After the release delay of Battlefield 2042, the community is discussing the news and the new date. MeinMMO shows you some reactions and how the decision from EA and DICE is received.
What happened? After some rumors, it was officially confirmed on September 15: Battlefield 2042 will not be released as planned on October 22. Instead, the shooter will be released on November 19. The rumors even suggested a release in 2022, which turned out to be untrue.
Why was Battlefield 2042 delayed? The developers shared a personal message and cited, among other reasons, the Corona pandemic as a reason for “unexpected challenges”. After a long hope to keep the schedule, they now have to admit that it is not possible.
They wanted to use the extra time to further optimize and polish the game. Players are reacting differently to the reasoning and also fear that the new date could cause issues.
Here you can read the official statement from DICE:
Finally clarity – Is the reasoning enough?
What do players say about the delay? The reactions are very varied. Ranging from understanding to disappointment or anger, everything is included.
Most players are mainly glad that there is now clarity regarding the situation. Many were disturbed by the silence from EA and the developers and just wanted to know how things stand with the game.
- FireFox72 writes: “Although it’s annoying, at least it’s a confirmation so people can stop stressing about it.” (via reddit.com)
- MeinMMO reader Ähre says: “Even though I’ve been looking forward to a Battlefield for a long time, I don’t think it’s that bad. That way I at least have more time for New World. As long as they have a month to get the problems under control, then please.”
In general, there is a discussion about whether the Corona pandemic can actually serve as an excuse for the delay. While numerous players express understanding for this explanation, others doubt that working from home is truly the problem.
The pandemic has been ongoing for over 1.5 years, shouldn’t EA have adapted by now? MeinMMO reader Lightningg writes: “You really can’t read it anymore. And then just before the release blame Corona again, as if they only found out about it yesterday. It’s just ridiculous. It’s become a real trendsetter to keep delaying games right before release.”
Reader Resal adds: “And some apparently still don’t understand that the pandemic is not over and a large part of the employees are working from home. Anyone who has worked from home knows that it’s certainly not comparable to working in the office.”
Battlefield 2042 is now being released exactly between two other shooter giants
Who is the competition? An interesting point is being discussed on gaming reddit, as the new release date of November 19 intensifies the competition among the three major shooters being released in November and December:
- Call of Duty: Vanguard will officially be released on November 5
- Battlefield 2042 now has its release two weeks later, on November 19
- Halo Infinite will be released about 3 weeks later, on December 8
Thus, we have three huge multiplayer shooters coming out within about a month. Reddit user Snake_eagle (via reddit) comments: “This will be a tough choice for FPS fans.”
This may put many fans in a position to choose: Which shooter will they play? For some, it’s a matter of money, for others, a question of time available to play.
Who will win? Therefore, players are also discussing which of the shooters ultimately has the best chances.
While the duel between Call of Duty and Battlefield almost has become a routine during this time of year, Halo Infinite is back for the first time since the release of Halo 5 and presents a significant difference compared to the two military shooters: The multiplayer will be free to play.
Battlefield 2042, on the other hand, is considered a hot candidate for the Xbox Game Pass. Both Battlefield and CoD have the advantage of being non-Microsoft exclusive and are available for PlayStation consoles as well.
Either way, it will be exciting to see which shooter might ultimately win out during this time. Especially since other titles will also be released.
Our reader CandyAndyDE comments: “I actually hoped that they would delay it to the beginning of next year. This year is already so full of releases: 30 years of Bungie event in Destiny 2, Diablo 2: Resurrected, Halo Infinite, Forza Horizon 5. And then I still have a bunch of games lying around. When am I supposed to play all that?”
Players are angry about the statement on the schedule
What is the problem? Some players now criticize that EA made false promises after the delay. The publisher spoke in spring 2021 of being ahead of the development schedule (via vgc.com).
The statement is now backfiring on EA, and some players’ mockery is biting: “I have ‘Cyberpunk 2077 runs surprisingly well on old consoles’ flashbacks” – ChinaSocialistBy3050 (via reddit). The comment refers to a claim by CDPR that turned out to be false after release.
Many feel reminded of the release debacle surrounding the RPG. One player also pointed out the similarities between the official posts of both studios, DICE and CD Projekt Red. The montage shows EA’s statement on the same image that CDPR used for their statement regarding Cyberpunk:
Besides the schedule statement, old tweets are now being dug up that could come back to haunt DICE. Such as from Part Welsh, Community Manager of Battlefield 2042.
In the tweet, Welsh writes:
Balancing games is fun! We love learning as we enter new environments, and we look forward to the things we will learn this month in our open beta.
You can count on us being very transparent about how things are developing and what changes we will make to the balance in 2042.
@PartWelsh via Twitter
This statement is now unfortunate not only in light of the delayed release but also concerning the promised transparency. Since the reveal of the Portal mode in July 2021, there has mostly been silence from the developers and publisher.
However, some players also find it annoying how the community deals with such news. wibo58 is particularly annoyed by the subreddit for Battlefield 2042: “So we’ve gone from thirty posts a day complaining that we don’t hear much, to thirty posts a day celebrating the delay because it means they were right. This subreddit is trash” (via reddit.com).
What is the status of the Open Beta now? This remains unclear. With the delay, the originally targeted release in September is becoming increasingly unlikely.
Until there is news about the beta, check out our overview of Battlefield 2042: All the information about the multiplayer shooter – Release, beta, system requirements
There should at least be new information this month. Until then, fans will probably have to be patient.
What do you think about the discussion? Would you join the critics? Or do you support the delay? And what do you think about the topic in general? Discuss with us in the comments.
MeinMMO author Tarek has already dealt with the topic: Battlefield 2042 is delayed – It’s slowly becoming ridiculous
