Battlefield 6 Season 1 impressions — Packing the action in before the holidays

Battlefield 6 has had a stellar launch, breaking franchise records and garnering much respect from legacy fans and players looking for a change from their usuals. Typically, we’d get more time with a game after launch before we start really digging into post-launch content; however, EA and Battlefield Studios are eager to get the ball rolling. Season 1 of Battlefield 6 gives already keen fans even more to look forward to on very short notice.

Starting on October 28, Season 1 will have three stages of paid and free content releases, including new maps, modes, weapons, and cosmetics. The battle pass for this season will have four tracks for players to progress through, each with unique unlocks that allow players to be more selective about how they approach it. However, an additional track opens up for players who complete the other four tracks. We didn’t get much of a glimpse into what the battle pass actually contains, but we can assume the usual suspects, like weapon kits, skins, and charms. There’s a handful of new weapons and attachments also coming out in Season 1, including a new sniper rifle, 2 new sidearms, a carbine, and a shotgun.

October 28 is also stage one, Rogue Ops, which mainly features a new map and a new mode. Our new map is Blackwell Fields, an oil field out in the California badlands. This map is fairly monochromatic, with a lot of orange, yellow, and brown. Structures are small, few, and scattered around the map, offering little in the way of substation cover, as most can be brought down by a well-placed tank shell. This is a mid-scale, all-out warfare map, with jets and choppers flying overhead while tanks and armored trucks roam the dusty roads. There are a couple of good hilltops for snipers to try to plant themselves as well, though they’re easily flanked since they’re towards the interior of the combat area.

It’s on Blackwell Fields that we also get to see a new vehicle in action: the Traverser Mark 2. This is a 4-person armored vehicle, carrying a driver, a roof gunner, and two passengers. Unlike other trucks, the glass on the Traverser Mark 2 is also bulletproof, keeping occupants safe as they push around the map.

The new mode we get in stage one is Strikepoint, a single-life mode akin to attacker/defender bomb modes in other games. Teams of four go head-to-head to try to secure the objective at the map’s center. The round ends when either team captures the objective or eliminates the other team. The first team to win 6 rounds wins the match, with a single overtime round played if both teams make it to 5 round wins. While this is a single-life mode, players aren’t out right away as they are actually downed and can be revived by a teammate as long as an opponent doesn’t come around to finish them off.

This mode was an instant hit for me, even though I was only able to get a couple of matches in during my preview. There’s a certain thrill that comes with not being able to respawn, making each round more intense and your role in it that much more important. The combat zone for Strikepoint on Blackwell fields is very small, with two outside routes and a central route leading directly to the objective. Rounds were typically over in a minute, with one team being eliminated quickly.

After stage one, of course, comes stage two, California Resistance, bringing with it yet another map, more new weapons, and a limited-time mode, starting on November 18. Our second new map is Eastwood, a high-end California suburb with palm trees, backyard pools, and a golf course. Everything looks so serene and peaceful, and then a tank comes barreling through the living room wall while a helicopter crashes in the street. Now there’s bullets flying around our heads, and there’s explosions, and this beautiful neighborhood descends into chaos. This is another all-out warfare map, with battles in the air and artillery on the ground, and golf cart races up and down the course. Yes, you can drive the golf carts on this map, which is easily the most important feature of this whole season.

The new limited-time mode coming in stage two is Sabotage, another close-quarters mode where each team tries to destroy the other team’s supply caches. The match takes place over 2 7-minute rounds, with the team doing the most damage taking the win. Sabotage is chaotic, with 8 players on each team on very small maps. Maybe it will be better on maps like Empire State or Liberation Peak, but it was a bit too much on Blackwell Fields. We were easily able to overwhelm the enemy team to the point where they couldn’t even leave their spawn; they were dead as soon as their boots were on the ground again. Some tweaks to spawn zones and even the player count would do some good for this mode.

The third stage of Season 1 brings on some of the seasonal vibes. Winter Offensive kicks off on December 9, with an Ice Lock Empire State map, which goes perfectly with the upcoming Ice Lock event and the new melee weapon, the Ice Climbing Axe. Unfortunately, this was not included in our preview, but we look forward to seeing how we’ll be wrapping up Season 1 of Battlefield 6.

This is a pretty content-packed season, coming just a couple of weeks before rival Call of Duty releases Black Ops 7. It’s been refreshing seeing these two juggernaut franchises battle it out over the last few months. We can only hope that this means both sides will feel challenged and motivated to keep their players at the top of their priority list, which already appears to be evident in Battlefield 6’s early post-launch roadmap. We’ll keep you updated on seasons to come and more with Battlefield in the future!