Battlefield 2042, Season 1 trial: Zero Hour

We often talk about the demise of single-player video games because the industry seems to have been convinced for years that it’s really hard for a multiplayer project to fail and that it’s really hard to send the millions of dollars needed to develop it. However, the evidence tells us about a completely different reality, a reality in which a multiplayer game is not only very easy to fail, but does it wonderfully, resulting in abandoned servers within a few weeks. . Titanfall 2 and others like it are now resting in a vast elephant desert where you’ve been there, no matter what qualifications you have, because for one reason or another you never quite caught the attention of your community. other.

In this respect, Battlefield 2042 is on the verge of a black hole and takes a lot of risk because we know the brand is important to us. electronic artsbut we are also aware of the numbers that the game publishes every month.

Some might say that the DICE-developed shooter has already lost the train, but the Swedish studio has no intentions of giving up and is about to release its first wave of content at the same time as Battlefield 2042 Post, in an attempt to reboot the game. -Start Support Season 1.

A few days before the broadcast, which is set for the next 9 June, Tried Season 1: Zero Hour of Battlefield 2042 To see if the revolution that DICE has developed so much for the title has come.

zero hour

As the season’s name suggests, Zero Hour, with this update, EA aims to turn back time and provide the community with a fun experience that should have kicked off last year’s fall. The real issue for DICE was to question one of the most publicized strengths of the new episode: Post-launch support for Battlefield 2042, 128 players, to focus on smaller maps and mods that don’t work as the team imagined. Not surprisingly, the 128-player Breakthrough playlist has been removed from servers for some time; this was a symptom of exactly how DICE described one of the reasons for the game’s failure in this regard.

In these difficult months, DICE sought to draw on community feedback by intervening where things were obviously not going well, and it’s no coincidence that one of the main stories is about the current situation. Complete rethinking of the kaleidoscope, the map that evolves around a large park devoid of almost any cover. In August, the setting will undergo a major renovation that will add a few guards near the flags and make the park more uneven and increase the infantry’s chances of survival. It’s a shame that the refresh came so late, but it’s undoubtedly a first step in the right direction for the studio.

a new map

At ABC on how a live service video game evolves, we’re sure there will be some indication of how important it is to guarantee a video game. constant stream of new content, the real lifeblood of any product with the ambition to survive for more than two weeks. Despite every guideline, DICE hasn’t been very generous to the community during the 8-month preseason, and it’s contradictory to tell you today how Battlefield 2042 has finally gotten its first new game content since it hit the shelves.

From Thursday, Conquest and Breakthrough modes will be enriched with a new map, ExposureIt is located between the peaks of a mountain system through which a beehive of tunnels and galleries passes. The area is characterized by much access perpendicularity and aircraft will dominate, but there are a few indoor targets that could be the protagonist of fierce close-range combat.

We only tried it for a couple of hours, but it looked like a pretty balanced map that deftly mixes so many different situations and contexts. Height is undoubtedly an element of advantage you’ll always want to have with you in games in Exposure: From the top of the massive mountain, you can direct targets placed on its slopes with a parachute or a wingsuit. You can quickly reposition yourself and launch quick attacks on enemy positions.

We have to admit, we loved Exposure and enjoyed it all”battlefield moments“It was able to give us, but more was needed to revive the fortunes of 2042, and a single map for who knows how many months risks arousing the anger of a community already infuriated enough.

If DICE could do more on the map front, it would do the same. other content It comes with Season 1, which by no means brings the revolution fans were hoping for.

For a start, Zero Hour will mark the debut of a solo. expert, however, is Ewelina Lis, who has the potential to shake up the game’s goal with vehicles from the ground up. Ewelina’s unique device is actually the G-84 TGM, a powerful guided missile that can be aimed at any target manually, without recourse to engagement. For the new specialist, tanks turned out to be a very easy victim, if not complex but impossible to shoot down planes and helicopters, so much so that during practice it was impossible to survive for more than a few seconds in any armored vehicle. .

Among other upcoming innovations, attack helicopters, a highly anticipated addition from the community. The helicopters, which will be available in two different variants from Thursday, will have a similar operation to the previous Battlefields, house a pilot and a gunner, but with the possibility of withdrawing weapons to protect themselves from being visible to radars. anti-aircraft rockets.

In our opinion, even the number of weapons and gadgets that come with Season 1 is not good. new weapon The BSV-M is an AS Val-inspired auto-fire DMR that performs up close as well as from afar, thanks to the deep customization provided by the game’s instant editor. This is accompanied, however, by a crossbow not suitable for all contexts, and a new grenade launcher that fires three small smoke grenades useful for concealing the team’s movements.

All three of these items will be available in the new version. Battle Pass Your game that will provide 100 levels full of rewards for 12 weeks. As usual, the Battlefield 2042 Battle Pass will also be split into two categories, premium and free: the first is predictably packed with cosmetic items for weapons, specialists, and vehicles, while the second lets you get new game content without spending any money. one EUR. In short, while it’s a solution that won’t top the DICE shooter game rankings on its own, it’s certainly good news for fans who spend their time between the game’s servers.