In a new interview, Battlefield 1 multiplayer producer Andreas Morell talks about a number of new features, including what appears to be an updated hand-to-hand combat system.

The recent reveal of Battlefield 1 has undoubtedly generated a considerable amount of pre-release hype for the game, so much so that EA's CEO has declared the title to be the "biggest and most innovative" in the franchise. While players will have to wait until this year's E3 before they can get a glimpse of Battlefield 1 and its 64-person multiplayer combat, the game's multiplayer producer, Andreas Morell, dropped a few teases on some of the game's new features, including a new melee system.

Speaking to Official Xbox Magazine, Morell talked of a new melee system that the team are implementing for Battlefield 1's multiplayer. While he didn't go into specific details, Morell stated that since World War 1 battles were primarily fought on the ground before the era of machine guns, hand-to-hand combat back then was "almost medieval," and the development team is aiming to bring this "brutal and personal" combat aspect to Battlefield 1.

"When you look at the kind of all-out war, you have air, land, sea and a big part of the fighting on the actual ground was almost the – if you put yourself in the position of the soldiers back then when they got their state-of- the-art machine guns, but then they can turn the corner and then there is a guy with a big trench mace, it’s almost medieval and it’s that clash of those two worlds that we felt like this is really something that we need to have in the game and it really adds something to it. It’s a brutal side to – brutal and personal side to kind of the combat in Battlefield 1."

As for some of Battlefield 1's other features, Morell confirmed that Battlefield 4 and Hardline's levolution mechanic will be making a return, and that the development team are aiming for more "dynamic destruction" this time around. He also confirmed that battleships will be present in Battlefield 1, but stopped short of discussing anything regarding zeppelins, except that more information will be revealed later on. With EA's recent worries over the lack of World War 1 knowledge in its younger audience, the inclusion of era-accurate battleships and zeppelins is sure to provide an extra level of interest beyond shooting at people.

While the game will undoubtedly feature some minor inaccuracies, Morell's statements on era-accurate vehicles and melee combat highlights are just part of EA's effort in ensuring that Battlefield 1 will be somewhat historically accurate. Considering how well-received the reveal trailer and Battlefield 1's new setting was, it almost seems surprising that EA very nearly scrapped the game's World War 1 setting.

With a new take on World War I, new combat vehicles, and what hopefully will be a new era-accurate hand-to-hand combat system, it will be interesting to see how well all these new features will gel when Battlefield 1 is released in a few months time.

Battlefield 1 is scheduled for release on October 21 for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.

Source: Official Xbox Magazine (via GamesRadar)