Battlefield 6 has blasted onto the FPS scene, revitalizing Electronic Arts’ franchise with a return to classic elements and a hefty dose of widespread destruction. But its October 10 release was just the beginning. Developer Battlefield Studios has more free content coming for the game, starting with its first season, which kicks off on October 28 and runs to November 11.
Seasons for Battlefield 6 are broken into three timed, themed updates. The first in Season 1 is Rogue Ops, bringing a new map, mode, and weapons for players to try. I hit the dirt with Rogue Ops’ new content, going hands-on with its new map, Blackwell Fields, and its gameplay mode, Strikepoint. I also got to try the map and mode coming with the second update, California Resistance, on November 18.
Here are all the hands-on details for what’s coming in Rogue Ops, as well as a few looks ahead to California Resistance.
New maps
Blackwell Fields — Coming in Rogue Ops, Blackwell Fields is a massive oil field in the California chaparral. The All-Out Warfare map is set in a desert landscape that catches fire easily as helicopters, planes, and tanks fight over the vast area. Blackwell Fields provides a lot of open space, with rolling hills and low brush that are great for snipers to set up camp. Vehicles also have plenty of room to maneuver on their way to different objectives. But with oil wells, construction equipment, and shipping containers dotting the landscape, there are plenty of places for infantry to dig in and get into some intense fights.
Eastwood — With Pax Armata attacking new targets, NATO soldiers find themselves fighting cells in the suburbs of Los Angeles in the California Resistance update. Eastwood is one such Southern California town, where the fighting takes place in the streets and through the houses. Eastwood’s suburban landscape offers a lot of locations for intense skirmishes, with battles fought in and out of living rooms and through drained pools and back yards as tanks shred high-end homes. A wide-open golf course means you’ll need to take care not to get sighted by enemy troops as you move, but there’s still a whole lot of variety in this map.
Get to the … golf cart! — One very cool aspect of Eastwood is that it’s littered with driveable golf carts that are great for an impromptu escape or trip to a new objective. You might also try ramming them into enemy vehicles, provided you remember to jump out in time.
New modes
Strikepoint — Rogue Ops also gets a new 4-on-4 multiplayer mode, which pits two squads against each other in close-quarters combat as they battle over a single objective. Players only get one life per round in Strikepoint, so it’s essential to play carefully, stick with teammates, and watch for ambushes. Victory in a round is attained when a team either captures the objective or eliminates the other squad, and the first team to win six rounds takes the match. Strikepoint is a tough mode that hardcore players are sure to love, where tactical awareness, good strategies, and clear communication are all essential to taking down a win.
Sabotage — An 8v8 mode coming with California Resistance, Sabotage gives you one of two objectives: destroy boxes of equipment scattered across a small, close-quarters map, or prevent the opposing team from doing so. Teams switch between offense and defense, with the team that destroys the most equipment winning the match. The trick to the mode is to destroy the caches as quickly and efficiently as you can, using everything in your arsenal to get the job done — while still defending yourself against enemy fighters. Explosives are at a premium, for attackers, while defenders need to use smart positioning to box out the opposing players as they continually stream into the battle zone. Sabotage is a chaotic, action-packed mode that might be a bit more welcoming to casual players who want to continually rush into the action with little downtime. It’s full of players constantly fighting and quickly respawning.
New weapons
In addition to new modes and maps, the three updates in Season 1 bring new weapons to the fight. I tried each of the three guns that will be available with Rogue Ops, as well as its new vehicle. You can earn all of them through the free tiers of Battlefield 6’s battle pass, and with four different paths through that pass, you’ll be able to choose which rewards you want to prioritize. Complete all four paths and you’ll unlock a fifth free path to work through.
You can also purchase Battlefield Pro, which nets you additional battle pass rewards and cosmetics.
SOR-300C – Carbine — This carbine is built for close-range engagements and is highly lethal when you’re near to an enemy. It has a lower fire rate than other carbines, but deals higher damage, making it great for tighter confines and smaller maps. At shorter ranges, it can be effective both hip-firing and aiming down sights, and it’s pretty solid at midrange if you fire in bursts to manage the recoil.
Mini Fix – Sniper Rifle — Good news for Recon players: Rogue Ops drops a new, faster sniper rifle option. The other snipers currently in the game force you to lower the rifle to cycle a new round every time you shoot, unless you equip an attachment, making them pretty slow. But Mini Fix can shoot through its entire 10-round magazine much more quickly than its counterparts, without interrupting your aim. It doesn’t hit quite as hard as some other rifles as a result, but the ability to keep firing on a target might make up for it.
GGH-22 – Sidearm — The new Glock 22 sidearm is a solid middle-of-the-road choice that feels pretty lethal at short range, even firing from the hip. It serves a balanced position among the other sidearms, with a few more shots and a little more damage than some, but a slower firing rate than others. It might not replace the sidearm you’re already comfortable with, but it’s a solid option in an emergency.
Traverser Mk. 2 – APC vehicle — A new armored personnel carrier hits the field in Rogue Ops, and it’s great for capturing objectives. The APC is a support vehicle for infantry fighters. It can carry soldiers across maps and is outfitted with mounted weapons, while also offering attachments like an integrated med bay to heal players, and an emergency repair station to keep the APC in the fight.
New attachments — Rogue Ops also introduces a few new modifications you can add to your guns. Rail Covers for some rifles and light machine guns increase the gun’s draw speed, while Low Powered Variable Optics scopes give you a few new options for the magnification on LMGs and rifles.
There’s a whole lot of new stuff coming to Battlefield 6 in Season 1, and the themed drops of Rogue Ops and California Resistance are poised to keep the game fresh for squads throughout the end of the year. You can check out everything that Rogue Ops has to offer when Battlefield 6’s first season drops on October 28.
