Battlefield 3 executive producer Patrick Bach recently discussed the concessions that needed to be made in order to get Battlefield 3's multiplayer running smoothly on home consoles.

Speaking with GameZone.de, Bach explained the decision to trim the multiplayer count for console versions of Battlefield 3 by pointing out what else would have to be cut from the game to support 64 players. "We tried to get more players in [to the console version] but then you need to scale down all the graphics, scale down all the destructibility, and sometimes you need to scale down all the map sizes. Everything is a compromise on: where do you cut?"

Reducing the max player count to 24 also cutting the size of some maps, but Bach was quick to point out that this will lead to more fun, not less. "When we say they are smaller, it's not that we have cut them in half. But we tried to compact them slightly to keep the action up. If you compare it to Battlefield: Bad Company 2, the maps weren't really small on console. We actually had huge maps even for console. We have the same kind of angle on it right now [in Battlefield 3]. We want to create the same experience for PC as for consoles."

While I would love to partake in 64-player battles on my 360 or PS3, the fact remains that 24 players is still more than most first-person shooters support, and DICE's Bad Company 2 had some of the largest multiplayer maps on consoles -- so don't let the news get you too upset.

[Translation via CVG]