The Latest Relaxed Game Mode Sparks Intense Discussions Over AI Players, Experience Points, and Wait Times
Over the weekend, the game developers introduced a new playlist called Relaxed Breakthrough. To put it simply, this option resembles the regular Breakthrough format but features a few notable adjustments:
- Each team has just eight human participants, with the rest filled by AI-controlled opponents.
- Actions done by real players grant complete experience points, while bot actions provide reduced XP.
- Just a pair of locations are available: Cairo Siege and Empire State.
- Elements like Dogtags, accolades, and stat tracking are disabled.
So essentially, the playlist lives up to its name: it's a casual version of Breakthrough. At face value, one could assume there's nothing wrong, since it provides more options for gamers looking for alternative methods to enjoy the title. However, gaming history has shown one thing, it is that you can't please everyone. Which is to say, many Battlefield 6 fans are upset.
Community Reactions: From Fury to Support
"People want human opponents. Avoid making the mistakes of your competitors," states a response to the official announcement. "Absolutely shocking concept," comments another. Meanwhile, in community forums, one user remarks, "It's unclear where we are going with this game," and someone else lists everything they believe to be broken in Battlefield 6: "Fix bugs, address drone issues, fix IVF rockets, fix [the] bloom after sprinting bug, improve hit detection. We don't need this AI-heavy playlist."
However, amid the criticism, there are players sharing how much they're liking the recent addition. "It's enjoyable to warm up, human participants prevent it from being a complete grind but it's very relaxed," reads one Reddit comment. "The community doesn't understand that there are gamers who have lives and don't play this game 24/7. Allow them to strike a balance," adds a different comment. One reply on Twitter clarifies that as they're "a parent gamer with busy schedules, this is perfect for me," and another applauds the mode for "not being overcompetitive."
Valid Concerns and Player Input
All that said, there are valid points to complain about Casual Breakthrough. A few folks have highlighted that it will make wait times more extended for other modes because of the sheer number of options in the game already. Similarly, some areas often face mostly bots in the current modes. It also seems a little backwards that the mode won't start without a minimum number of real players, even though it focuses mostly on fighting AI opponents.
Finally, one of the biggest grievances is that Battlefield Portal was meant to offer full XP, including AI matches, but that was removed when they tried to remove bot farms from the mode. Thus Casual Breakthrough seems like the player base compromising in the middle, as per a Reddit comment. Another labels this mode as the devs "making a mistake so hard, I had great enjoyment in the first couple of days, what prompted them to adjust it?"
Looking Ahead: Adjustments Be Made?
If Battlefield Studios has demonstrated something so far with Battlefield 6, it is that they're paying attention and responding to feedback. Assignments being too difficult got fixed rapidly, just like the required Redsec challenges. It is likely that, should analytics shows this recent mode isn't performing to their standards, they won't be shy to make further modifications.