The Battlefield Blog announces DICE is handing out free copies of Battlefield 1942 on Origin as part of their celebration of the 10th anniversary of the Battlefield series of military first-person shooters (thanks Charles). This is accompanied by an electronic art booklet for this Electronic Arts game, saying this "contains a number of concepts showing visual and gameplay targets that the DICE team had more than ten years ago when they set out to create the game of their dreams," though they also warn the 1920x1080 presentation weighs in at over 150 MB. There is an accompanying FAQ confirming this is a free release of the original game, that it does not include either of its expansions, that players of the free version cannot play in the same games as owners of the original on-disc version (though owners of the disc version can obviously get the free version), and that they are running public servers in addition to anyone's ability to run a dedicated server. Here's word:

We are very happy and proud to be able to give you Battlefield 1942, the game that started it all. Now available for free* on Origin as a digital download for the first time, everyone will be able to download and play this original PC game that helped define DICE and the multiplayer shooter genre.

Karl Magnus Troedsson, Vice President and General Manager of DICE, has a message to all of our fans:

“Since the beginning, the reception to the Battlefield series has been incredible thanks to our amazing fans. Every day, we strive to provide our community with great games and new ways to play as evident with Battlefield 3 Premium. We wanted to thank our fans who have supported us throughout the years with a chance to go back and play the game that started it all.”