Battlefield™ 2042 News

Hello there!

Today we’re sitting down with our Engagement Team for another preview of Quality of Life changes coming during Season 5.

As one of the most frequent requests by the Community, we wanted to let you know ahead of time that Squad Management will release as part of the upcoming Season 5 update. We understand that you’ve been looking forward to this feature for quite a while, and we want to start with acknowledging your patience while we’ve worked to make it available for you. The team is keen to get it into your hands, so let’s take a closer look at how the improvements will work.

Improving Squad Management
With Squad Management we understand the importance of having a smooth experience for your squad experience during a match. That means we set several design goals when adopting this feature for Battlefield™ 2042:

• Provide an easy overview to see and manage squads in your team
  
• Being able to create, or join a squad of your choice
  
• See in which squads your friends are playing
  
• Easily navigate through squads
  

Squads and Players
The Squad Menu is now separated to give you a full overview of all squads on your team. In this menu you can make someone else the leader, and see how many players or friends are in a squad. It also shows class icons so you know how to best complement a squad before joining it. And to add some personal flavor, leaders can also show off their Player Card Tag as the squad icon.

We also worked with the narrative team to come up with code names for each squad for that additional personal touch. One of our personal favorites is Gravedigger -- surely the Gravediggers know how to PTFO. We definitely don’t mess with that squad!

Create and Join
At any time you’ll be able to create or join a new squad directly via the Squad Menu. Previously you could only switch to a random squad, and only from the deploy screen. If you create a new squad then we’ve also added a short waiting period before other players can matchmake into your squad to ensure you can play together with your friends.

Easy navigation
The Squad Menu was created to make it easier and faster to manage and navigate through squads on your team. While before it was unclear when and how to change squads, you’ll now be able to do that at any time and with only a few clicks.

We hope that with this new improved Squad Management experience you feel that you have the control over who you’d like to play with during a match. Once this is in your hands, please stay in touch and give us your feedback about how you feel about it!

Later during Season 5 we’ll also add Squad Orders functionality. Let’s take a look at how that works.

Squad Orders
Sticking together with your squad is not only the most effective way to play Battlefield. We also think it’s the most fun. However, we've heard your feedback that with the present approach to squads and their management there is no clear role for being the leader of a squad.

The current ping system does allow a squad leader to give orders, but offers no incentive for other players to follow those orders. With Squad Orders we’re giving leaders a common goal with their squad members to encourage collaboration and teamwork, alongside keeping the squad together.

What you can expect from Squad Orders is that you’ll be able to ping an objective as a squad leader (be it attack, or defend). Your squadmates are then able to confirm that order to work together as a squad to complete it. If successful, then the whole squad receives additional XP for completing that order. You’ll also receive personal bonus XP for your contributions to either attack or defend the objective while the Squad Order is active. The more you contribute, the more XP you earn.

In short, PTFO - and get rewarded!

Thank you for reading along with us today as we gave you an early preview of what to expect for Squad Management, and Squad Orders. We’ve got further improvements on the way, but for now we’re looking forward to getting this in your hands during Season 5.

//The Engagement Team

Hello there,

Next week we’ll release Update 4.2.1 with a series of fixes and Quality of Life improvements. We’ve seen you enjoy gameplay on the Discarded rework, and we’ve made sure that you will no longer spawn out of bounds.

Stay tuned for further news throughout May on Quality of Life previews coming in Season 5 through a series of Dev Notes and Inside Battlefield Podcasts. The first previews on Vault Weapons are available now via Dev Notes - Evolving Vault Weapons, and tune in via the Inside Battlefield page!

Squad up, and we’ll see you on the Battlefield!

//The Battlefield Team

Stay Informed
Follow us on the @BattlefieldComm Twitter account to stay informed on the roll out of our updates. You can also follow along with our tracking of Known Issues and further game changes we’re making via our Battlefield forums.



