Years after perhaps the most disastrous addition in the series, Battlefield 6 signals a return to form (and a modern setting). Launching on October 10th for Xbox Series X/S, PS5 and PC, it promises everything that fans have wanted and more, including the return of a single-player campaign. Let’s dive into everything you should know about the sequel before launch.
The Biggest Battlefield to Date
It’s no secret that Electronic Arts is investing a lot into the newest Battlefield. Touted as the “biggest Battlefield ever,” it features the combined efforts of DICE, Ripple Effect Studios, Motive Studio and Criterion Games (known collectively as the highly original Battlefield Studios). Not only did EA completely overhaul its pipeline for developing the sequel, but it also put other projects, including the next Need for Speed, on the back burner. Whether those internal projections of 100 million lifetime players are true or not, this is make-or-break for the franchise.
Campaign
Of course, in terms of scale, Battlefield 6 is a clear step up over its predecessor, thanks to the inclusion of a solo campaign. Focusing on NATO as it battles the mercenary-filled PMC Pax Armata, players control Dagger 1-3 as they battle it out worldwide in different locations. We’ve seen some interesting faces thus far, but how it will measure up to the series’ best (read: Bad Company 2) remains to be seen.
Classes
Specialists are officially out as multiplayer returns to the Class system that put it on the map. Four classes are available at launch: Assault, Engineer, Recon, and Support. Each has unique perks and gadgets alongside Training Paths, which offer branching benefits as you complete objectives or aid your team. For instance, a Recon can either venture down the Sniper path for headshots that enemies can’t revive from or the Pathfinder route, where damaged enemies are spotted for the team. Both lead to summoning a UAV for passively spotting hostiles in a marked position. And though every class can use every weapon (unless it’s a Closed Weapons playlist), each has a Signature Weapon that they gain exclusive benefits from. Engineers gain improved SMG hipfire, Support doesn’t have any penalties to sprint speed with LMGs, and so on.
All Multiplayer Modes
Classic modes like Conquest, Breakthrough, Rush, Domination, Squad Deathmatch, Team Deathmatch, and King of the Hill all return in Battlefield 6. A few are somewhat the worse for wear (Rush and its smaller team sizes), but there are also new modes like Escalation, where teams battle to seize control points that dwindle with every capture, creating a much more tense atmosphere.
Multiple Maps
There are multiple maps to play through, from the Iberian Offensive to Empire State. 128-player lobbies are gone as Battlefield 6 returns to the more traditional 64-player lobbies. However, its maps are also broken up into Combat Zones with different conditions for use in modes like Domination or Deathmatch. Much has been said about the overall scale of the beta’s maps, but DICE has confirmed that there are larger spaces to fight across.
Over 40 Weapons
The beta already highlighted an impressive repertoire of weapons from the classic M4A1 and the M417 A2 to DMRs like the M39 EMPR and SVK 8.6 and bolt-action M2010 ESR. However, there will be many more at launch, with DICE previously confirming over 40 weapons in the full game.
New Gadgets and Drag Reviving
There are new gadgets to engage with, including a sledgehammer, and features like dragging while reviving allies significantly change up the overall strategy and game feel. And while movement in the beta received extensive criticism, there will be several changes in the full game to punish continuously sliding and jumping in gunfights.
Battle Royale
Battle Royale returns, and it sees 100 players split into 25 squads battling it out over a brand new map with various points of interest, vehicles (including armored variants), missions, loot and extensive destruction. The goal is to be the last squad remaining, but unlike other battle royale games, the ring will instantly kill on contact.
Portal
If you’re interested in creating your own Battlefield experiences, then Portal is worth looking into. You can set various mutators and rule sets or go even more in-depth with map editing, AI scripting, and even custom UI scripting. Best of all, playing Verified Community Experiences in this mode will grant full XP, and players can host their own servers.
Server Browser
Of course, there’s always the demand for a server browser, and while DICE was going for some hybrid approach with Portal, it confirmed that a proper browser will be available for testing in Battlefield Labs. It’s still very much a work-in-progress, and whether it launches with the titles remains to be seen, but better late than never.
PC Requirements
In terms of PC hardware, Battlefield 6 isn’t too demanding. Minimum requirements include Windows 10, AMD Ryzen 5 2600 or Intel Core i5-8400, 16 GB of RAM and a Radeon RX 5600 XT 6GB, an Nvidia RTX 2060 or an Intel Arc A380 with 55 GB installation space. Recommended requirements include Windows 11, a Ryzen 7 3700X or Core i7-10700, 16 GB RAM, and a Radeon RX 6700-XT, an RTX 3060 Ti or an Intel Arc B580 with 90 GB install space. For those craving Ultra settings at 4K/60 FPS, a Core i9-12900K or Ryzen 7 7800X3D, 32 GB of RAM and an RTX 4080 or a Radeon RX 7900 XTX are required.
Quality and Performance Modes on Consoles
Those on consoles can look forward to an average of 80 FPS or higher on Xbox Series X and PS5 in Performance Mode, with Quality Mode promising at least 60 FPS alongside higher graphical fidelity. Despite difficulties optimising for Xbox Series S, it will still offer 60 FPS at 1080p resolution.
How Crossplay Works
Crossplay is confirmed between Xbox Series X/S, PS5, and PC, but it works differently from other multiplayer titles. Consoles will prioritize matching with each other before roping in PC players. As combat designer Matthew Nickerson explained to IGN, “If you’re a console player, we are looking for other console players in a set time frame, and then if we need to fill up the lobby more, we will look towards PC players. We’re very confident but also very keen to know what crossplay means for Battlefield 6. We’ve gone the extra mile and put in a lot of effort in terms of balancing the inputs, understanding where the inputs lie [not just] in terms of relationship to general play styles but general performance of what they’re good at and maybe what they lack.”
Class Changes Since Beta
Whether you enjoyed what the beta’s classes had to offer or not, further adjustments are incoming. Ripple Effect’s creative director, Thomas Andersson, told EDGE magazine that the Assault and Support classes were seeing some changes, the former having “reduced efficiency in some areas.” They’ll also be the class with the deploy beacon to cater to the “behind enemy lines” nature of the role.
Post-Launch Seasons
Similar to its predecessor, Battlefield 6 will feature post-launch seasons, adding new weapons, maps, gadgets, and a Battle Pass. Features that affect gameplay are “free or earnable” for all players, while the Battle Pass is paid (alongside any tier skips). And since this is Electronic Arts, you’ll likely see a range of other microtransactions for cosmetics and consumables like XP Tokens as well.
