The latest Battlefield 6 rumor suggests that the upcoming entry in DICE’s popular online shooter series will be exclusively released on PS5 and Xbox Series X.
According to reliable leaker Tom Henderson, the game will be skipping the PS4 and Xbox One in favor of focusing on next-gen consoles and making the best use of the additional power they offer.
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Henderson claims he has heard nothing about a release on last-gen consoles, which would suggest that the game is focused solely on the PS5 and Xbox Series X. The leaker also hints at a persistent rumor that the game will debut day one on Xbox’s Game Pass service, which would be a huge coup for Microsoft.
In other news, I still have yet to hear anything concrete that #BATTLEFIELD will come to past gen consoles. Theory - It indicates to me that it probably won't and the biggest reason #BATTLEFIELD will come to the Xbox Game Pass on day 1 is to boost up player numbers.April 15, 2021
Battlefield 6 being a next-gen exclusive would line up with a statement that DICE made to Gamespot last year in which the company confirmed that the game was in development and “targeting new innovation that will be enabled by next-gen platforms". Could these innovations truly run on consoles that are about to turn eight years old?
However, historically the franchise has embraced cross-gen releases. Battlefield 4 was released in 2013 on the PS3 and Xbox 360 as well as on the newly-released PS4 and Xbox One. Clearly DICE isn’t opposed to working across hardware generations.
Is this a good thing for Battlefield 6?
Overall, we have mixed feelings about the news. On the one hand, games that release across generations of consoles can often be held back by the older technology. (Hopefully, that won't be the case for cross-gen games such as Halo: Infinite or Horizon: Forbbiden West.) A Battlefield that really pushes the PS5 and Xbox Series X would be very welcome.
However, considering the current state of PS5 restocks and Xbox Series X restocks, it would feel unfair if many gamers couldn’t enjoy the next Battlefield game because they couldn't buy the consoles required to play. The stocking situation isn’t expected to have improved by the fall, when Battlefield 6 will likely be released.
For now, this is just a rumor and it's possible the game will come to both current-gen and last-gen machines. Resident Evil Village was originally announced solely for PS5/Xbox Series X before being confirmed for PS4/Xbox One later down the line; that could be the case here as well.
Henderson has leaked quite a lot of information about Battlefield 6 in recent weeks, including what the game’s first trailer will look like via the medium of crude sketches (not joking), so an official unveiling doesn’t seem very far off.
The latest online whispers suggest we’ll learn more about the game in May. EA should hopefully clear up what platforms Battlefield 6 will be available on then.