[h2]Changelog[/h2]

[h3]Maps[/h3]

• Players will no longer spawn out of bounds on Capture Points D1 and D2 on Discarded
  
• Resolved an issue that resulted in an unintended visual effect being placed on weapons when stood in heat sources / explosions of vehicles
  

[h3]Collection & Customization Improvements[/h3]

• Resolved an issue that displayed incorrect attachment stats for ammo and rate of fire fields when equipped into the first slot of the Plus Menu
  
• Resolved an issue that sometimes displayed the incorrect attachment upon selection within the Plus Menu customization screen
  
• Resolved an issue that resulted in the “Replace” button overlapping the Class text on the Classes customization screen
  
• Resolved an issue where equipping a melee takedown for a 2042 Specialist would also equip it for the other Specialists of the same class
  

[h3]Gameplay Improvements[/h3]

• Resolved an issue that resulted in the camera being pulled down too significantly upon landing while aimed down sights
  
• Air-to-Ground Missiles will now deal higher damage when fired at a laser designated target
  
• Resolved an issue where players would sometimes count as occluded when standing in front of smoke
  
• The vehicle cooldown timer on the deploy screen will now countdown in real time
  

[h3]End of Round[/h3]

• Resolved an issue that resulted in Marksman Kill stats being incorrectly calculated at the End of Round screen
  

[h3]Battlefield Portal[/h3]

• Custom Experiences will now correctly gray out characters if they have been restricted as part of the construction of the mode
  

[h3]Weapons[/h3]

• Resolved an issue that caused a broken recoil animation when firing the MTAR-21 on PlayStation® 4 and Xbox One consoles
  

[h3]Vehicles[/h3]

• LCAA Hovercraft engine damage will now correctly display a damage indicator
  
• Explosive damage will now be applied towards Transport Helicopters, alongside the impact damage of the projectile.
  

[h3]Specialists[/h3]

• Resolved an issue that resulted in Dozer having the ability to skywalk when climbing down ladders. It’s not that type of game!
  
• Resolved a visual issue where grenades sometimes clipped through Dozer’s shield
  
• Rao’s Cyber Warfare Suite will now transmit designated lock-on targets to friendly vehicles
  

This announcement may change as we listen to community feedback and continue developing and evolving our Live Service & Content. We will always strive to keep our community as informed as possible.

Hello there,

As we approach the final weeks of Season 4: Eleventh Hour, we thought it would be a good time to discuss several changes and improvements coming to Vault Weapons in Season 5.

Throughout the launch of Battlefield™ 2042, we continued to see feedback from you that you wanted more weapons to play with. As a result, we adapted Battlefield Portal weapons for use in All-Out Warfare and named them Vault Weapons.

Over time, as we continued to assess the arsenal of our Vault Weapons with your feedback, we identified areas of improvement for Vault Weapons based on the following action points:

• You weren’t able to adapt Vault Weapons to your liking with 2042 attachments
  
• You wanted the ability to customize the skins of your Vault Weapons
  
• You felt as though Vault Weapons were not able to consistently compete in All-Out Warfare Encounters
  

Without any further delay, let’s hand it over to the Weapons Team to detail some of the improvements they have been working on to address your feedback!



[h2]Vault Weapons meet Attachments[/h2]

You may have seen us teasing about this for some weeks now, and it is finally time to confirm that we will be adapting Vault Weapons for use with All-Out Warfare attachments, starting in Season 5.

To start, we will be focusing on Assault Rifles and Sniper Rifles with attachments for the M16A3, A-91, M416, MTAR-21, AEK-971 and the GOL Sniper Magnum.



While we encourage you to get to grips with the attachments and define your own loadout, here are two Vault Weapons with all the available attachments associated with them:

M16A3: MAUL Hybrid 1.5X, TV 2X, UH-1 Smart 1.5X, 8R Holo, SHAN 2.5X, Bravo 3X, M22, Wrapped Suppressor, Warhawk Compensator, Tactical Compensator, Arcom Tactical Muzzle Brake, Champion Muzzle Brake, 6KU Suppressor, Cobra Grip, BCG Light Grip, LWG Grip, Rattlesnake Light Grip, STNR Laser Sight, T4 Thermal 3X, PB Heavy Suppressor, Type 4 Heavy Suppressor, Extended Magazine, LS-1 Laser Sight, Flashlight.

