No word on when the open beta will start, but we’ll get an update ‘later this month’
After a lot of (now-confirmed) speculation about Battlefield 2042 missing its original October 22 release date, DICE has announced that the game needs another month, and it’ll launch on November 19, 2021. In terms of big-game delays, that’s much at all.
Get your Battlefield x Endwalker fan art ready.
An update from the Battlefield team pic.twitter.com/K53VNM2tTz
— Battlefield (@Battlefield) September 15, 2021
In this afternoon’s statement on Twitter, DICE general manager Oskar Gabrielson said:
“Building the next generation of Battlefield during a global pandemic has created unforeseen challenges for our development teams. Given the scale and scope of the game, we had hoped our teams would be back in our studios together as we move towards launch. With the ongoing conditions not allowing that to happen safely, and with all the hard work the teams are doing from home, we feel it is important to take the extra time to deliver on the vision of Battlefield 2042 for our players.”
Promising more details to come “later this month” regarding the Battlefield 2042 open beta timing, which I’m looking forward to, Gabrielson added that the teams — DICE, Criterion, Ripple Effect Studios, and EA Gothenburg — “believe in the game we’re making, and we thank you for your patience as we put some finishing touches into the experience.”
There’s been rumblings about a possible September rollout for the open beta. As noted by our boy Jeff Grubb (who fueled the “delay” fire this morning), that speculative date was never confirmed, but he has “heard that the September 22 beta may also get delayed.”
I’m enough of a Battlefield fan that I am really, truly hoping for the best with 2042 — it needs a win. A big one. Most of what I’ve seen of the game so far speaks to me, and hopefully this extra month on the clock can go a long way toward coming out in tip-top shape. It’d be a shame to see it slip at launch and have the post-launch schedule spiral.
High level, we’ve got the main multiplayer core, the customizable Battlefield Portal suite, and whatever Hazard Zone ends up being. There’s a lot on the line.
