🔗 Share this article

Over the weekend, Battlefield Studios launched a new playlist titled Relaxed Breakthrough. In essence, this mode resembles the standard Breakthrough format but includes a few key adjustments:

• Every squad includes just eight human participants, with the remaining filled by AI-controlled opponents.
• Activities done by real players award full XP, while AI activities offer reduced XP.
• Only two locations are available: Siege of Cairo and Empire State map.
• Elements like Player tags, accolades, and career stat updates have been turned off.

In short, this mode lives up to its name: it offers a laid-back take of Breakthrough. On the surface, you might think there's nothing wrong, as it provides additional choices for players looking for different methods to enjoy the title. But, if video games have taught us anything, it is that not everyone will be happy. In other words, many Battlefield 6 players are upset.

Player Responses: From Fury to Support

"People want real players. Don't repeat the mistakes of your competitors," reads a response to the mode reveal. "Truly disappointing idea," comments a different user. Meanwhile, in community forums, one user remarks, "It's unclear where we are headed with this title," and another details all the issues they believe to be problematic in Battlefield 6: "Resolve glitches, address drone issues, fix IVF rockets, fix [the] bloom after sprinting bug, fix awful hit registration. We do not require this AI-heavy playlist."

However, for every complaint, there are players sharing how much they're enjoying the new mode. "It's very fun to practice, human participants keep it from being a total farmfest but it's quite laid-back," says one Reddit comment. "The community fails to see that there are gamers who actually go outside and can't play this title 24/7. Allow them to strike a balance," states another. One reply via social media clarifies that as they're "a parent gamer with limited time, this is perfect for me," and another applauds the mode for "not being overcompetitive."

Constructive Criticisms and Player Input

All that said, players have constructive reasons to complain about Casual Breakthrough. Some users have pointed out that it will make wait times even longer for different playlists because of the sheer number of options in the game already. On a similar note, certain regions already encounter mostly bots in the existing playlists. Additionally, it appears somewhat counterintuitive that the mode won't start without a minimum number of human gamers, even though it primarily centers on fighting AI opponents.

Lastly, one of the biggest complaints is that Battlefield Portal was promised to offer complete rewards, even against bots, but that got canned when they tried to eliminate XP farming from the system. So Casual Breakthrough feels like the community meeting them in the middle, according to a Reddit comment. A different user describes this mode as the devs "making a mistake so hard, I experienced so much fun in the initial release, why did they feel the need to change it?"

Future Prospects: Will Changes Be Made?

If Battlefield Studios has demonstrated something to date with the latest installment, it is that they're paying attention and responding to player input. Tasks that were overly hard were adjusted rapidly, as did the specific battle pass objectives. Chances are that, if their data indicates this new playlist isn't performing to their expectations, they will not hesitate to change it again.