Battlefield 2042 has had its share of issues since launch, but EA and developer DICE recently promised to support the game well into 2023, and today they shared details of their plans. These include a variety of new maps, the return of the class system, and more, but don’t expect many new Specialists.
Of course, Battlefield 2042 Season 3 just kicked off last month. You can expect update 3.1 to arrive later in December, which will include a rework of the Manifest map. Then, very early in 2023 update 3.2 will drop, which will reintroduce Specialist classes (get more detail on that here) and offer an overhaul of the Breakaway map.
Next comes Battlefield 2042 Season 4, which should arrive sometime in early 2023. The update will include a rework of the Discarded map and possibly the Hourglass map, although that may be pushed to Season 5. There will also be a new map, which DICE describes as “smaller, shorter, and linear designed for up close and personal, close-quarters combat.” Here’s a teaser image for that map.
A new Recon Specialist is also coming in Season 4. This will be the last Specialist DICE adds to the game, as they claim they are happy with the roster.
“With the return to Classes and our roster of 14 in total, we are happy with the amount of Specialists and variety of gameplay that they will allow you to experience. So our focus will be continuing to listen to your feedback in order to expand the sandbox in other ways by bringing design and balance changes for your class-based combat, along with continuing to expand on skins and cosmetics to give you more ways to stand out on the battlefield.”
Then we have Battlefield 2042 Season 5, which will presumably launch around 3 months after Season 4. DICE promises a “new map, new hardware, new battle pass” and more for this season. Interestingly, the map is described as…
“A forgotten battleground that last saw combat in the Battlefield 4 era. An overgrown area, engulfed with vegetation and by the 2042 war. It will encourage a combination of vehicular and infantry combat meaning teamplay is the key to victory.”
One wonders what this might mean for Battlefield Portal. The whole point of that mode was that it was where you went to play favorite old maps, but now old maps are coming to the core Battlefield 2042 experience as well? Of course, Battlefield Portal has received precious few updates since launching, so it seems like the concept may have been binned.
Battlefield 2042 can be played on PC, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, PS4, and PS5. As mentioned, update 3.1 will drop in December, update 3.2 arrives in early 2023 (likely January) and Season 4 is probably coming our way in February or March.
