In light of complaints over Battlefield 2042, Electronic Arts has released an official announcement detailing the roadmap for the next two updates, including fixes aimed at performance and gameplay balance. As well as outlining the two future updates, the company has also provided commentary on the performance of Battlefield 2042 since release, and has committed to keeping gamers informed through official posts and social media.
Battlefield 2042 has not had a smooth launch, with the game plagued by various issues including glitches, bugs, and performance problems. The game was originally planned to launch in October but ended up being pushed back to November 19, with EA DICE running a beta test for the game in October instead. Since the beta and now full launch, Battlefield 2042 players have seen multiple bugs and glitches, ranging from visual issues impacting individual users, to gameplay bugs that require game features to be disabled. Aside from performance issues, fans have been divided over Battlefield 2042's decision to remove the class-based system from the previous titles in the series, replacing the system with Battlefield specialists.
In an EA website post, the company announced the areas of focus that the next two Battlefield 2042 updates are set to address, including performance and server stability, gunplay and balance, and solo/co-op and Custom Portal Experience progression. On performance and server stability, EA notes that server stability is largely performing as expected, but stated it's working to fix servers that aren’t correctly registering hitmarkers. Plans to ensure framerates remain consistent and high even on lower-spec PC hardware are also in the works, while a fix has been found for PC players who've noticed an "odd inconsistency with the behaviour of aiming, relative to your mouse sensitivity settings."
See the post on Twitter here.
As for gunplay and balance, EA has identified some major aspects that the next two updates will work to address. To begin with, gunplay will see various global changes in Update #2, including a reduction in spread and faster recoil reset times. EA also mentions that, in Battlefield 2042, developers have a greater ability to address balance issues without the need for a full game update, allowing for fine-tuning as the metagame evolves between patches. Vehicles, which have been a key aspect of the Battlefield series, are also an area of focus for EA, with the company specifically addressing and fixing overperformance of certain vehicles such as reducing the health of the Hovercraft. EA also reveals that imbalances in earn rates across modes, and the creation of XP-farming servers, have caused built-in limiters to not work as intended. Lastly, the post concludes with a more exhaustive list of fixes, changes, and improvements, including various quality-of-life updates and smaller fixes, such as issues with identification highlighted during the Battlefield 2042 beta.
While it's positive news that the developers seem to be actively listening to player feedback and working quickly to implement changes and fixes, the scale of some of the changes may raise some concerns. The universal changes to gunplay are a fairly significant choice that incorporate some risk, especially because the game has fully launched and is no longer in early access or beta. With the breadth of core features, including voice chat, still to be added to Battlefield 2042, along with the impending holiday season and the launch of competitors like Halo Infinite's multiplayer and Call of Duty: Vanguard, buyers of Battlefield 2042 may be wondering it the updates are too little, too late.
The new game updates and fixes are set to be implemented by early December, but it could still be some time before the game reaches the standard many fans were expecting at launch. With the shooter space growing increasingly competitive, EA is attempting to offer gameplay and features that may appeal to fans of other FPS titles, such as Hazard Zone for Escape from Tarkov players or the Specialist system for Rainbow Six: Siege fans, which could cement it as a solid game once its myriad of issues have been addressed. EA expects Battlefield 2042 to be a service well into the future, and early lessons learned from the launch may be vital in ensuring the long-term success of the game.
Source: Electronic Arts