Battlefield 2042 has just been revealed in an explosive showcasing a near-future setting and large-scale multiplayer battles, as part of the E3 2021 Xbox and Bethesda Games Showcase.
In the trailer, we see classic Battlefield combat spread across expansive maps blending large open spaces and tight interior combat, with the chance to take to the sky in aerial combat or jump into next-gen tanks to provide some armoured force. And the sixth main entry into the Battlefield series looks like it'll be pretty impressive on PS5 and Xbox Series X.
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Due for a release this fall on October 22 on PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X, as well as the PS4 and Xbox One, the gameplay reveal trailer confirms a lot of what has been leaked and tipped for Battlefield 2042.
As expected it’s an evolution over the traditional Battlefield games, with multiplayer battles now hosting up to 128 players, and taking place across a number of environments. These seem to range from near-future cities to futuristic agricultural expanses and desert and mountainous regions, as well as what looks like a rocket launch site.
While a lot of Battlefield 2042's action will revolve around running and gunning down enemies, while also jumping into near-future tanks, helicopters and jets, the addition of changing weather effects like massive tornadoes and sandstorms that mix up the action on a map.
But to get traverse these environments and dramatic weather events, "Specialists" — think a new name for classes — will have grappling hooks and wingsuits; the latter will be particularly handy if you're in a helicopter that looks like its going to be downed by a tornado.
Customization of weapons looks to play a big part of the game. And going by the new footage this could be done on-the-fly, potentially adding particular scopes or silencers onto weapons to suit changing situations. Though the trailer went at such a pace it was tricky to tell exactly how this will play out.
What we're rather interested in is the amout of verticality in Battlefield 2042, which would be a departure from the previous World War I and II based games and an evolution of the Battlefield 4. Which is no surprise given the "4" in the "2042" suffix.
Expect to scramble up cranes, go into towering skyscrapers, as well as leap out of aircraft and onto said buildings to keep combat rather dynamic; arguably the last two Battlefield games were we're based around a mix of open and closed areas but with little variation in height.
An open beta is expected before the fall, so we'll might be able to see how the action in the trailer translates to the game when you're a actually in it. Make sure to check back with Tom's Guide for more updates. And tune into the Future Games Show Summer Showcase later on today for more E3 2021 news and trailers.
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