If you’re a PC-owning fan of DICE’s Battlefield series, and you’ve never tried your hand at Battlefield 1942, then good news: the game is now free in honor of the series’ 10th birthday.

“Since the beginning, the reception to the Battlefield series has been incredible thanks to our amazing fans,” DICE vice president and general manager Karl Magnus Troedsson said on the official Battlefield blog. “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.”

Battlefield 1942 is now up on EA’s Origin e-store under the “free games and demos” section. So, yes–you’ll have to use Origin to get your free copy, for those of you who are die-hard devotees to Steam.

Also, there’s a few catches. Don’t expect to get Battlefield 1942‘s expansion packs–The Road to Rome, and Secret Weapons—for free as well, because you’re not getting them! And this new Origin-powered version of the game will only play with others who got Battlefield 1942 through Origin, so original physical copies aren’t invited to the party.

On the upside, the game is—of course—free, you can run standard and dedicated servers for the game, and EA themselves have “EA PUBLIC” servers up and running should you want to go that route.

Source: Battlefield Blog