SNIKTITT: Battlefield 2042

It’s been a while since the Battlefield series took place in modern times. The last time was Battlefield 4, a game that came out way back in 2013. Now we take the step away from World War II and the 1940s – in fact a full 100 years ahead – and land in 2042, a time of drones, fast fighters and 128 players. The question is whether the weight and realism remain when the future knocks on the door.

Big things

Photo: EA / DICE

Battlefield games have never been afraid to offer great areas we can play in, and Battlefield 2042 is definitely not the game that ends the trend. The map we got to run around in, Orbital, is covered with large green plains, elongated tunnels and a huge rocket facility with, you guessed it, a huge rocket that, too, can actually leave the ground and end up being blown to shreds . If you miss several huge spectacles, you may be happy to hear about the all-consuming tornado that has a chance to take the map and that you really do not want to be near.

With difficult maps, there is also a risk that players will face dead time. In Battlefield 1 and V, you often blocked this by dividing the big boards into sectors you fought for bit by bit, or simply by having plenty of points of interest around. Although much remains in 2042, I still did not escape the idea that the Orbital map was somewhat uninteresting compared to the impressive and not least colorful areas we have been served the last five years. It was very cool with the big moments, like when the rocket at the end of the runway finally takes off, or when the tornado dances into an area with parachutists and helicopters that are simply taken by the wind. Still, I hope that the full game can offer even more interesting surroundings, because the Orbital course was quite tame. It does not help that 2042 looks more identical to Battlefield V. This is perhaps a consequence of the game also ending up on the previous generation of consoles, which definitely seem to hold the game back when we talk visual tricks.

Shooting is most important

Photo: Andreas Bjørnbekk / Gamer.no

Running around and getting from A to B whether on foot, in tanks or on a plane is one thing, but the most important aspect of Battlefield games is and remains how digg it feels to pull the trigger . Battlefield 2042 makes a lot of sense that we are no longer in the past, and of course this fact is also reflected in the weapons. I have spent an enormous amount of time in Battlefield 4, 1 and V, and I think DICE has created shooting feelings that no one else can fully reflect.

Therefore, it is disappointing that 2042 does not completely lives up to its predecessors at this point. After only a few hours with the new weapons of the future, it is difficult to explain exactly why, but I think we can boil it down to a mixture of recoil, response when getting rid of opponents, and the time it takes to neutralize the enemy. All of these fight on teams or against the player depending on whether things have been done correctly, but the impression from the Battlefield 2042 test shows that not everything is clear yet. The TTK (Time To Kill) time feels uplifted since Battlefield V, and the weapons do not feel quite as balanced as they should be. At the same time, there is something very unfinished across the entire user interface, which among other things does not give me any particularly good visual response when I shoot or put a well-placed bullet, and which shows most of the information in neon boxes without any form of personal personality.

Photo: Andreas Bjørnbekk / Gamer.no

It should be mentioned that the game version we tested is an old version and definitely not a worthy representation of the final game, but I doubt quite strongly that the actual shooting feel and that the user interface will be changed significantly. It remains to be seen.

Who is who?

Photo: EA / DICE

Battlefield 2042’s big innovation on the self-adaptation side comes in the form of «specialists», really just another words for “classes” that give you access to various gadgets. Assault specialist Mackay (yes, they have names) can use a fun grab gun that allows quick movements from one place to another, and he runs faster than others while aiming. Falck is a support specialist equipped with a spray gun that allows her to heal friends from a distance, and she can also bring all her teammates back to life, which makes her the game’s doctor class. In addition, we got to play as Boris and Casper, Battlefield’s engineering and sniper specialists, respectively. These are four out of ten specialists we get to see in the game. The real change here is not the specialist name itself, but rather that all classes are now allowed to use all types of weapons, and that you can add unlocked “attachments” in the middle of the heat of battle. What makes them unique is the special skills that come with the class, and it seems like a cool step in a more personalized Battlefield experience.

At the same time, there is something strange in the fact that the unique specialists, at least in the beta, always see like out. This means that American and Russian soldiers are exactly alike, and it was sometimes difficult to distinguish between friendly and hostile soldiers in the heat of battle when the user interface for some reason did not always show who was who (this can perhaps be blamed on the early version we played). I sincerely hope that we will be able to adapt our soldiers in 2042 in the same way as in Battlefield 1 and V, because it is still quite strange to stare at the clone armies that are now fighting against each other.

Conclusion

Battlefield 2042 may be the modern shooter people flock to now that it’s Call of Duty’s turn to travel back to 40 number, but that does not mean that 2042 will be the new Battlefield 3 or 4. Because where the two veterans are signposted with beautiful graphics and realistic and heavy shooting, I feel 2042 is trying something completely different, and that with a disturbingly unattractive user interface.

After a few hours of testing, I am of the opinion that Battlefield now goes for a mix of traditional formulas and something a little more impatient and fast-paced, but which together creates a experience with a diffuse personality who does not quite know what it wants to be. Because even though Battlefield is so much, it is the realism and weight that has weighed heavily on me, and even if you get new abilities or gadgets to play with, it does not mean that these aspects need to give way. I hope the finished game will show that – and maybe Battlefield Portal, the mode where you can add and combine aspects from the old games, the rescue.

NB: Battlefield 2042 will be released on November 19 for PC, PlayStation 5/4 and Xbox consoles. Note: This article has been indexed to our site. We do not claim legitimacy, ownership or copyright of any of the content above. To see the article at original source Click Here (adsbygoogle=window.adsbygoogle || ).push();