There is a lot of mystery and excitement surrounding Battlefield 2042. The game is slated to release later this fall, and developer DICE has been slowly revealing more information about the gameplay and features that players can expect when the game launches. There is already quite a lot of new things for players to be excited about, including an entirely new weather disaster feature, new specialists and gadgets for players to learn, and new 128-player matches for Battlefield 2042 players on PC and next-gen consoles.
It was recently announced that Battlefield 2042 will launch with seven maps, all of which the developers have provided details for on the game's website. However, there is still a mystery game mode that Battlefield 2042 will feature that players have been told very little about. The developers have confirmed that it will not be a battle royale mode, but instead said that it is a mode built with the series' oldest and most dedicated players in mind. Again, there is very little known about what exactly that all means, as all that has been said about the mode is that it has an entire studio dedicated to it and that it will feature classic maps from the Battlefield series.
Battlefield 2042 Is Bringing Back Old Maps
The news that Battlefield 2042 is bringing back classic maps came from EA's The Future of FPS stream earlier this month. What maps, in particular, would be making a return in the game was not shared with fans, but popular Battlefield leaker Tom Henderson did claim to hear that maps such as Metro, Locker, Wake Island, and Caspian Border would be making their way to Battlefield 2042 eventually. With more on the mode suspected to be revealed at the EA Play event later this month, many fans have begun speculating about what exactly the mode could be. Some claim that it is the hub feature that leaked about Battlefield 2042 ahead of its release, which would see players being able to return to old Battlefield titles and play on the old maps in their original forms.
Other fans think that the old maps will simply be remastered and added into the game with a specific game mode similar to Battlefield 5's Grand Operations. On top of that, some think that the mode could be a co-op mode similar to ones that have appeared across the series. Regardless of what the mode ultimately is, Battlefield fans are particularly eager to learn what classic maps they will be able to revisit. There is a long list of Battlefield maps that fans hope will return, and there are some cues that Battlefield 2042 should take from its competition to make sure the maps are added successfully.
Activision's Approach To Bringing Back Old Maps
Activision's Call of Duty franchise is no stranger to seeing classic maps return in newer titles. Every Call of Duty title developed by Treyarch features a remake of the classic Nuketown map, for example. The map has been featured so much that it has become synonymous with Call of Duty, and it has even been given dedicated playlists in Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War. In fact, nearly every new Season of the most recent Call of Duty titles has featured old maps returning alongside new maps. This combination has been very successful for Call of Duty, and the releases of the old maps have been largely met with excited welcomes by the community.
The old maps are so popular that many fans already have wishlists of maps that should return to Call of Duty. While the success of returning maps is largely a testament to the quality and fandom of those older titles, another large factor is how the maps are remastered for their inclusion in the new game. When an old map is brought back, its design is updated to better fit into the game that it is being introduced to. This has led to a map like Nuketown being playable in a variety of different time periods while keeping the same level geometry, pathing, and angles so that it plays like it did before. This helps breathe new life into the map, while still satisfying fans looking forward to fighting in a familiar battleground.
How Battlefield 2042 Should Approach Bringing Back Old Maps
It is in the visual redesigning of old maps that Battlefield 2042 should follow in Call of Duty's steps. Battlefield 2042 features a near-future dystopian setting, so bringing those classic maps into the future to match the gear and other maps in the game will go a long way to helping them feel fresh and new while also capturing the same gameplay that made fans love them in the first place. However, the maps will likely require some more tweaking than most Call of Duty maps have, depending on how the undisclosed game mode will work.
It is possible that the game mode will see the old maps playing more similarly to classic Battlefield titles so that they can remain as intact as possible. This would require the maps to cut down the server size as well as likely disabling Battlefield 2042's premiere new weather systems, as the maps were not originally built for them. However, it is possible for the old maps to be updated slightly while still retaining their original identities. For example, a map like Siege of Shanghai could be expanded with more buildings and streets to make room for players and tornadoes while still keeping its iconic collapsing skyscraper.
Regardless of how the game mode ends up playing, it seems likely that Battlefield 2042 will update the classic maps to bring them to its futuristic setting. Failing to do so would not only make the maps feel dated, but also out of place among Battlefield 2042's futuristic gadgets, specialists, and launch maps. It will be very interesting to see what maps make the final cut for Battlefield 2042, as well as what the game mode they feature in looks like. Hopefully, fans will get some more news on what to expect from Battlefield 2042's map remakes soon.
Battlefield 2042 releases on October 22 for PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.
