This piece gives me cause for concern, as it reminds me of Cyberpunk 2077's review sessions on PC. I have read many reviews now and this is the only one which actually detailed how all press reviewed the game.
If you're looking for a comprehensive review of "Battlefield 2042," you won't find it here. For that matter, you probably won't find it anywhere on Nov. 11, a day before the game releases to the public for an early access window. To date, the game has been available to reviewers only through curated experiences: First, via a beta that showcased just one mode on just one map and then this week, across three several-hour long sessions for reviewers. During those windows, participants could only play the mode and map served up by the game's developers, and only on PC, in part to ensure full servers for a game that can host up to 128 players in a given match. But while it was useful to get a glimpse of the live "Battlefield 2042" experience, the sessions produced more questions than answers. And the biggest question for me is, "Why wasn't this game delayed again?"
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At the start of the review event, in fact, EA's media relations team circulated a document of known issues that spanned four pages. Some were rather innocuous (body parts clipping through walls) while others were more troublesome (sniper scopes losing their magnification). Even with all those instances already reported, reviewers found more throughout the week. One mouse-and-keyboard user's weapon kept firing even when they weren't pressing the left mouse button. Others reported their mouse and keyboards completely stopped working at random. Another player reported driving a tank into the water only to have their character launched into the sky. One member of my squad kept crashing out of the game.
My own experience included a number of oddities as well. A tank I called in with an airdrop disappeared under the map. A helicopter I piloted appeared to simply disappear midflight, with the game informing me and my deceased squad mate that we'd been "terminated." Most problematic of all, after being swept into the tornado and killed, it locked me into the game's revive state — I couldn't return to play without closing the game entirely or waiting for the round to end. None of that, however, frustrated me more than not being able to communicate with my teammates via game chat.
What also makes a true review of this game nigh impossible as it stands is that I can't confidently tell you if these problems will dissipate by launch day. It seems highly unlikely. This is particularly troubling to me, since the preview I participated in was played only on PC. I have no idea what the experience will be like on current-gen consoles, much less on a PS4 or Xbox One.
If you're looking for a comprehensive review of "Battlefield 2042," you won't find it here. For that matter, you probably won't find it anywhere on Nov. 11, a day before the game releases to the public for an early access window. To date, the game has been available to reviewers only through curated experiences: First, via a beta that showcased just one mode on just one map and then this week, across three several-hour long sessions for reviewers. During those windows, participants could only play the mode and map served up by the game's developers, and only on PC, in part to ensure full servers for a game that can host up to 128 players in a given match. But while it was useful to get a glimpse of the live "Battlefield 2042" experience, the sessions produced more questions than answers. And the biggest question for me is, "Why wasn't this game delayed again?"
[..]
At the start of the review event, in fact, EA's media relations team circulated a document of known issues that spanned four pages. Some were rather innocuous (body parts clipping through walls) while others were more troublesome (sniper scopes losing their magnification). Even with all those instances already reported, reviewers found more throughout the week. One mouse-and-keyboard user's weapon kept firing even when they weren't pressing the left mouse button. Others reported their mouse and keyboards completely stopped working at random. Another player reported driving a tank into the water only to have their character launched into the sky. One member of my squad kept crashing out of the game.
My own experience included a number of oddities as well. A tank I called in with an airdrop disappeared under the map. A helicopter I piloted appeared to simply disappear midflight, with the game informing me and my deceased squad mate that we'd been "terminated." Most problematic of all, after being swept into the tornado and killed, it locked me into the game's revive state — I couldn't return to play without closing the game entirely or waiting for the round to end. None of that, however, frustrated me more than not being able to communicate with my teammates via game chat.
What also makes a true review of this game nigh impossible as it stands is that I can't confidently tell you if these problems will dissipate by launch day. It seems highly unlikely. This is particularly troubling to me, since the preview I participated in was played only on PC. I have no idea what the experience will be like on current-gen consoles, much less on a PS4 or Xbox One.
