

While browsing the online art profile for Battlefield 1 lead weapon artist Peter Olofsson Hermanrud, the YouTuber known as Westie came across four renders for weapons in the game.  The first three weapons are the Cei-Regotti for Medics, the Harlem Hellfighter trench shotgun for the Assault class, and T.E. Lawrence's SMLE for the scout class. The fourth render however is for a crossbow that fires grenades, something that currently isn't available in the game and indicating a potential for future content.

Unsurprisingly, the weapon image has since been removed from Hermanrud's profile, replaced with two additional renders of existing guns including the MP18 and another scout rifle.

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While having a grenade launcher in a game centered around World War I may seem a little far fetched, it's actually not. According to the video, German soldiers were well known to use a crossbow like propulsion device to launch grenades at enemies from the safety of their trench. Interestingly enough, the British and French developed a crossbow like catapult to counter the German Empire. Considering this is a video game first and foremost, DICE will most likely take some civil liberties in designing this weapon to make sure the weapon is actually fun for players to use rather than being as historically accurate as possible.

DICE isn't shy about introducing interesting weapons into the Battlefield franchise. Battlefield 3 for example also added a crossbow known as the XBOW in the Aftermatch DLC expansion. The weapon also featured unlockable ammunition types such as a scan bolt and an explosive bolt.

Battlefield 1, for all of the weapons it does have, doesn't really feature many options for players who like to make things explode. There's always the rocket gun option, though the choice is limited to the Assault class. The option to add a crossbow that also fires explosives could fill that hole in the weapons list nicely. If this render is indeed for future content, the real question is whether or not this tool will be widely available or limited to a specific class as most gear in the game is.

Would you like to see a weapon like this added to the main game? Should it be restricted to a certain class or available to everyone? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.

Battlefield 1 is available now for Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC.