In case you missed it, yesterday DICE gave us our first look at Battlefield 2042, the newest addition to the franchise during their live-stream event hosted on YouTube. It came after much speculation and teasing, the last of which was on 1 June. The developer is looking to shake things up in the franchise since its last two games, Battlefield 1 (2016) and Battlefield V (2018), both of which failed to match the success of the very popular and still played, Battlefield 4 (2013).
Battlefield 2042 takes the franchise to the year, wait for it, 2042. Bet you didn’t see that one coming. So while it looks to be more advanced than its World War 1 & 2 predecessors, it isn’t going all the way to giant walking mechs and laser cannons as seen in Battlefield 2142 (2006).
What’s with Battlefield and all the 42s
Borrowing a page from the first of the franchise Battlefield 1942, 2042 will be dropping the single-player campaign altogether. This is disappointing but not much of a surprise considering more games are focusing solely on the multiplayer component. Instead, the narrative aspect of Battlefield 2042 will unfold through season events, not unlike Apex Legends, as the franchise turns to the now all-too-familiar, ‘games as a live service’ model.
As for gameplay, you’ll have to wait until 13 June to see any of it but DICE has given us a breakdown of what we can expect from the game modes. “All-out warfare” will feature familiar game modes like Conquest and Breakthrough on larger maps, with up to 128 players if you’re playing on PC or current-gen consoles, and 64 players on previous-gen consoles.
“Hazard Zone” is labelled as being “a modern take on the multiplayer experience” with “high-stakes” in a squad-based game mode, which leads us to believe it isn’t a battle royale. The same can’t be said about the third game mode which is redacted until 22 July where it will be revealed live during EA Play.
How special are they really?
DICE have also said that “Specialists” will be replacing the class system. These characters will have the same guns, gadgets, and grenades available to them but each will also have a unique trait or ability, like a grappling hook or sentry turret, allowing players to “build synergies within your squad”.
While we’re sceptical to get our hopes up, this reveal has us interested in what DICE, and the new Frostbite 4 engine, has in store. Here’s to hoping they can bring the franchise back to its former glory and we can have more of this.
