Battlefield 2042 Update Gives Everyone Beards... For Some Reason
Battlefield 2042 didn't really stand much of a chance, did it? If the numerous delays and arriving in an unfinished state weren't enough, Season 1 didn't even launch until June - some seven months after the game debuted. Still, DICE seems destined to keep updating the troubled title to try and keep the dwindling player base engaged.
Although Battlefield 2042 pitched itself as the game that could topple Call of Duty from its throne, we know it wasn't the case. Then, along came Halo Infinite to wipe DICE's shooter off the face of the Earth. Given that a lot have even forgotten Halo Infinite exists, Battlefield 2042 is little more than an unfortunate blot on the gaming landscape. For those still playing though, you might've noticed things have got a little hairy.
What's New In The Battlefield 2042 Update?
Alongside a reworked Kaleidoscope map and introduction of player profiles, the August 2 Battlefield 2042 update marks the first in a number of proposed "Style and Tone" tweaks for its beleaguered Specialists. As a franchise first, Battlefield 2042 introduced Specialists as actual characters instead of generic grunts. A far cry from Apex Legends favourites like Bloodhound or Octane, they were little more than caricatures that spouted generic one-liners.
It's easy to see how DICE was trying to take a leaf out of the Call of Duty handbook, but unfortunately, Battlefield 2042 doesn't exactly introduce gaming's next Captain Price. The devs have already tackled complaints by removing their cheesy end-of-round voice lines - which kind of defeats the point of having Specialists at all.
The Battlefield 2042 1.2 patch notes explain, "We are revising our art direction to ensure Specialists meet your Style and Tone expectations for our world of 2042. You will notice updated Specialist character models to better reflect the intense situations they have experienced." Basically, you'll get more rugged and gritty Specialists. We kind of miss the meme-worthy Specialists, but now, the latest update gives them bigger beards if they had beards before... or a beard if there wasn't one. We'd like to clarify, this only applies to male Specialists.
Why Does Battlefield 2042 Give Everyone Beards?
Click to enlargeAlong with the voice lines, the appearance of the Battlefield 2042 Specialists didn't really fit with the futuristic apocalypse of the game's aesthetic. Still, in a game that's plagued with problems, making these kinds of update seem secondary to actually improving the way it plays. It's the same critiques Call of Duty: Warzone has faced for seemingly prioritising selling skins over delivering a polished experience.
Giving us more rugged Specialists is all well and good, but as you can imagine, delivering a visual upgrade instead of actual mechanical bugs in-game has rattled an already irate fan base. One critic fumed, "Honestly. Your focus on what is being fixed is laughable. Why can’t you just listen to the actual player base? Why is it so hard to accept your direction was ass, and just fix what works?" Another raged, "I speak for everyone when I say we rather see specialist gone!"
If you're a fan of a man with facial hair though, now could be the time to jump into Battlefield 2042.
