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What battle of World War II is depicted in this Battlefield V level?

Credit goes to the game makers of course, as it is their property.

Slight update: I cannot quite remember the map name, but I think that it involves British forces.

Here are a few pictures:

Enter image description here Enter image description here Enter image description here Enter image description here

I would suspect that it takes place in France based on the settings, and that it revolves around the bridge, but I am not quite sure at all.

A couple of more are below. Perhaps the soldier uniforms might help?

Enter image description here Enter image description here

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    What forces are involved?
    – justCal
    May 4, 2019 at 3:47
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    What's the map name?
    – T.E.D.
    May 4, 2019 at 4:40
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    Litteraly typing "battlefield 5 bridge" in a well known search engine pointed to this link which describes a map that look very much like the one in your pictures. It is said there that this map is fictional and not based on a particular historical event, even though it takes place in France and "is heavily inspired by the events at the fortified sector of the river Escaut in 1940, on the border between Belgium and France.". If this is indeed your map, then you can self-answer.
    – Kaiido
    May 4, 2019 at 15:24

3 Answers 3

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I would have guessed it had to do with "Operation Market Garden" myself, but the developers of the game said this about that map,

"The map takes place along the Escaut river in the northern French countryside during the German invasion in May 1940. Their advance north towards the channel threatened to encircle the Allies' eastern extent into Belgium - in response, a number of defensive lines were hastily established along the Scheldt, Scarpe and Meuse rivers." Twisted Steel Wiki

So the answer is the map is a representation of the Escaut river bridge during the German invasion in 1940. Though the official EA blog states it is not representative of any actual battle.

"While not portraying a specific historical event, Twisted Steel is heavily inspired by the events at the fortified sector of the river Escaut in 1940, on the border between Belgium and France." Twisted Steel Map

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Update:

Images of appropriate bridges are hard to come by, but if the swampy/flooded terrain shown under the bridge is at all accurate, I believe the battle shown must be the Russian Novgorod–Luga Offensive against the German 18th Army in January 1944. In particular, I believe it is the fight for the bridge marked in red here:

Enter image description here

For a game developer it is vitally important to get terrain details correct in order to present any feeling of true simulation to the player - while building details are much less important to get correct beyond period-authenticity. The type of arched metal bridge illustrated was ubiquitous in the early and mid-20th century, particularly in areas where steel (strong in tension) was more readily available than concrete (strong in compression). Steel is strong in tension, so support arch is above roadway in tension rather than below the roadway in compression. Such bridges are still found throughout the Greater Pittsburgh area today. They also provide full clearance under the entirety of each span, rather than just in the centre - important for shipping underneath with tall masts.

Note also that, except for a brief (and quickly cancelled due to friendly-fire casualties) experiment by the U.S. in June 1944, I believe only German SS troops wore camouflage battle-dress in the European Theatre of World War Two.


It's not the British 1st Airborne assault on Pegasus Bridge in the early morning of June 6, 1944:

Enter image description here

Neither is it either of the Arnhem Bridge

enter image description here

or the Nijmegen bridge,

enter image description here

in Operation Market Garden, both of which are set in very urban terrain.

Then I considered the Battle for the Scheldt Estuary, and in particular the assault on Walcheren Island - but that was over a causeway and not a bridge. This battle was appealing because the Germans did flood the Scheldt Estuary, which would match the flooded terrain seen under the bridge of the second screenshot. However a causeway is essentially a dike with a road running down its length - nothing like the raised trestle bride shown.

The closest I could find, from battles to leap to my memory, is the Grave Bridge over the Maas south-west of Nijmegen during Operation market Garden:

Enter image description here

It was secured against very little opposition by the 82nd Airborne on the first morning of the battle. But it again is not really a very good match to either the graphics portrayed or the battle illustrated.

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The bridge from your first image looks like the Ludendorff Bridge. The Nazis had demolition charges in place and tried to blow it up, but it survived. The Allies captured it on March 7 1945 and the bridge eventually failed 10 days later, during the Battle of Remagen.

Bridge photo

Bridge photo

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  • @RewanDemontay: the bridge collapsed in March 1945, so I sincerely doubt there are that many good pictures. I suggested it because the shape was very similar. May 4, 2019 at 13:22
  • @RewanDemontay: dunno, it seems the similarity between the bridge in the first image in OP's question should be self-explanatory and not even worth mentioning. this bridge is the only similar looking one when you google image search for "bridge battle ww2", and from the looks of it was one of the last one standing bridges over the Rhine at the time. May 4, 2019 at 13:34
  • @RewanDemontay It's likely the game designers have not made a level that's a historically accurate depiction of a particular battlefield. Rather they have taken elements such as a bridge very like the Ludendorff bridge to make a composite.
    – Sarriesfan
    May 4, 2019 at 16:24

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