The launch of most recent Battlefield 2042 update bringing many fixes for a variety of issues, many players have already written the game off as a failed entry in the beloved series. There are a handful of components to 2042 that seem as though they were designed for a battle royale game, and new information continues pointing to that being the case, with the game supposedly pivoting to a more traditional Battlefield model in the midst of development.
An attempt was made once before to bring a battle royale to the series with Battlefield V's Firestorm mode. With Criterion Games responsible for the bulk of Firestorm's development, it was a late addition to BF5. When the base game launched in late 2018, the battle royale genre was already immensely successful, and was on its way to becoming saturated. At the time, Fortnite, PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds, and the newly released Apex Legends dominated the fledgling genre, and the woes of BF5's base game combined with Battlefield 5's Firestorm mode becoming a broken mess lead to the battle royale's quick failure.
Many wondered why Electronic Arts, publisher of both Battlefield 5 and Apex Legends, would release two competing battle royale game modes within roughly a month of each other, especially when one was free-t0-play and specifically designed for the genre. It seems like the type of situation even armchair economists can recognize as undesirable, but EA seemed determined to make Battlefield a contender in the BR space, and had similar aspirations for 2042, which entered pre-production shortly after the release of BF5. Battlefield 2042 clearly did not end up as a battle royale, but the makings of one are there, and it's possible to envision how some of the game's mechanics were originally intended for one.
Battlefield 2042's Battle Royale-Styled Components
One of Battlefield 2042's most controversial mechanics, the Specialists, is one of the more obvious holdovers from what was once a battle royale. Especially when put into the context of EA trying to double down on the success of Apex, the Specialists seem like a very clear attempt at morphing Battlefield's squad play into something that is BR friendly. A remnant of this can still be seen in Hazard Zone, where Specialist selection is restricted to one per team. This could also help explain why 2042 has abandoned the class system entirely. The freeform nature of load outs in 2042 could have been an idea born out of players choosing what gadgets their squad would take into a BR match, or perhaps just find in-game.
2042's Plus System, which lets players adjust their weapon attachments on the fly, also seems like an attempt at advancing concepts found in Apex. All manner of weapon attachments can be found during an Apex game, but sights, magazines, barrels, etc. only get one slot. Battlefield 4 especially was known for its vast selection of weapon attachments, and bringing that sort of variety to the Plus System seems like a good match for the emergent nature of battle royale encounters. In a similar vein, the vehicle call-in system in 2042 is actually a rather inspired solution to the often massive distances players need to travel on BR maps.
There are also a variety of smaller details in 2042 that don't require much imagination to see as part of a BR. The deployment cutscenes for each match, and the way the game displays the player character on the main menu feel inspired by such features from Fortnite, Apex, and Warzone. The Specialists are clearly in part a vehicle to deliver cosmetics through micro-transactions, and 2042's skins already showcase its disconnected story and hint at a future of wackily dressed mercenaries. Plenty of games that aren't BRs have cosmetics, but Fortnite has notably turned character skins into a phenomenon. Battlefield 2042 may not be a battle royale now, but that may have been the original intent, and there are still plenty of systems in the game that conveniently adhere to that idea.
How Battlefield 2042 Supposedly Started As A Battle Royale
Notable Battlefield insider 2042's successful launch despite the poor reception - and making it into a successful BR would surely bring profit, given that the genre has seen plenty of success in recent years (though also it's fair share of failures).
According to Henderson, it was in early pre-production on 2042 when ideas like the vehicle call-in mechanics and Plus System were conceived, but a lot of resources had to be developed on updating the Frostbite engine. Things were likely still being workshopped since the game hadn't yet entered full-scale development, but it began to take shape around late 2019 when EA began to see the potential longevity of Apex Legends compared to Battlefield. Successful monetization of the playable characters of Apex, and the success of Call of Duty was having with similar Specialists in Black Ops 3 and 4 supposedly pushed EA to move forward with abandonment of the traditional Battlefield class system. It sounds like 2042 was initially attempting to follow in the footsteps of Apex, but would've tried to keep some of the Battlefield identity with a heavier focus on vehicles and weapon customization.
Henderson's sources claim two occurrences had a major impact on Battlefield 2042's development in early 2020. First, the COVID-19 pandemic affected development industry-wide, and DICE transitioned to working from home. This doesn't necessarily directly correlate to 2042 no longer being a battle royale, but it plays a significant role in explaining Battlefield 2042's long list of missing features. It was actually the breakout success of Warzone which prompted EA and DICE to switch gears. Call of Duty had essentially taken the BR market share that Battlefield was hoping to find, so development continued with a more traditional experience planned.
This of events is rather believable when laid out, and helps explain some other lingering questions, like how 2042's maps are large, but seemingly not large enough to the alleged battle royale it was supposed to be. Though it would have been nice if the Specialists were pivoted to a middle ground closer to the class system, their design at least makes sense when viewed with the context of 2042's Apex mimicry. It's interesting that two of the earliest systems created for the BR - vehicle call-in and the Plus System - are two of the more engaging additions to the Battlefield formula. Aside from the vehicle call-in contributing to 2042 skyscraper objectives being near impossible to take in Breakthrough, both it and the Plus System seem to be rather well received parts of Battlefield 2042, keeping some of the player agency that was intended in original BR concepts.
