Battlefield 4 shown behind closed doors

Battlefield 4 doesn't officially exist, but that hasn't stopped EA touring it behind closed doors.

"Got to see Battlefield 4 today and all I can say is wow. Thanks EA for the sneak peek. Can’t wait for you all to see it," GameStop CEO J Paul Raines commented via the retail chain's official Twitter account.

The tweet has not been deleted and EA's own Twitter account retweeted it, suggesting both companies were comfortable dropping the information.

Battlefield 4 - or at least, a new Battlefield game of some kind - is kind of an open secret, as EA has been clear about its plans to release a new shooter every year, with Battlefield taking its turn biennually.

The really interesting question is what hardware the DICE effort will launch on; EA flat out admitted it has next-generation FIFA and Battlefield titles in the works during its recent financial report.

There is some confusion as to when the new Battlefield game will surface as EA mentioned in its financial call that it expects the launch"next year". If that means fiscal 2014, it could be any time from March 2013 onwards, as EA's financial year runs out of sync with the calendar.

If a new Battlefield turns up in the 2013 holidays, as EA's regular shooter release pattern would suggest, it's going to have quite a short PR cycle; I wonder what might have caused that? Just kidding - it's because the hardware hasn't been announced yet. Thanks for kicking that off, Sony.