Battlefield 6 may have made a massive splash when it launched, but it’s certainly experienced a fall-off in the months since its release. While it’s true that every multiplayer game goes through peaks and valleys, the decrease in players for this particular title is hard to ignore. From a disappointing Season 1 to a controversial adjustment to BF6’s movement to a battle royale mode that came and went, there have been plenty of complaints about the game in recent months. And while platforms like Battlefield’s official subreddit have become cesspools of negativity, regularly making the same complaints ad nauseam about the game being too CoD-like and maps lacking breathing room, there are genuine critiques to be made.
Battlefield 6’s Season 2 is under a lot of pressure to win back lapsed players, and there are plenty of things that can be done to make that happen. There are common requests both big and small, from a naval map to ribbons, while a more appealing battle pass would give players something they want to grind for. Above all else, Battlefield 6 could benefit from multiple large, vehicle-focused maps and a wave of nostalgia via a fan favorite map remaster. Unfortunately, Season 2 seems to be missing the mark on both of these points despite coming close in both respects, which doesn’t bode well for the next several months of the game’s lifespan.
Note
Battlefield 6’s Season 2 was delayed to February 17, with the goal being to incorporate more player feedback and further polish the content.
What’s Wrong With Battlefield 6’s Season 2 Launch Map?
Early leaks about Battlefield 6 have suggested that Season 2 would once again only have 2 full-fledged maps, with one coming at launch and the other releasing in-season. Battlefield Studios has since unveiled some maps it's working on via a blog post about testing them through Battlefield Labs, with the Season's launch map being called Contaminated. While the initial looks at the map were promising — it’s visually breathtaking and resembles the popular Battlefield 1 map Monte Grappa — gameplay has since leaked onto various social media platforms. And, as is often the case as of late with BF6, the complaints have started to pour in.
In the initial clips shown for Contaminated, people noticed that some of the objective capture points were a sniper’s paradise, offering little cover and looking very difficult to seize without a vehicle. This immediately gave players flashbacks to the largely detested Battlefield 2042, which had to rework several of its maps to include more cover. The next issue that appeared was the map boundaries, as yet again, players can not fly very high or very far out of bounds, limiting the potential for interesting aerial battles and flanking strategies.
The lack of love for vehicle players continues in more leaked footage, as though a variation of the Little Bird helicopter is making a welcome return in Battlefield 6, no jets will be available on the new map as of now. This is a major headscratcher given how Contaminated is set within an airbase, a locale that should be perfect for this neglected vehicle type. The map will also be medium-sized, described as falling “between Eastwood and Mirak Valley” in terms of scale, continuing the trend of BF6 avoiding massive maps.
Even Battlefield 6’s Remaster Choice is Proving to Be a Mixed Bag
Large maps fans will eventually get their wish in the form of a Battlefield 4 map remaster, which will make some changes to modernize the gameplay. However, unlike fan favorite maps such as Paracel Storm, BF Studios is going with the slightly more divisive map Golmund Railway for its first BF4 remaster. This has led to heated debates on social media, with some players excited and others outraged that what they feel is the “worst map” is the first bit of Battlefield 4 representation. It’s certainly a bit of a risk to not pick a fan favorite, as the following big maps would likely have gone down better with the community had they been revived instead:
- Caspian Border
- Strike at Karkand
- Sinai Desert
- Kharg Island
- Dragon Pass
The split opinions on Golmund Railway have been addressed by Battlefield Community Manager T0TALfps, who defended Golmund as a strong choice. He argues that the map offers “evolving combat” and “rich opportunities for combined arms gameplay.” With there still being 24/7 Golmund Railway servers on Battlefield 4, the map does have its fans, which suggests that its detractors could be a vocal minority. Still, BF6 needed a unanimous win with its choice of remaster, so picking a more iconic map may have been a better decision. Something like Paracel Storm could have hit the large map and naval map demands simultaneously, but it seems like fans will have to continue waiting on the latter form of gameplay.
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This article originally appeared on GameRant and is republished here with permission.
