Battlefield 2042 shows off new specialists, who all seem very familiar
If it ain't broke
EA have dropped new gameplay showing off five of Battlefield 2042's specialists doing things like pulling the trigger, laying down turrets, pulling the trigger, and healing friends with a needle gun. They look good, if very, very predictable.
First up, we've got Webster Mackay. He's a soldier alright. And he's one equipped with a grappling hook that lets him get up to those high spots and backstab any camping snipers. He also has "increased agility" when aiming down sights, or ziplining, which should make him a go-to for folks who like running and gunning. Honestly, he'll be my go-to. You can't beat a grappling hook.
Then you've got Maria Falck, the game's healing class. She's equipped with a pistol that fires off healing rounds, a bit like Ana from Overwatch. And as you'd expect, she comes outfitted with a defibrillator that can bring fallen comrades back to life. Hmmm yes, I look forward to many Maria's running straight past my corpse and yelling at my monitor with surprising gusto.
Now Pyotr "Boris" Guskovsky, he's the big lad who deploys turrets that automatically spits bullets at nearby enemies. Stand near your turret and it'll get a boost to its "efficiency", which I can only presume to mean speed-of-shooty-bang.
Oh yes, Wikus "Caspar" Van Daele must be the sniper because he's the only one who's bothered to turn up in a ghillie suit. What gun does he use? A sniper rifle. What gadget does he have? A drone that lets him survey the field. What other gadget does he have? A sensor thingy that detects nearby enemies. Shame he's not got a gadget that'll land all those headshots for me, but hey ho, can't have everything.
Finally there's Kimble "Irish" Graves who returns from Battlefield 4. He's played by the brilliant actor Michael K. Williams who sadly passed away earlier this week. As an engineer, he's capable of dropping a sheet of impenetrable cover and dishes out armour to fellow friends on the battlefield.
So far, anyone could've predicted these Battlefield 2042 classes. Still, there's more to come, as EA plan on revealing another four specialists on their specialists page. And when the game launches, they'll add one per season, making a grand total of 14 super soldiers a year after launch. So maybe, just maybe they'll surprise us with some wacky new additions. Here's hoping for a soldier that fights with a broken guitar and another that controls a house robot from Robot Wars.
What's markedly more interesting is Brendan's preview of Battlefield Portal, Battlefield 2042's equivalent of a level editor, and his look at the game's tornado-filled, 128 player maps.
Battlefield 2042 is due to release on 22nd October and its open beta is scheduled for sometime this month.