Battlefield 2042 continues to try and make up for its disastrous launch back in 2021. About 2 years later, DICE has done a lot to put 2042 into a state that longtime fans have all come to expect from the franchise. I’ve gone as far as to say that it’s a title worth checking out, especially since it has been made available through PS Plus and even Xbox Game Pass. Battlefield 2042 Season 6 Dark Creations aims to continue the slowly but surely positive momentum the game has been getting from its seasonal update. While it’s not exactly overflowing with content, what it does manage to bring to the field is a massive step in the right direction and one that I really enjoyed playing around with.
Before we get into the nitty-gritty, a few technical disclaimers. During the hands-on session, we were given about 3 hours to play 2 Conquests and 2 Team Deathmatches. The build was played through the Steam client and it only had Season 6 content available. I was running the game on a 2022 Asus ROG Flow X16 gaming laptop with a mix of medium to high settings. The game ran at a relatively stable 90-100 fps. While various media and content creators were invited, the lobbies only had a maximum of 4 real players (2 for each team) while the rest of the lobby was filled with bots. I only experienced about 3-4 heavy lag/packet loss moments but for the most part during the 3 hours, there weren’t any significant server issues.
Good old-fashioned modern warfare
Battlefield 2042 Season 6 Dark Creations may not be a revolutionary update that brings in a ton of new content, but it does bring back what I felt was sorely missing during my time with Season 5, a strong focus on infantry gameplay. While I love the massive warzone sandbox the Battlefield games have provided, a lot of my best moments in the series come from intense gunfights on foot. One of the things that made me struggle with fully connecting with Battlefield 2042 was the overly expansive map spaces that clearly favored vehicle use.
Trying to block off a long corridor or hold on to a power position on a flag point provides some of the best Battlefield gameplay. Season 6 Dark Creations is a nice little throwback to that gameplay style where strong positioning and raw aim skill determine success. This is in large part due to Redacted, a brand new close quarters non-vehicle map that emphasizes boots-on-the-ground gameplay. No vehicles, no special air support, just pure unfiltered infantry fun. And so far, it’s a lot of fun to play.
Talking with DICE developers, Redacted is inspired by fan-favorite maps Operation Metro and Operation Locker. These represent the best of the best of Battlefield 3, back when the series was at its peak. Redacted is a war-torn underground Scottish facility that is filled with laboratories, warehouse spaces, an artificial forest biome, and claustrophobic corridors.
The size isn’t as big as 2042’s usual map pool which means that gone are the times where I’m just running around mindlessly only to be shot by a sniper from a distance. Every where I go, it seemed like there was always a gunfight waiting to happen. Of course, there are key areas that do host most of the traffic in which I was able to farm an unreasonable amount of kills just trying to hold down a doorway or entrance to a point. As much as I loved Operation Metro and Locker, there’s no denying how easy it was to just funnel an enemy team down one position and spray it with bullets till the match ends. I feared that it would be the same case with Redacted, but it wasn’t. DICE did a great job at incorporating a number of alternate routes that one can take for strategic flanks or hold down power positions to reach the objective. It no longer felt too one-sided. However, do note that we played with mostly bots this time so this could change once the full map is released to the public. But for now, know that Redacted is a lot of fun. Given that I never really had a dull moment for all the 3 hours that were given to us, should say a lot. Usually, one all-out warfare match in Battlefield 2042 is enough for me to call it a day but something about Redacted placed the whole “one more match” mentality in me.
Run and gun
For Season 6 Dark Creations, 3 new weapons will be added to the arsenal. All of which are the perfect tools to bring to Redacted. If you’re the type of Battlefield player who loves to just run at the enemy and get kills, you’ll definitely enjoy what’s coming. As expected, all of the new guns look and sound great with attachments that do a good job of making them feel distinct with every combination.
The G428 is a highly accurate and powerful DMR that has massive penetration abilities. I tried to use this to pick out enemies from medium range and hold down power positions in certain elevated areas at flag points and it worked like a dream. I also tried to treat it more like a heavy pistol and just run at the enemy and see how many heads I could tag, the results were about the same. This is a great addition to the marksman rifles.
The L9CZ is a tiny terror of a semi-auto sidearm that is highly accurate and extremely friendly to those who have a great trigger finger. I’m not usually the type of person who switches to a sidearm in a Battlefield game but this new pistol really made a good case for itself. It’s fast, mobile, and kills swiftly as long as you hit your shots. I am however a bit concerned about the lack of recoil the gun has. The only saving grace I see it having is the noticeable damage drop-off at a certain range. You really have to be somewhat in the face of the enemy for the L9CZ to be effective.
And what I believe to be the absolute star of the show is the VHX-D3, an assault rifle that is highly mobile. It’s perfect for short to medium range gunfights given its easy-to-control fast rate of fire and manageable recoil. Changing around a few attachments can deck this AR out into being a hybrid SMG or even a semi-long ranged weapon. It’s one of the most versatile guns in the game and it’s definitely the one that I used the most during the preview event.
There is also one confirmed vehicle coming to Season 6. The YUV-2 “Pondhawk” was, unfortunately, not playable during the preview event given how Redacted doesn’t allow any vehicle gameplay. Design-wise, it does look a bit more futuristic and highly mobile but I’m about as in the dark as everyone else is as to how it plays.
While I mostly played with mouse and keyboard, which felt amazing, I did spend one Conquest and one Team Deathmatch using a controller. One of the major problems I have with Battlefield 2042 is how clunky the controller feels with it. Aiming felt janky, slow, and inaccurate. The reason why I wanted to try it out this time was because DICE made a number of fixes to refine controller support. There are new options to tinker with such as dead zones sensitivity nuances but the most significant change is the enhancements to aim assist. Don’t worry, this won’t the a case of Warzone or Apex Legends where aim assist felt like aimbot at times. The new aim assist coming to Season 6 feels subtle yet so much smoother than what it was for Battlefield 2042 for the longest time. The controller now feels a bit more viable. This is great news given how crossplay is in the game.
And that’s about it really. There’s not much to see in Battlefield 2042 Season 6 Dark Creations but what’s there is definitely worth checking out. The theme of the new season is dark modern warfare which is very well represented in the new cosmetics found in the battle pass. They all look sleek, cool, brooding, and amazing. Season 5’s jungle theme didn’t really connect with me as much so it’s nice to see DICE double back on the darker tech side of warfare with Season 6. Not every seasonal update has to be jam-packed with so much stuff. Sometimes all a game needs is the right adjustments and quality over quantity. Season 6 feels exactly just that. See you on the Battlefield.