Remember back in 2011 when EA Games announced Battlefield 3 and its motto was “above and beyond the call of duty”? That was such a good in-your-face moment for Activision’s Call of Duty Modern Warfare 3. They obviously wanted to rake in the players from CoD into playing BF3. In more ways than one, they actually did it. However, with the last two games, including Battlefield I and Battlefield V, EA and DICE have not been looking too hot these days. Although, they did announce a new Battlefield for 2021. But first, let’s dig into the reasons why it got a ton of negative reviews.
What Went Wrong with Battlefield I & V
Okay, so Battlefield I was a pretty good game in general. It was chaotic, it was gorgeous, and it had a great set of single-player stories. However, what made it lose its charm for long-time BF fans is the gameplay. Sure, Battlefield is known for its all-out war experience, but this is the first world war we are talking about. Where is trench warfare? Why are there only a few factions? Why is the game so buggy? Yet, overall, it was still a pretty good game, just quite out of touch with their claim on “authenticity” on experiencing World War I.
However, things took a mighty toll in Battlefield V. Everyone was expecting EA to off the CoD competition after CoD: WWII received so many mixed reviews, with the negatives including imbalanced map designs, terrible progression system, tons of microtransactions, and forced inclusivity. Oh, and that random Russian Ppsh submachine gun found on the beaches of Normandy.
Just when people thought the BF series was going to save the day for those that crave a high-budget WWII shooter, their reveal trailer was an instant mess. After claiming that the game will be accurate and authentic to the second world war, you got a British woman with a prosthetic arm, an SAS with a samurai, and nobody from the Germans wearing a helmet for some reason.
Just when you thought that was bad, then came the PR of the game and said to their potential customers, “If you don’t like it, don’t buy it.” Unsurprisingly, they all left the hype and looked toward other games instead. It was also a case of forced inclusivity as the head of the game wanted to change WWII’s history in BFV by including mixed races and made-up single-player stories. Ultimately, it was just a mess.
Battlefield V as a Live Service
Nobody likes games as a live service, and Battlefield V was just like that. Upon its release, the game was barebones. There were only a few single-player missions and the standard multiplayer. It didn’t have the questionable battle royale mode yet. And, in just less than a month, player activity went downhill by 80%.
By the time they announced a battle royale game along with new single-player missions, and a Japan vs USA theater of war for multiplayer, it was all too late. So what if these new features were free, right? The damage has been done. To add insult to injury, they released heroes for the multiplayer — all of which were obnoxiously out of place for the franchise’s theme, except for Bad Company.
The Future of the Series
Right now, EA and DICE are looking to bounce back and win the hearts of their players again. A new teaser was released, showing that Battlefield is back to its modern warfare roots. However, nobody knows if it will be Battlefield 6 or Battlefield: Bad Company 3. All we do know is that they are off to a good start.
