DICE has announced sweeping changes to Battlefield 6's core gameplay systems after the Open Beta sparked widespread community criticism. The biggest target: movement mechanics that players said felt too much like Call of Duty.
The Open Beta broke franchise records with 420 million matches played across 92 million hours. Community feedback revealed serious concerns about the game's direction despite the impressive participation numbers.
Slide Jumping Gets Hammered
The most significant changes target movement abuse that dominated beta matches. Players will no longer carry horizontal momentum when sliding into jumps, effectively killing the slide jump meta that plagued the beta.
Consecutive jumping now gets progressively worse. Each jump after the first reaches lower height, making bunny hopping ineffective. Firing while jumping or sliding will destroy your accuracy, forcing players to choose between mobility and combat effectiveness.
Parachutes also got adjusted. Initial acceleration when deploying has been reduced for better directional control during drops.
Weapons See Balance Pass
Every weapon category received attention based on beta performance data. Recoil patterns and tap firing characteristics got a general overhaul, with DICE pushing players toward more disciplined shooting.
The changes reward controlled tap firing and burst firing over full auto spray. This represents a clear shift away from the run and gun gameplay that dominated beta matches.
The infamous M87A1 shotgun (which generated massive player complaints) now requires more pellets to kill. DICE is also investigating the "super bullets" phenomenon where damage registered incorrectly, though no fixes are confirmed yet.
Map Exploits Getting Patched
Beta players found ways to reach rooftops and venture out of bounds, breaking intended map flow. DICE confirmed these areas weren't meant to be accessible and will be blocked in the final release.
The upcoming Assault Ladder gadget won't help either. It's specifically not designed to reach exploit spots.
Players also complained about map scale during the beta. DICE acknowledged the feedback but noted that larger maps were intentionally held back from testing. Two bigger maps (Mirak Valley and a remake of Battlefield 3's Operation Firestorm) will appear in upcoming Battlefield Labs sessions.
Rush Mode Stays Small Despite Complaints
Rush became a major controversy during beta testing. Players wanted larger team sizes, but DICE is sticking with 12v12 matches for the core experience.
DICE tested larger player counts in previous titles but found they created overwhelming defenses, stalled frontlines, and matches ending in the first sector.
Players wanting larger Rush matches can use Portal's custom game options at launch.
Breakthrough Gets Flexible Player Counts
Unlike Rush, Breakthrough will support variable player counts up to 64 players. Some maps will run 48 player matches while others get the full 64, depending on map design and flow requirements.
DICE is using beta win/loss data to balance individual maps, targeting a 50/50 win ratio between attackers and defenders.
Smaller modes like Team Death Match, Squad Death Match, Domination, and King of the Hill will stick with 8v8 player counts.
Class Changes Target Team Play
The Assault class is getting major changes to differentiate it from Support. The Adrenaline Injector no longer provides self healing. Instead, it clears flash and stun effects while boosting explosive resistance and movement speed.
Commanding Presence replaces Enhanced Mobility as the class trait. This speeds up objective captures for nearby squad members and reduces combat status duration.
The Deploy Beacon (formerly Spawn Beacon) moves from Recon to Assault, repositioning it as a frontline flanking tool. A new Assault Ladder gadget provides vertical access as either a ladder or ramp depending on deployment angle.
Recon Gets Spec Ops Path
Recon showed the lowest pick rate at 19% during beta testing. DICE is removing the Pathfinder training path and replacing it with Spec Ops, a throwback to Battlefield 2's stealth focused class.
Spec Ops progression includes three tiers:
- Level 0: Quieter takedowns and improved crouch/prone movement
- Level 1: Automatic enemy gadget spotting (except while sprinting)
- Level 2: Faster combat status recovery when prone, plus self spot removal
Beta Numbers Tell the Story
Class deployment rates during beta revealed clear preferences. Assault led at 32%, followed by Support (26%), Engineer (23%), and Recon (19%). Players eliminated 4.9 billion enemies and performed 30.9 million revives across both beta weekends.
Community engagement extended beyond gameplay with over 600,000 streaming hours and 30 million viewing hours across platforms.
| Class | Pick Rate | Primary Role |
|---|---|---|
| Assault | 32% | Frontline Combat |
| Support | 26% | Team Support |
| Engineer | 23% | Vehicle Combat |
| Recon | 19% | Long Range |
Matchmaking Issues Acknowledged
Some players struggled to find matches for specific challenges, particularly those requiring sector captures in Breakthrough or Rush. DICE admitted the system wasn't ideal and promised improvements based on feedback and gameplay data.
Both Open Weapons and Closed Weapons playlists will return for launch. DICE is working to keep them easily accessible.
Labs Testing Continues
The announced changes will roll out through upcoming Battlefield Labs sessions before the October 10 launch. These closed tests give select players early access to the modifications under NDA agreements.
DICE emphasized that the extensive changes represent genuine beta testing rather than a marketing demo. The level of mechanical adjustments being made distinguishes Battlefield 6 from recent industry trends where betas rarely influence final gameplay.
Battlefield 6 launches October 10 for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.
