Reviews leading up to the release of Battlefield 2042 on November 19 have been quite mixed, with praise and problems in equal measure. The game appears to be a massive step in a new - or perhaps old - direction for the series, bringing back the size of past installments while replacing the traditional four classes with the 10 Battlefield 2042 Specialists. However, reviewers who have gotten to play the game and fans who have played the beta have been left uncertain by DICE’s daringness with its new title.
Battlefield 2042 marks a sharp turn in the direction of the series that may seem familiar to fans who have played older installments. The three most recent releases in the series stepped away from the massive scope of past Battlefield titles even while DICE increased the size of lobbies. Though only 20 players could participate in Team Deathmatch battles in Battlefield 4 compared to Battlefield Hardline’s 64, the actual experience of fighting was always grander in the former game because of its maps and vehicles. Though Battlefield 1 seemed to lean back in this direction - especially in its DLC maps - its follow-up did not follow suit, which resulted in Battlefield V becoming a firestorm of negativity and one of the most negatively reviewed games in the series yet.
DICE seems to have heard the complaints about Battlefield V, as Battlefield 2042 has shown itself to reclaim the larger-than-life battle experiences that defined earlier titles in the series. Lobbies can now host an astonishing 128 soldiers who are ready to battle out in the game’s humongous maps, some of which even include natural disasters such as tornadoes to liven up the experience. However, the introduction of the Specialists and the problems that come with huge lobbies may be a detriment to the game.
Though the game is set to launch on November 19, Battlefield 2042 has proven a buggy mess for players who bought the gold and ultimate versions and have gotten to play it early. Having bugs in a game right after its release is an annoying but fairly normal occurrence that is usually fixed within weeks the developers. Battlefield 2042’s issues may spell more future problems, however, as they could be related to the game’s size. One of the biggest issues that’s been reported is that players cannot connect to servers or load into games. Given that there is a limited player base who are available to play at the moment, the connection problem could become exaggerated once the game releases to larger audiences. This makes the huge lobbies a double-edged sword for Battlefield 2042: the scope of combat is immense, but it may be too immense for servers to handle.
Battlefield 2042’s introduction of Specialists has also proven to be a troubling matter. While it is incredibly exciting to see an FPS finally change a major way its fighting functions—the near yearly releases of copy and paste Call of Duty games has left the genre tired—the 10 Specialists may provide an unwelcome if not underwhelming addition to the Battlefield franchise. Reviews have pointed out that the Specialists can diversify play but only to a certain degree, as they do not provide functions that drastically change how a team can fight. This places the Specialists in a limbo state in which some fans will think they are too big of a change from the four original classes while others will want Specialists to change the game even more.
Nevertheless, Battlefield 2042 has proven to be a very ambitious game from DICE. The 128-player lobby sizes are nothing to scoff at, and the new Specialists at least go a good ways toward keeping things away from being too formulaic. Though it has its problems, Battlefield 2042 can at least be appreciated for its boldness.