A new Battlefield experience: Realism as a staple of the franchise
The anticipation for a new Battlefield release is finally coming to an end: DICE has recently confirmed that post-launch support for Battlefield 2042 will officially come to an end after the conclusion of Season 7. While there is still no confirmation on the possible setting, modes, and core mechanics of the next installment in the franchise, it would be wise for DICE to capture the attention of fans with brand new experiences.
Battlefield has always stood out for its scale and immersive atmosphere, setting it apart from its main competitors like Call of Duty. This is exactly where the brand could continue with its next version. The Battlefield community has worked hard with mods and sub-communities to create a more realistic gameplay. This provides the perfect foundation for the next Battlefield version to have its own realism playlist, adding necessary variety in the next steps of the franchise.
Dedicated realism playlists could become a staple of Battlefield moving forward
Despite the initial controversies surrounding Battlefield 2042, the title was quite ambitious in terms of the new experiences it offered to fans of the franchise. To compensate for things like the absence of a single-player campaign, 2042 introduced new modes like Portal, allowing players to combine assets from multiple Battlefield versions and create time-consuming, individual multiplayer experiences.
Although Portal did not meet expectations for the mode, it showed DICE’s willingness to innovate, which should be maintained in the next Battlefield version. Portal added much more depth and variety to the core experience of Battlefield 2042, and a realism mode for the next version could have a similar effect.
The Battlefield community has already emphasized how much these games benefit from a more realistic gameplay. The highly acclaimed Reality Mod for Battlefield 3 clearly shows the demand for this approach. The Reality Mod turns Battlefield 3 into a military simulation with a minimalistic HUD, faster time to kill, and a stronger focus on teamwork and voice communication. The popularity of other military simulations like Hell Let Loose and Six Days in Fallujah shows that the market for these experiences is bigger than ever, and Battlefield could benefit from it.
Battlefield could provide the best of both worlds with a realism mode
In addition to the traditional gameplay in the next Battlefield, a realism mode should be offered that is perfect for players who prefer more strategic and immersive combat. Battlefield would thus play to one of its greatest strengths and could compensate for one of Call of Duty’s current weaknesses. In recent years, CoD has received a lot of criticism due to its increasingly crazy multiplayer mode and has lost its dark roots in favor of more bizarre and wonderful operators, weapon skins, and finishing moves.
With a complete realism mode, the next Battlefield would send a strong message against the changing identity of Call of Duty and offer an exciting and captivating gameplay that is becoming increasingly rare in the standard -CoD- multiplayer. Of course, the traditional Battlefield experience will still be available to fans, with smaller maps offering the same fast-paced arcade gameplay that Call of Duty is known for.
In this way, the next Battlefield version could appeal to all FPS genres and allow fans to experience the same maps and modes in completely different contexts. Considering the ambitions of Battlefield 2042, it only seems right that the next version of the franchise takes it one step further with an optional realism mode.