The ace up the sleeve of Battlefield 2042 is Portal, a construction kit mode that can be used to build a Battlefield of your choice. The editor contains maps, vehicles and weapons from the entire series and allows the game to be modified using numerous parameters.
Portal makes use of three particularly valued offshoots of the Battlefield series. The building blocks for the editor are provided by Battlefield 1942, Battlefield: Bad Company 2 and Battlefield 3, and Battlefield 2042 content is also available. From the classics come six cards that have been revised for the current version of the Frostbite engine. It includes El-Alamein and the Ardennes Offensive (Battlefield 1942), Arica Harbor and Valparaiso (Bad Company 2) as well as the Caspian border and Noshahr canals (Battlefield 3). For the first time, a Battlefield 1942 map can be played with a destructible environment; this special feature first found its way into the series with Bad Company 1 for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3.
But it's not just cards that come from the classics. Weapons, vehicles and equipment can also be installed in the editor – Panzerschreck meets RPG-7 if desired. This possibility is marketed as the attraction of the mode: the arsenal can be combined as desired. If you want to compete against Tiger against Abrams tanks, you can do so, if you miss the old classes from Battlefield, you can have them return. For example, EA outlines a match in which groups of different Battlefield games fight against each other. Unequal scenarios are also conceivable, in which a small number of players with assault rifles fights a pack of knives.
Profound changes are possible
The parameters of the matches can be adjusted in various ways in the portal. In this way, the gameplay of old games can be approximated. If you miss Battlefield 1942, you can deactivate sprinting and HP regeneration. At the start you can play in modes such as conquest, team deathmatch or rush. Different game modes can also be created. The respective configuration creates an “experience” that other players can join as long as the creator is playing.
If the prefabricated settings are not sufficient, the logic editor comes into play. More extensive settings can be made here using a visual programming language. This includes setting rules, victory conditions or reactions to in-game events such as victories or kills. This makes it possible to create your own game modes. However, there are restrictions: A battle royale mode cannot be built.
Live service idea
EA suggests in the announcement that more content and game modes will follow. The elephant in the room is addressed directly: the portal is intended to establish Battlefield as a live service. In the future, EA is releasing Battlefield from individual sequels, because one kit offers everything here. The fact that the developers themselves do not see the portal as part of Battlefield 2042 is revealed by the reference to shared experience points: “Progress is shared between Battlefield 2042 and Battlefield Portal,” emphasizes EA several times. Tapping into the creativity of the users themselves is a tried and tested means of increasing the entertainment offer and maximizing the lifespan. This lays a foundation that has the potential of a permanent offer – the portal is an attempt to establish “Battlefield” as a permanent platform.