Confirmed during the Battlefield 2042 official “Battlefield Briefing” stream on Twitch today, lead game designers confirmed that Battlefield 2042’s new maps and specialists would cost nothing, so as to prevent a split of the player base across paid-for DLC maps and paid-for Specialists.
This was a massive problem in Battlefield V and other Battlefield games in the past. DLC maps often split the servers and mean newcomers can’t always enjoy everything the game has to offer. Unlike previous Battlefield games, new content will be completely free.
https://twitter.com/Battlefield/status/1404814825113493506
Each Battle Pass will include the new maps, four new specialists, and other unconfirmed core gameplay content. There are four seasons planned for the first year of the game’s lifecycle. It’s pretty exciting to see DICE lay out a clear plan for the Live Service part of Battlefield after the failure of Battlefield V.
Though the core content will be free, there is a paid version of the Battlefield 2042 Battle Pass that will include cosmetics. This will likely follow the pattern of previous cosmetics in Battlefield, with skins for soldiers and vehicles.
It’s pretty clear that Specialists are going to be the main change in Battlefield. Though the class system still exists in the game, Specialists will be the way that each individual’s experience will be shaped in the game. Thank you, DICE, for not charging for the privilege.
During today’s behind-the-scenes Battlefield stream, it was confirmed that Specialists will be able to change up their gadgets, weapons, and this will have a big impact on how the game plays. An example was: Recon specialists (more are going to be confirmed) can carry a shotgun as their secondary, and change up their class gadgets alongside their Specialist gadget.
Other news from today’s stream confirmed the sheer size of the maps, more about the dynamic weather on the various levels, as well as a small deep-dive into one of the new game modes: Hazard Zone.
The devs were quick to clarify that Hazard Zone is NOT a Battle Royale, although does focus on small, intense squad-based combat that certainly sounds more competitive. Maybe Battlefield will finally succeed in their round-based objective/competitive shooter, like Call of Duty or CS: GO? Who knows.
More information about Battlefield will be revealed at EA Play in July. Hazard Zone will receive more coverage then.
