The next Battlefield will bring back modern combat, classes and 64-player maps

Vince Zampella, head of the Battlefield franchise, has revealed IGN the first details of the next installment of Battlefield, which to the delight of many players has major references to Battlefield 3 and Battlefield 4. In addition to words, Zampella has shared some concept art, but has not offered any further information.

The next Battlefield will be a return to basics. During the conversation with IGN, Zampella mentions Battlefield 3 and Battlefield 4 as a source of inspiration on more than one occasion, as he believes that those installments were the ones that brought the series to its best moments. He also puts Battlefield 1942 in this bag. However, the new Battlefield will leave World War II or any other conflict of the past behind to recover the era and modern combat, which contrasts with the setting of Battlefield 2042, an installment that seems to have taught more than one lesson to the development teams involved.

Zampella has also commented that the new Battlefield will abandon the specialists, which for some transformed the game into a hero shooterand will bring back classes instead. The developer acknowledges that specialists didn’t work well in Battlefield 2042, a game he didn’t participate in, but he appreciates the attempt. In addition, maps for up to 64 players will be put back in the center, while those for 128 players will be put aside. Zampella assures that making large maps just for the sake of a number “makes no sense” and in his opinion the best thing is to create well-designed maps with beautiful, dense spaces.

The new Battlefield still doesn’t have a name and hasn’t been formally presented, but Zampella has already announced several key decisions. The truth is that the next Battlefield represents a major challenge for Electronic Arts. Zampella acknowledges that this instalment has to regain the trust of veterans and expand what Battlefield means so that more players enter its universe. In principle, there is no shortage of resources to achieve these objectives. According to Electronic Arts, the next Battlefield is “one of the most ambitious projects in our history.”

Battlefield is being developed by DICE, Criterion, Ripple Effect and Motive. Ridgeline Games was also involved in the project until its closure.