

The shift to 128 players from 64 for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X is seismic – destined to be the standout, defining feature of this new era of Battlefield. While I do have some concerns that Battlefield 2042 isn't going to be the wide-spanning evolution that so many of us hoped it would be, particularly after a generation's worth of lackluster entries to the series, it's doing enough right that it has left me eager to see more of it. The studio promises that while this open beta is representative of the final product, the release build – now set for Novemfollowing a delay – will benefit from an extensive, studio-wide focus on weapon balance, polishing of handling, graphics, and audio, and a fine-tuning of the collision detection systems and player visibility. All out warfareĭICE was quick to assure us that this build is a couple of months old now in a post-game Q&A, with the studio bemused to see bugs it squashed weeks ago back on screen as it watches our multiplayer sessions unfold. When the Battlefield 2042 open beta clicks into place there are no complaints, only jubilation. As a friendly runs into crossfire between a hundred embattled players to pin a wheezing defibrillator to your chest, reviving you just in time to see your entire party pulled into the eye of a twisting tornado. When you're stuck wondering which sector to head to next, wishing the game would communicate something, anything, about the tenor of the skirmishes unfurling around you, only to find your field of vision littered with the debris of a rocketship that failed its launch sequencing. As you're stuck scaling a staircase with a sniper in hand only for an ATV to whip past you and over the railing, careening into the cockpit of an encroaching, now-exploding helicopter.


Because how can you complain when you're marching across open land, willing your Specialist to sprint just a little faster after mistakenly spawning back at the HQ, only for two battling fighter jets to whoosh overhead, perilously close to the ground.