AEK-971: XDR Holo, K8 Holo, SHAN 2.5x, Bravo 3X, M22, Raven 4X, PSO-1M3, Ghost Hybrid 1.25X, Covered Suppressor, Warhawk Compensator, Tactical Compensator, Arcom Tactical Muzzle Brake, Champion Muzzle Brake, 6KU Suppressor, Cobra Grip, LS-1 Laser Sight, Flashlight, Extended Magazine.

Those of you with an eye for detail will notice that in the two examples above, we have not included ammunition examples as much as we had for sights or barrels.

The reason for this is because All-Out Warfare and its attachments were not developed with Vault Weapons in mind and will require extra work.

This is something that we’ll continue to review over time, as we continue to extend attachment support towards other Vault Weapons.

Please do keep the feedback coming, and let us know what attachment and weapon combinations you'll be looking for in the future!

[h2]A Touch of Colour[/h2]

We are also addressing your feedback to customize the skins of your Vault Weapons. As part of Season 5, all Universal Skins such as Forest Multi-terrain (Unlocked at Rank 0) and Desert Technical (Unlocked at Rank 19) will be extended towards all Vault Weapons. As an added bonus, Universal Skins will also be available within Battlefield Portal, allowing you to show off your flair as you venture back in time.



Coupled with the earlier news about attachments arriving to Vault Weapons, this now allows you to not only decide how your favorite weapons perform but how they look too.

[h2]A Question of Balance[/h2]

We wish to acknowledge your feedback around the balancing of Vault Weapons and with these changes in mind it will now provide Vault Weapons with more versatility than ever before and allow them to consistently compete alongside and against All-Out Warfare weapons.

Attachments arriving to Vault Weapons is a substantial change that is an immediate benefit to help improve their performance and not necessarily in real power term and that is where you come in. Through your feedback we will continue to provide balance changes for both attachments and Vault Weapons as time goes on and once you’ve had time to go hands on with them.

Before we sign off, thank you for your continued support and passion for all things weapons. We know that Vault Weapons have a special place in your hearts, and we are excited to see you try these new attachment combinations and begin experimenting.

See you on the Battlefield!



This announcement may change as we listen to community feedback and continue developing and evolving our Live Service & Content. We will always strive to keep our community as informed as possible.

Hello there,

Update 4.2.0 deploys across all platforms next week. With it comes the penultimate map rework for Discarded, alongside a wide range of Quality of Life improvements.

Here’s an overview of focus areas:

• Map Rework: Discarded.
  
• Collection & Customization Improvements such as the ability to remove Weapon Attachments from Weapons within the Collections Screen.
  
• End of Round Improvements such as the showcasing of a new Personal Best statistic.
  
• Lis Specialist Mastery Improvement to include Assists into the tracking of Mastery.
  
• Uniform Soldier Aiming now “On” by default.
  

We’re excited to hear your thoughts and witness your experiences of the reworked Discarded once it deploys next week!

//The Battlefield Team

Stay Informed
Follow us on the @BattlefieldComm Twitter account to stay informed on the roll out of our updates. You can also follow along with our tracking of Known Issues.





[h2]Map Rework: Discarded[/h2]
The focus of our Discarded rework was to make the infantry gameplay more enjoyable and accessible. New flags have been added, and others have been moved closer to the main play areas, alongside several new paths and roads across the map. Global lighting has also received improvements.

Check out our overview below for a selection of areas that we feel are going to become quite entertaining once this rework goes live!



[h3]Areas of Improvements[/h3]

Salvage Yards
What used to be an open field on the northwest side of the map has become the Salvage Yard. The car wrecks not only fit the theme of Discarded, but also add multiple cover opportunities for soldiers to outsmart the heavy vehicles roaming the area. There are several destructible houses on the outskirts of the flag that can serve as vantage points at the expense of being buried in their rubble.

Antenna
Whilst already an existing flag, we have brought this flag point closer to the Flooded Village based in the northern region of the map. With this new location, it now provides an improved link between the north area of the map (the green area) with the south (the beach). We reinforced the thought of military occupation by adding various military assets and we have improved the layout by populating the combat space with a few extra structures. You can also climb up the antenna, and parachute or Wingsuit from here down to the Colossus or to the Village.

