Battlefield 6 Open Beta Review: A Return to Form for the Series?

With the first day of the Battlefield 6 Open Beta done, I wanted to make a quick review of my thoughts on the open beta so far. It's important to note that this will not be my thoughts on what the full game "might be like", but rather, how it is in its current state, keeping in mind that it is NOT the final release of the game, nor is it fully reflective of what that final release will be like. With that out of the way, let's get on to the review.

Gameplay & Gunplay

After about five hours of gameplay, a good way to sum up the “feel” of Battlefield 6 would be a cross between the gameplay of Battlefield 4 and 2042, in the best ways. The game feels equipped to tailor to both slower, more “traditional” Battlefield playstyles, as well as a more rapid-paced run-and-gun style seen more often in 2042. Gunplay still feels nice and smooth like in 2042 while retaining the weightiness of older Battlefield games such as 3 and 4, all coming together to, at least in my (day one) opinion, some of the smoothest gunplay we’ve seen in the Battlefield series. As an amateur Cranium Cracker myself, I have nearly no complaints when it comes to the way engaging in combat feels. As for the feel of general gameplay itself, thanks to new engine changes and features such as the “Kinesthetic Combat System”, movement, combat, and the general gameplay experience in Battlefield 6 is improved greatly upon. One issue I have, despite all this praise, is that the TTK (time-to-kill) is often too low to make gunfights feel engaging and meaningful. On top of this, the starter submachine gun in the Engineer class, the SGX, feels as if it packs much more of a punch than the M433, the starter Assault Rifle in the Assault class. This is despite the fact that the Assault class is meant to serve as a run-and-gun frontline class that can deal high damage quickly and operate in a wide variety of situations. After looking into the stats given in-game, the M433 features a damage stat of 25, a rate of fire of 830, and a magazine size of 30. The SGX features the very same values, but the difference lies in the precision, control, and mobility, all of which are notably higher than the M433’s. Other than this strange balancing issue, no other downsides to the current selection of weapons stood out to me in gameplay. After gameplay footage was shown featuring the M87A1 shotgun, many were worried that a nerf would be needed for the weapon. Although it does pack a punch in combat, I doubt that we’ll be seeing mass demands for a shotgun nerf after people have gotten some hands-on experience with the weapon. The heavy damage is offset by its heavy range dropoff and the accuracy needed to deal effective damage to enemies. The weapon itself actually resides in your “Gadget One” slot in the Assault class loadout, and truthfully is only useful in very tight spaces, as you would expect from a shotgun. All of your classic Battlefield modes return, Conquest, Domination, and King of the Hill, as well as a new mode, Breakthrough. The goal is for attackers to claim new terroritory sector by sector, while defenders try to stop them. The mode allows for fast-paced close quarters combat with almost no downtime, and is a must-play for those who love constant gunfights. Also, the UI is still pretty abysmal. That’s to be expected. The usual Battlefield “Everything all at once” UI mindset.

Maps

As of the writing of this review (August 9th, 2025) we are on week one of the open beta. Currently, there are only three maps available for the public to play on, Siege of Cairo, Liberation Peak, and Saints Quarter. The first and third maps serve mainly to highlight the tighter, more urban combat, while Liberation Peak is what you’d typically expect from a Battlefield map, albeit a little smaller. Taking a moment away from the open beta itself, five of the nine launch maps appear to follow the “tight, urban layout” previously mentioned, suggesting that Battlefield 6 may be leaning further into that concept, when past games such as Battlefield 3 and 4 didn’t utilize it as much. However, this isn’t an Operation Metro situation. Siege of Cairo allows for vehicles, giving players a very interesting set piece of tight streets and alleyways that still allow for IFVs and Tanks to wreak havoc and tear buildings apart. Meanwhile, Saints Quarter allows for players to experience an infantry-only battle that highlights the various routes and flanks an urban map can offer, giving players little in the department of wide open spaces while still not feeling too cramped. In my experience, gunfights in Saints Quarter almost always began and ended from windows and doorways across the street from each other, or from corners in alleyways. The environment feels as if it plays more of a direct role in combat, providing plenty of cover and even possible flanking routes for those with sharp eyes. As for Liberation Peak, the variation in elevation allows for some interesting experiences when it comes to rushing to any objective point in particular. Points A, B, D, and E all feature more crowded areas with several buildings for cover, while points C and F are more open, relying instead on the elevation differences in the land as well as more spread-out objects for cover. The center of the map, points C and D in particular, serve well as choke points for the team that can hold them. D is easier to diffuse, with the flatter land and open area with buildings allowing more flanking routes. Point C, however, has only two ways in or out, and the point itself has plenty of cover. It isn’t impossible to fight through the point, however, as long as your squad can coordinate itself half-decently. Point C also serves as an excellent eagle’s nest for the Chris Kyles of every squad. Personally, I’ve hit plenty of headshots with the M2010 ESR while simultaneously holding Point C. Liberation Peak, as you can tell by my writing, is definitely my favorite of the three maps we’ve experienced so far in the beta, though that could change in the next open beta weekend, when Empire State is added.

Graphics & Performance

I’ll keep this section a bit more brief, as I’ve never been particularly strict on demanding lifelike graphics. However, I’ve always believed that Battlefield games had this “look” to them, not exactly striving for photo-realism but realistic all the same. For longtime Battlefield fans reading this, they’ll know what I mean. Think Battlefield 4, the lighting of that game gave it this sort of aura that separated it from a generic military shooter just trying to look as realistic as possible. Battlefield 6 is the same way. In fact, my first two or three matches were spent just gawking at the fact that the game almost looks like Battlefield 4 if it was just made today. It keeps that “Battlefield aura” while having up-to-date lighting, fidelity, and effects. And of course, with the new upgrades to environmental destruction, the effects of those are on point. I play on an Xbox Series S, and saw almost perfectly consistent 60fps gameplay, rarely ever dipping below that amount. (Though, for some reason, the Firing Range framerate is absolutely awful. Still no knowledge on why that’s the case) On Xbox Series S, there is no option for “Performance Mode” or “Balanced Mode” like other platforms. Instead, the game is locked to run at 1080p (featuring Dynamic Resolution Scaling) and 60fps. For some, this might be bad news, but for me, it works. I can’t exactly speak on the PC experience for Battlefield 6, but I can guarantee you that, regardless of which console you play on, you will have a good experience performance-wise, whether it be the Xbox Series S or the PS5 Pro.

The Final Verdict

Battlefield 6 is, at its core, a return to formula for the series. It takes what worked in Battlefield 2042, what was beloved from past entries like Battlefield 3 and 4, and brings them all together in a brand new entry to the series that’s bound to bring Battlefield back to the forefront of shooter discussions. With a single-player campaign returning to the series in Battlefield 6’s full release, plus countless new maps, modes, weapons, and content in general, the game is bound to perform extremely well upon launch. However, even the open beta in its current form is a very interesting and entertaining experience. It manages to keep players on their toes, and even with the currently limited map and weapon selection, the gameplay elements themselves just keep me coming back for more. So, with that, the open beta of Battlefield 6 earns a…

8.5/10

I’m hopeful for a successful new release, as well as Dice and EA sticking to their promise of a Battlefield game returning to what made the older games successful and building on that. If they manage to pull it off, it could be a brand new era for the two companies, as well as the return of Battlefield to being a true direct competitor to the Call of Duty franchise. However, only time will tell.