EA will test playlists with class-locked weapons in Battlefield 6 beta

Although the next Battlefield game – commonly referred to as Battlefield 6 for the time being – is confirmed to feature a return of classes, EA and the community appear to be in disagreement on how far back exactly this shift should go. Even with classes returning, EA envisions the game to have an open weapon system with players getting access to every weapon regardless of class. Hardcore fans of the series, however, feel that this undermines the class system and want guns to be exclusive to classes, as has generally always been the case in the series.

Although it defended its position only recently as part of a development update, EA’s appears to be weakening its stance in this clash of philosophies: In a short post on social media, the studio announced that an upcoming open beta test will feature playlists with class-locked weapons in addition to playlists with the open weapon system.

“Open Weapons vs Closed Weapons. Why not both? Starting at Open Beta players can choose official playlists with Signature Weapons locked to class, or not. More to come,” EA stated.

Aside from showing that it listens to community feedback and thereby garnering some good will, this looks to be the smartest move EA could make from a development perspective: Offering the two systems alongside each other will allow the company to collect lots of useful data and then make more sound decisions for the final product based on it.

The solution is also remarkably similar to something EA is doing in FC 26, its soccer sim. FC 26 will feature two completely different gameplay presets players can choose from, one geared to authentic solo play and one to competitive online play — it’s a way to cater to a large and varied player base without the risk of alienating both sides. Whether this can be a long term solution for Battlefield, the upcoming test – which has no date as of yet – will have to show.

The next Battlefield game is set to be revealed this summer with a targeted release in 2026.

More news on DBLTAP: