Reports suggest that DICE has already started on the next Battlefield game, after the poor reception, sales and dwindling player counts for Battlefield 2042. One source says that a lot of “valuable lessons” from the unloved shooter and that “I think we’ll be reverting a lot of the changes we made in Battlefield 2042.”
The reporting comes via Xfire and regular Battlefield and EA insider Tom Henderson, and while DICE is still working on supporting and expanding Battlefield 2042, they’re already looking to the next stage for the franchise. This is apparently being given plenty of backing internally, but then that’s not surprising at all when EA previously announced plans for a “connected Battlefield universe” of game experiences with Respawn Entertainment co-founder Vince Zampella taking charge of the franchise’s future development. Battlefield 2042 would have been a cornerstone of that, and especially the hero characters that it introduced becoming regular fixtures.
It’s not clear what the statement about reverting changes would mean, but it feels like the hero characters would be the first thing on the chopping block, reverting to the franchise’s traditional faceless soldiers and set of standard classes. Another area that DICE are already looking at how they can change the way they’re building maps to make them feel more distinct and cohesive within the game’s 128-player battles. 128-players could also potentially on the way out, or at least just one side to a game with multiple game mode sizes.
One thing that Xfire is sure to stay for the next Battlefield is the modern-day or near future setting.
With the game entering pre-production, it will still be a few years away from release, and potentially even a couple years from an announcement. Of course, the biggest question is what on Earth DICE are going to call the next game? The series has bounced wildly between numbers big and small, subtitles and Roman numerals. Will the next Battlefield be Battlefield 6?
Further reading: All Battlefield games ranked in alphanumerical order
For now, DICE will continue to add to Battlefield 2042, with the promise of four seasons of content, with four battle passes and a new specialist for each. The first season was meant to start around March, but with DICE having to focus on fixing Battlefield 2042 bugs and issues through early updates and having to implement standard FPS features like scoreboards and in-game voice chat, Season 1 was postponed to this summer.
In our Battlefield 2042 review we scored it a fair 6 out of 10, knocking points off for clunky design features, yet praising parts of the core tactical gameplay and the genius of Battlefield Portal:
“There’s a good game to be found within the Battlefield 2042 and fun to be had as the spectacle of Battlefield’s signature gameplay is taken to new, more expansive heights, but it’s marred by a handful of unsuccessful gameplay design changes, hurriedly implemented features and bugs at launch.”
Source: Xfire
2ofclubs
Surely it would cost less to fix Battlefield 2042 than create a new game. It’s not beyond redemption and, although I’m not a developer, they feel like fixes that the game structure can accommodate. For instance the portal aspect uses the classic faceless soldiers setup, just bring that into the main game.
Also redemption arcs are possible. Driveclub and No Man’s Sky are two I can think of, GT Sport even. Mechanically 2042 does work, just listen to the community and it could be turned around.