Dismantled Hull
A destroyed convoy and rows of military cover now strengthen the frontlines of this flag.
The smoke from the convoy should conceal approaching players from snipers that may be waiting on the upper floors of the Hull. The core of the flag received a few improvements with military cover as well, allowing for infantry to push in forward less difficulty. Lastly, we closed off part of the side of the hull that faces the Colossus to limit the frequent sniping from the deck of the ship into this flag.





[h2]Collection & Customization Improvements[/h2]

• Implemented the ability to remove attachments from weapons within the Customization Screen.
  
• Increased legibility of the Plus Menu in-game by only displaying the attachment category that is being changed
  
• Improved how attachments are moved and swapped out in the Customization Menu.
  
• Increased the clarity of descriptive information on how suppressors function within the Collection Screen
  
• Fixed layout in the Customization screen so that info is displayed in the same place.
  
• Reduced the amount of steps necessary to get into changing attachments.
  

[h2]End of Round Improvements[/h2]

• Introduced a new Squad Performance screen statistic called “Personal Best”. If you’ve reached a new record for statistics such as most kills, damage dealt, revives, assists, there is a chance for this stat to display for your efforts in going above and beyond on the battlefield.
  
• During the End of Round flow it’s now possible to skip all the way to the main menu without leaving automatic matchmaking.
  
• Updated Ribbon progression, increasing legibility of what rank was earned.
  
• Improved art & animations across all of End of Round.
  
• Round-based Game Modes will now have side switching enabled, and will now have increased visual communication to indicate what happens after the end of match timer ticks down.
  

[h2]Specialist Mastery Improvements[/h2]

• Updated Lis' Mastery requirement to better fit her intended playstyle:
  
• Old - 10 Kills when destroying Vehicles with the G-84 TGM to
  
• New - 10 Kills and Assists when destroying Vehicles with the G-84 TGM
  

[h2]Uniform Soldier Aiming[/h2]
We're changing the default setting of Uniform Soldier Aiming from Off, to On, for both controller and mouse & keyboard gameplay. This feature is a tool which over time helps your aiming movement to gradually become more consistent during gameplay.

Our reasoning for having Uniform Soldier Aiming turned Off by default in Battlefield 2042 was because in previous Battlefield titles we expected a slower aim rate in zoom to be a benefit in helping players learn to aim. Instead, we have since observed that for both new and experienced players this variance does not promote good muscle memory build up.

Read our full Dev Notes - Uniform Soldier Aiming if you’d like to learn more.





[h3]General & Gameplay Improvements[/h3]

• Doors that were previously controlled by the enemy team will now automatically open upon getting close to them rather than having to hold the interact button.
  
• Updated the scoreboard to keep the Objective score in the right-most column for all objective-based game modes, for an easier overview.
  
• Sundance Mastery now correctly tracks Assists on destroyed enemy vehicles when using the smart explosives.
  
• Correct icon is now present for Irish and Sundance's gadgets.
  
• Dozer's Ballistic Shield will no longer deflect/ricochet Sundance's Scatter Grenade.
  
• Soldiers will now become spotted on the minimap upon firing or throwing the following items: Smoke Grenade Launcher, SPH Explosive Launcher, Recoilless M5, Javelin and FXM-33.
  
• The reload prompt no longer appears while you are knocked down and awaiting a revive.
  
• The kill log will now display Ranger as the cause of death if you are killed by one of them upon self destructing.
  
• Blasco no longer attempts to hug the ground and her arms should remain in the correct place when switching to her gadget while prone.
  
• Improved HUD visibility across a number of different screen settings.
  
• The icon above Ranger now pulsates correctly when self destructing.
  
• Auto throw grenades and throwing knives option now behaves more consistently.
  
• Fixed an issue that would cause players to be seen with the green highlight while reviving when they shouldn't.
  
• Fixed an issue where you couldn't throw grenades through the frame off the watering robots in Renewal.
  
• The repair tool now displays the overheat UI element correctly.
  
