Aleksander Grøndal, executive producer at DICE, has gone on record stating he wishes the team had added female characters to Battlefield 1 instead of waiting until Battlefield V to do so.

Speaking with GamesRadar+, Grøndal asserted that players being able to express themselves through characters in gameplay is essential, which includes being able to play as women.

"I mean, if we were getting on the bandwagon, I created Battlefield 1, and we could've 'jumped on the bandwagon' that time around,” Grøndal said. "I think it’s a shame we didn’t [add women], because that perhaps would've been better for us. I don’t think it’s a bandwagon thing, I think it’s about gamers wanting to express themselves in different ways."

"If you take a look at Battlefield historically, it’s been about expressing yourself through gameplay, solving problems the way you want to, and these characters fall perfectly in line with that thinking. Of course, any time that someone is upset about some choices that you make in the game, it’s not great. It’s not what you want to do, you want to create a game that’s the best game for all our players," he said.

“We decided to make a game that involved personalizing a character, creating your own company of soldiers. And we thought it was right that you could be able to be whomever you wanted to be in that context. We stand by that. I still think it’s the right thing to do, and I still think it’s the right thing for us as a franchise. It takes a good bit of balancing," Grøndal said.

The inclusion of female characters in Battlefield V has been controversial for some, as many note the historical inaccuracy of having women fighting in World War II as a reason for their dissatisfaction. DICE has pushed back in the past, saying player choice and playable female characters are here to stay, and that the team will always put fun over authenticity.

For more on Battlefield V, check out details on how to get early access to the game’s open beta beginning on September 4. Battlefield V is coming to PC, PS4 and Xbox One on October 19, 2018.

Colin Stevens is a freelance writer for IGN. Follow him on Twitter.