Pre-production has reportedly begun on the next Battlefield game, and will see the series revert to its familiar roots after changes introduced in Battlefield 2042 weren’t well-received.
According to a report on XFire–who previously suggested a free-to-play mode may be in development–developer DICE has learned “valuable lessons” from Battlefield 2042 and will no longer be using that game as the new foundation for the long-running FPS franchise. One former developer who recently departed from DICE after the launch of Battlefield 2042 had suggested that the next Battlefield was at one point being designed to be even more of a “hero shooter” style of game.
It’s claimed that recent playtest and feedback sessions were focused on the class system in Battlefield 2042, and this resulted in these plans being changed so that specialist roles will be tied more closely to classes. XFire also reported that the next Battlefield will be set in the modern-day or near future once again, as opposed to Battlefield 2042 which takes place several decades from now in a world where climate change has created a paradigm shift in society.
As for Battlefield 2042’s future, EA and DICE are still required to release new specialists, modes, weapons, vehicles, and maps as part of its battle pass obligations, which is being handled by a dedicated team within DICE.
It’s not known how the invasion of Ukraine will affect the development on the USA vs. Russia lore of Battlefield 2042, as EA recently removed Russia from several of its sports games and halted sales to the country and its ally Belarus.
In other Battlefield 2042 news, DICE released a patch earlier this month that added the first in a long list of legacy features to the game and the development team has been shaken up so that the brand can be grown. The latest entry in the Battlefield series failed to reach expectations for EA, but the company still recorded a record Q3 period last year.
GameSpot has contacted EA for comment, and we’ll update the post as soon as we hear back.
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