• Fixed an issue where teammates couldn't deal damage to friendly deployable shields.
  
• Resolved an issue when landing with the parachute and the user repeatedly pressed the melee button it would sometimes cause an unintended animation.
  
• The affected zone of Blasco’s X6-Infiltration Device will no longer display on the minimap whilst far away from the intended zone.
  
• The name of Blasco's specialist trait now appears in the HUD after exiting a vehicle and triggering the effect.
  
• Players can no longer hear the Signal Jammer noise while in a downed state.
  
• A reload animation is now present in first person view after a player fires the rocket launcher, throws a grenade and swaps back
  
• Fixed an issue where weapon overheating behaved differently across different platforms.
  
• The EOD Bot was getting a bit too friendly with Boris' SG-36 Sentry Gun and instead of repairing it, would pick it up. Not figuratively speaking, don’t ask us how that would have looked, an EOD Bot rolling down the hills of Flashpoint with a Sentry Gun on it. Anyway, this will no longer take place and it will repair the turret instead, as intended.
  
• Resolved an issue that allowed MCOM’s to be stuck in a state which prevented it from exploding upon using the EOD Bot on it.
  
• Fixed an issue where you couldn't pick up C5 or Claymore placed near or inside bushes.
  
• If you throw a grenade while holding the Repair Tool, you can no longer see and hear the Repair Tool becoming active for a brief moment.
  
• Fixed an issue which would cause multiple grenades to be thrown in a quicker succession than expected if Quick Throw grenades were enabled.
  
• Updated Boris' SG-36 Sentry Gun description to now mention targeting vehicles.
  

[h3]Battlefield Portal[/h3]

• Adding a CAV-Brawler to Battlefield Portal will no longer restrict you from saving the experience.
  
• Improved consistency of the Vault Weapon attachments.
  
• Corrected Recoil Modifiers across Bad Company 2 weapons.
  
• MTAR-21's fire modes can be changed within Battlefield 3 experiences.
  
• Correct stats now display within the Collection screen for the RPK.
  
• You can now switch between fire modes on the AEK-971.
  
• Two consecutive bullets are fired when firing intermittently on auto with the AN-94.
  
• You can now switch between fire modes on the AN-94.
  
• Fixed an issue that resulted in multiple Battlefield Portal weapons showing incorrect fire modes shown on the Collection Screen.
  

[h3]Weapons[/h3]

• Fixed an issue that would occur to reloads when placing a gadget then entering and exiting a vehicle.
  
• Fixed an issue where equipping the RPK-74M while repeatedly pressing the melee function with the bipod attachment equipped would cause a broken animation.
  
• The Gewehr 43 will no longer have its bolt open within the Collection screen.
  
• Tracers are no longer present on Subsonic ammo when equipped on the MP28.
  
• The Type 88 LMG and SVD will now be held correctly within the left hand on the Main Screen and Collection Screen.
  
• The Super 500 will now display a Prompt Reload option when running low on ammo.
  
• Fixed damage sounds not playing when taking hits from Super 500.
  
• Super 500's crosshair is now an acceptable size while using a flechette shell.
  
• Fixed an issue that was causing the Prompt Reload option to keep appearing despite being disabled in the options menu.
  
• The correct RoF is now present for GOL Sniper Magnum in Collection Tab.
  

[h3]Weapon Attachments[/h3]

• MTAR-21 Suppressor no longer deals more damage than Default Suppressors.
  
• The Extended Barrel now affects the Rate of Fire when customized on PP-29.
  
• The K30 magazines will now display the correct Rate of Fire within the collection screen.
  
• The ADR Bipod weapon attachment no longer breaks the melee animation.
  
• RM68's Canted Sight no longer clips through the camera when firing in ADS with Shan 2.5X scope.
  
• The M11 x6 Scope is no longer partially obscured while aiming down sights.
  

[h3]Vehicles[/h3]

• Increased damage of heavy projectiles towards Transport Vehicles (Including MPAT Shell, TOW Missile etc)
  
• Radar Missiles now ignore targets that are Below Radar
  
• Mi-240 Super Hind takes 20% more damage from all projectiles
  
• MV-38 Condor takes 10% more damage from all projectiles
  
• Fixed an issue that would cause the audio to intermittently cut out while repairing the MV-38 Condor.
  
