Battlefield 2042 and the lessons we are tired of learning

Being a gamer, these past few years have not been a fun ride. Sure, there have been gems, with an industry this massive, hits are an inevitability. But disappointment is more common than satisfaction now. 

From the age of Bethesda offering paid horse armour Downloadable Content (DLC) in Oblivion, greed has always been an underlying driving force. Only now it seems it is no longer a sneaky, hidden tactic. Game developers will outright shoot you in the face then charge you for it afterwards.

The latest story on the news cycle is Battlefield 2042 and the utter disaster of its launch. It's not surprising that EA is the culprit behind it once again. 

To put the failure of Battlefield 2042 into perspective, here are a few numbers: the game was released on 19 November and since then its active player base has dropped by 70 percent, with a peak player count of around 30,000. 

In comparison Battlefield V, which had a troubled reception of its own, was released on 20 November 2018 and still has a consistent peak of 20,000 players. If the downward trend continues it could see Battlefield 2042 match V's player count, perhaps even drop under it.

If we delve deeper into the game and its many issues, it is almost jarring that it was launched in the first place. EA seems to have stripped Battlefield 2042 of everything Battlefield and launched a strange Call of Duty and Overwatch clone. 

There is a master list of features that were missing from the final product somewhere on the internet but briefly, the game had no single-player mode, fewer game modes, no persistent lobbies or permanent community servers and no in-game voice chat. 

Gameplay-wise there is no class system, there are fewer guns, vehicle types and maps. The HUD and UI are also terribly dumbed down. 

In the place of the class system, there are specialists instead. These unique characters have their own set role and traits that cannot be changed. Alongside these missing features, the game itself was rife with bugs and glitches.

Without features like these, it's no longer a Battlefield game, it's just a soulless cash grab. EA had never meant to treat the franchise with care. Beta testers had reported their misgivings with the state of the game back in October. Players who paid extra for the early access logged in to find similar numerous game-breaking bugs. 

Still no real progress was made to rectify these issues. Instead, the latest report is that EA are looking to "expand the Battlefield universe." What exactly does this entail? Nothing good for Battlefield fans.

The solution to fixing this mess is not to regress further but rather build the multiplayer aspects that make this franchise so beloved within the community. Battlefield was never about flashy specialists and getting the most kills. It has always been teamwork and working towards the objective. Slapping on a new coat of paint will not fix the actual in-game issues.

So how did we get here? The truth is that we've been here a while. Battlefield 2042 is not even the first botched launch this month. Rockstar released the much anticipated Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition on 11 November. 

The backlash it received was overwhelming but with good reason. The massive task of remastering three GTA games fell on Grove Street Studios, a small studio. Based on that, it is not a surprise that the end product was such a glitchy mess.

The blame for this debacle falls on Rockstar who chose the easy way out instead of treating their beloved franchise with care. 

The cherry on top of this was when Rockstar was forced to briefly take down the game after it was discovered that they had left behind uncompiled code with unlicensed songs. 

Gamers were unable to play it as it was pulled from the store. After a day offline, Rockstar put the game back on the store.

The pattern here is telling. AAA studios release half done games knowing full well that gamers will buy regardless. They capitalise on that and then move on to their next big franchise. Oftentimes games are left in their buggy state. Or promised DLC's are not released.

Take the story of Cyberpunk 2077 and its numerous roadmaps. Since the tumultuous release, CD Projekt Red has released three roadmaps promising patches and free DLCs. When one roadmap is released, it soon becomes evident that they cannot keep their promise. And then comes the next.

It has been a little over a year and CDPR has released only three free DLCs. But far more importantly it is still as much of a husk as it was on release day. The promises sold to gamers at conventions before release have not and will likely never see the light of day.

CDPR can be commended for at least attempting to fix the game. The same cannot be said however for the likes Mass Effect Andromeda or Anthem which was published by EA. They've been cast aside after having wrung the community's wallets dry.

The problem is the symbiotic relationship between gamers and the industry. The industry needs to sell and they know the more waves their product can make the more attention it will capture. Events like the E3 is a fantastic medium to create hype on. Coupled with YouTubers who can mobilise large bases, it then becomes very easy to capture a sizable audience to sell to.

And what they sell are in reality just ideas. Nowadays when a game is released, it is almost a known fact that it will either be unfinished or it won't have a lot of the promised features. 

There is backlash after every botched launch but at the end of the day, the product is still bought. AAA company's get to fill their coffers and move on.

The core aim of game developers has changed along the way, right under our very noses. It's all about maximising profits. Even developers like CDPR who were once hailed as the messiah by the community turned out to be wolves in sheep's clothing.

Here is another number, despite the outcry at launch, Battlefield 2042 has sold over 4.23 million units in its first week, making it the second-best launch in the series. 

At this stage, EA is no longer beholden to their consumer. They have already taken all they can. For a company that has been voted 'Worst Company in America' twice, a bit of gamer rage will do nothing to deter them.

As long as this culture continues, there will be more Battlefield 2042s and Cyberpunk 2077s. 

Studios no longer stand by their word and the gaming community despite learning their many lessons still can't seem to stop making the same mistakes.