I spent an unforgettable summer during Season 4 of Battlefield™ 6.
The超大 maps "Tsuru Reef" and "Wake Island," new naval and aerial vehicles, and the "Top Gun" crossover content all left a deep impression on me. In particular, the addition of the vehicle assist driving system allowed me, a novice pilot, to finally manage flying a plane.
On the other hand, the overly large maps in Season 4 severely diluted the frequency and density of ground infantry firefights. Combined with the diversion caused by numerous land, sea, and air vehicles, infantry players often rarely encountered anyone. Before firing more than a couple of shots, they would often end up being farmed like fries by planes and tanks while running back and forth across the map to capture objectives.
Fortunately, in Season 5, Battlefield™ 6 finally introduces two new maps with smaller footprints and dense building clusters or extensive indoor environments: "Las Vegas Strip" and "Area 51." The "close-to-mid-range meat grinder" experience that infantry players crave makes a return on these two maps.
Thanks to EA's invitation, I had the privilege of previewing some of the Phase 1 update content before the official launch of Battlefield™ 6 Season 5. However, due to the short duration of the preview event and the low number of human players in matches (with some AI soldiers filling the gaps), my preview report is based on actual gameplay impressions and involves some speculation. It does not represent the complete experience after the official Season 5 launch, and the content herein is for reference only.
Let's start with "Las Vegas Strip." This is likely the first map in Battlefield™ 6 since launch to focus on a large-scale modern urban theme.
Unlike the vast island maps of Season 4, which spanned several kilometers, "Las Vegas Strip" compresses its various combat zones into a relatively compact area. Most capture routes run along streets and through building interiors, with objectives situated close to one another. Additionally, the abundance of tall buildings means the map's vertical space is utilized extensively.
Of course, I'm not just talking about sniping from rooftops.
In "Las Vegas Strip," there are large building complexes that vehicles struggle to access. These areas feature rich vertical terrain formed by stairs, rooftops, and cover, allowing infantry players to enjoy intense close-to-mid-range combat.
Additionally, road potholes and underground tunnels form complex subterranean movement routes. Infantry looking to traverse the battlefield no longer need to fear being picked off by snipers and vehicles as they would on large, open maps. However, these locations can easily become secret ambush spots for elite infantry players, so caution is advised when passing through.
Now, regarding the other map, "Area 51," it also features rich verticality and building areas suitable for intense infantry combat, but its style is completely different from "Las Vegas Strip."
Specifically, the playable area of "Area 51" roughly covers the mountainside and the relatively flat foothills below. Thus, the elevation changes in "Area 51" are presented on a larger geographical scale—the C-point helicopter pad, located on one side of the map's central axis, sits halfway up the mountain, offering a view that overlooks almost the entire map. The only exception is the isolated G-point tower on the other side, which is the highest point on the map. Both positions allow snipers to cover open areas across the map and even engage in sniper duels with each other.
It's worth mentioning that the G-point tower can be completely destroyed. Once destroyed, the tower collapses into a pile of rubble, eliminating the sniper positions that were previously located on top.
Meanwhile, infantry players don't need to worry about being picked off by snipers—many objectives have buildings for cover or are situated in depressions, leaving very few exposed open areas. Some objectives are also connected by underground tunnels, creating continuous spaces dedicated solely to intense infantry combat.
If the design philosophy for the large maps in Season 4 leaned towards "vehicle warfare across land, sea, and air," then Season 5's "Las Vegas Strip" and "Area 51" return to a point where both infantry and vehicle experiences are relatively balanced.
To be honest, these evaluations might not be entirely accurate—because this preview event covered a lot of content, the time allocated to each part was correspondingly reduced. By the end of the preview, I hadn't even visited some points of interest on the new maps.
A significant portion of this preview was dedicated to trying out the new Hazard Zone mode, "Rapid Royale."
Compared to the standard battle royale mode, the map size in "Rapid Royale" is quite small. Taking "Las Vegas Strip" as an example, the area used for "Rapid Royale" comprises only a few city blocks within the larger map.
Due to the presence of many high-rise buildings in the urban terrain, the battle royale combat space becomes more three-dimensional and conducive to stealth. Players on different floors can launch surprise attacks on each other. Overall, the battle royale combat pace on Las Vegas Strip is faster, focusing mainly on close-quarters engagements and rooftop sniping. Players will encounter enemies more frequently, and multi-team brawls are more likely to occur.
On another note, the respawn mechanic has been adjusted. In standard modes, after exhausting initial respawns, your team can revive teammates by capturing Redeploy Beacons. However, in "Rapid Royale," you must earn respawn tokens through kills to bring fallen teammates back into the fight. As the match progresses, the number of kills required for each respawn gradually increases.
This is also one of the reasons why the combat pace in "Rapid Royale" is more intense compared to the standard battle royale mode.
Barring massive skill disparities or catching enemies off guard, few players feel confident fighting outnumbered. Therefore, in standard modes, if your team suffers casualties, the usual strategy is conservative: avoid or disengage from combat when outnumbered, wait until you can respawn teammates at an uncontested Redeploy Beacon, and then re-enter the battle at full strength. This low-risk, high-reward approach—regaining combat power without being detected—is the default choice for most Hazard Zone players, and indeed for most battle royale gamers.
However, in "Rapid Royale," the mechanic linking respawns to kill counts forces every squad to actively engage in combat to accumulate enough respawn tokens. Even if your squad is understaffed, players must take risks despite the numerical disadvantage to secure kills; otherwise, as the match progresses and the kill requirement for respawns rises, the squad will lose the ability to recall teammates entirely. Furthermore, the "Rapid Royale" map is small enough that gunshots anywhere can basically be heard by everyone on the map, so players looking to capitalize on third-party fights to earn tokens won't lack opportunities. Also, there's no need to worry about pro players racking up dozens of kills to hoard a massive amount of respawn tokens—there is a maximum cap on stored tokens, which also decreases over time, meaning you'll only have at most one extra life by the end.
After playing, my most immediate impression was that the mode keeps you in combat almost the entire time. From the moment you land after parachuting, you'll be picking up weapons and jumping into action quickly. Often, as soon as one firefight ends, new enemies arrive. As long as you're willing to seek out fights, you can keep battling with hardly any boring downtime spent traversing the map. For those who wanted to try battle royale gameplay but were frustrated by slow pacing, "Rapid Royale" is definitely worth a try.
Oh, and actually, the event also included trials for the "Rapid Royale" solo mode and the "Rapid Royale" version of the "Mirak Valley" map. However, possibly due to issues with the test servers, the game lobbies I joined never filled up enough to start a match. Therefore, I cannot provide an evaluation of this content.
Another somewhat disappointing aspect was that the "Dead Space" crossover PvE mode, which I was most looking forward to, was not available for trial during this test event.
The content discussed above will have to wait until October 13th at 8:00 PM, when Season 5 officially launches, for everyone to experience for themselves.