Battlefield is back, baby! That is the message from thousands of players currently getting stuck into the first weekend of the Beta. But is it back? I’ve been part of the Battlefield Labs testing since the start, largely due to sheer luck. While there are numerous positives, there is still considerable room for improvement. I was keen to see how the Beta would stack up in comparison to the Alpha tests I’ve been a part of.
How Can I Play The Beta?
Weekend 1 is in full swing if you’re part of Battlefield Labs testing, have managed to bag a code via Twitch Drop, have pre-ordered the Phantom Edition of the game or have purchased a code via somewhere like CD Keys. Otherwise, you can pre-download and play the first weekend on 9/10 August 2025.
Weekend 2 will be available to everyone from August 14 to 18, 2025. You can download and play using Xbox Series X|S, Playstation 5 or PC via Steam, Epic Games Store or the EA App.
What Is Available On Weekend 1?
There are five modes available on weekend one: Conquest, Closed Weapon Conquest, Breakthrough, Domination and King Of The Hill.
Conquest – The classic mode with capturing and defending points to drain the opponent’s tickets
Closed Weapon Conquest – The same as classic conquest but with class locked weaponry
Breakthrough – Attackers push to capture sectors while the defenders attempt to stop attackers from surging forward by draining their tickets
Domination – Identical to Call of Duty, three capture points on close-quarters maps
King Of The Hill – Another close quarters affair with squads scrapping over a rotating capture point
Three maps are available on weekend one: Siege of Cairo, Liberation Peak and Iberian Offensive. There are also seven challenges to complete with the cosmetic items earned during this Beta carrying over to the full game launch.
Visually Stunning
I’d normally include this in a fully fledged review article, but I feel that this is one of the most important portions of a Battlefield game. Battlefield is known for its vast expanse with attention to detail in both backdrops and terrain. By far the best map on the Beta thus far is Liberation Peak, either in Conquest or Breakthrough modes. Seeing the gigantic snowy mountain peaks in the distance whilst being in the heat of large-scale battles is nothing short of fantastic.
Map design across all maps appears to be drastically better than BF 2042. The last game didn’t seem to have maps with much cover or points of interest. With the ability to peek around corners now introduced, there are plenty of buildings, rocks and more to take cover behind. Seeing explosions with sparks and smoke protruding from them is amazing and brings that Battlefield atmosphere we all know and love.
Sound Porn
With all the impressive work they have done with the presentation visually, it would all be lost if the audio didn’t match. Thankfully, it does, and the immersion is next level. Each weapon feels and reacts as you’d expect in terms of how it sounds. Hearing the echo of rounds being rattled off when within close-quarter buildings just shows how much work has gone in here.
Wearing a quality headset helps with the audio, and I was hugely impressed with how vehicles sound. The roar of tanks and the rustle of the terrain beneath, with the sound of a gunner raining fire on entire areas, is awesome. Hearing shells drop to the floor and the sound of jets and helicopters soaring above, it’s just what Battlefield is all about. Hearing buildings topple, the weather elements, the footsteps of several squads, and the shouts of soldiers. They have nailed the audio 110%.
Destruction System Revamped
Remember when the destruction in Battlefield was next level. With the last few titles, it seems to have lost its way in that respect. Battlefield 6 has evolved the destruction system, and rather it becoming a visual aspect of the experience, you feel a part of it. One example of my time with the Beta was lying on a metal roof picking shots off into the distance, only for a tank to blow the bottom of the building, with me subsequently falling through the debris to the floor. It was a jaw-dropping moment where I was thinking, OK, maybe we are back!
You can just see how much work has gone into the destruction throughout. Seeing entire structures crumble to dust, walls being blown out, and staircases collapsing. I could go on, but it shows that no two games will ever be the same, and you have to adapt to the environment around you and how the battle shapes it. I have never seen destruction like this in any game, and sometimes you just stop to admire the beauty of it all.
What Needs Work?
Matchmaking and partying up are not as fluid as they need to be. I played in a squad with a mixture of console and PC players, and often we wouldn’t all get into a match together. When we eventually did, and the round ended, it wouldn’t always carry us through to the next game as a squad.
Rubber-banding and stutter were present during the Alpha stages and were pretty game-breaking in those early phases. But this is what testing is for: to address these problems. I have noticed some in my time during the Beta, but thankfully, it appears to be rare. Fingers crossed it’ll be non-existent when the full game drops in October.
Weapons need some balancing; shotguns feel massively overpowered, and I’ve seen many players saying that some of the rifles are far too accurate when kitted out with attachments. We have to give the development team the benefit of the doubt here, though, until the game is out in the wild with intense testing like it is now, this is how you discover these aspects.
Anti-cheat needs work early on, and it looks like EA is already onto it, with apparently over 330,000 cheat requests dealt with during this open beta phase. This is mainly from PC players, and it’ll be interesting to see how this is tackled going forwards. At least crossplay can be switched off in Battlefield 6.
Final Thoughts
Battlefield 6 is certainly on the right track, and Battlefield 2042 is quickly becoming a distant memory already. There are some concerns amongst some players that this game is trying to cater to the Call of Duty crowd, and I somewhat agree. As mentioned, the Domination game mode is almost a carbon copy of the CoD version. Smaller maps with a lower number of players in fast, frantic and short bursts of gameplay. King Of The Hill is in the same boat, but it’s a good thing to have more modes to dip into, in my opinion.
The presentation in terms of visuals, destruction and how the game feels to play is very much similar to the heyday of Battlefield 3 & 4. There are some clear weapon balancing issues that need to be addressed, and some other areas of the game that need smoothing out. I am currently not 100% on that Battlefield is Back pedestal just yet. I need to see Conquest modes on larger-scale maps and get hands-on with the new Escalation mode to convince me fully. That said, though, I am excited for the direction this Battlefield experience is heading. Roll on Weekend Two!