• The EMKV90-TOR no longer shakes as it sits on rugged terrain in siege mode.
  
• Fixed an issue that would cause the wrong LOD model to display on the MAV at certain distances.
  
• The MAV's 50mm cannon will now visibly show recoil.
  
• The HUD no longer flickers while attempting to drive a vehicle in an elevator on Exposure.
  
• The Fire Countermeasure reactive hint will no longer be displayed while being hacked or under the influence of an EMP.
  
• VFX now displays correctly when Javelin projectiles are intercepted by APS.
  
• Blue markers are now displayed in HUD for projectiles intercepted by APS.
  
• Fixed an issue that was causing the missiles of the EBAA Wildcat to not hit enemy helicopters.
  
• Fixed an issue where EBAA Wildcat AA missiles sometimes fail to hit helicopters
  
• Stealth helicopters that have been hit with the Tracer Dart can now be locked onto, even in Stealth mode.
  
• The 40mm Incendiary Grenade Launcher Visual Effects on the CAV-Brawler now matches the affected area.
  
• The lid on the CAV-Brawler open seat no longer closes while Lis is controlling her guided missile.
  
• Added Cyber Warfare Protection to the CAV-Brawler
  
• Fixed an issue that would cause the icons of a neutral vehicle to disappear and reappear for a split second on map opening.
  

This announcement may change as we listen to community feedback and continue developing and evolving our Live Service & Content. We will always strive to keep our community as informed as possible.

Hello there,

As part of the next game update we're changing the default setting of Uniform Soldier Aiming from Off, to On, for both controller and mouse & keyboard gameplay. We’ll first explain how this feature works, and why we’re making this change.

[h2]What is Uniform Soldier Aiming?[/h2]

Uniform Soldier Aiming is a feature beneficial to the process of developing good muscle memory when aiming. It calculates the amount of input it takes for your aim to move across screen space to be consistent regardless of field of view changes. As a result, it will always take the same amount of pixel distance on screen for a given physical movement of the mouse. This creates more consistency between non-zoom and zoom, as long as individual zoom aim sensitivity (e.g. 1.00x or 1.25x) has not been changed from the default.

It’s important to note that it’s not an immediate setting to improve your aim, but rather a tool which over time helps your aiming movement to gradually become more consistent during gameplay.



[h2]Uniform Soldier Aiming in Battlefield 2042[/h2]

Our reasoning for having Uniform Soldier Aiming turned Off by default in Battlefield 2042 was because in previous Battlefield™ titles we expected a slower aim rate in zoom to be a benefit in helping players learn to aim. Instead, we have since observed that for both new and experienced players this variance does not promote good muscle memory build up. As this is an essential part of aiming, we’re now turning Uniform Soldier Aiming to On by default.

[h2]Improving your gameplay[/h2]

If you play with a controller then you will already notice aiming variance due to Aim Assist. For example, your aim slowing down when close to a target alongside other similar helpful acceleration settings. By having Uniform Soldier Aiming On by default, we are reducing unnecessary aiming variance to help you learn the input curves on the controller sticks consistently. It should also help you aim while using higher magnification scopes to better track fast moving targets.

As a mouse and keyboard player you don’t have the same variance to account for as when using a controller. However, the same principle applies for Uniform Soldier Aiming. Over time, it helps you build muscle memory and improves your aiming skills through more consistent aim rates, regardless of magnification levels.

If you prefer to play without Uniform Soldier Aiming then you can still toggle it On/Off via Options -> Controller / Mouse & Keyboard -> On Foot -> Uniform Soldier Aiming under the Aim category.

For those of you who are not aware of Uniform Soldier Aiming functionality or unsure of how it works, we are looking forward to getting this change in your hands as we believe it will be a benefit to your long-term gameplay.

//The Battlefield Core Gameplay team



The details in this announcement may change as we listen to community feedback and continue developing and evolving our Live Service & Content. We will always strive to keep our community as informed as possible.