Battlefield 6's Relaxed Game Mode Ignites Intense Discussions Over AI Players, Experience Points, and Wait Times

Over the weekend, Battlefield Studios launched a new playlist called Relaxed Breakthrough. In essence, this option mirrors the regular Breakthrough setup but includes a few key changes:

  • Every squad includes just 8 human participants, with the remaining made up of AI-controlled opponents.
  • Actions performed by real players grant complete experience points, while AI activities offer lower rewards.
  • Only two maps are available: Cairo Siege and Empire State map.
  • Elements like Dogtags, achievements, and career stat updates have been turned off.

In short, this mode delivers on its title: it's a casual version of Breakthrough. At face value, one could assume there's nothing wrong, as it gives more options for gamers seeking different methods to have fun with the title. However, gaming history have taught us anything, it's that you can't please everyone. Which is to say, a lot of Battlefield 6 fans are upset.

Player Responses: Anger to Support

"Gamers prefer human opponents. Don't repeat the errors of your rivals," reads a response to the official announcement. "Absolutely shocking concept," says a different user. At the same time, in community forums, one user remarks, "I have no idea where we are headed with this game," and someone else lists all the issues they believe to be broken in the game: "Fix bugs, address drone issues, fix IVF rockets, fix [the] bloom after sprinting bug, fix awful hit registration. We don't need this AI-heavy playlist."

However, amid the criticism, some gamers sharing how much they're liking the recent addition. "It's enjoyable to warm up, human participants prevent it from being a total farmfest but it's very relaxed," says one Reddit comment. "This subreddit fails to see that there are gamers who actually go outside and don't play this game all the time. Let them find a middle ground," states another. A response on Twitter clarifies that as they're "a battledad with busy schedules, this is great for me," while someone else applauds the mode for "not being overcompetitive."

Constructive Criticisms and Community Feedback

All that said, there are constructive reasons to complain about the new mode. Some users have highlighted that it could increase wait times even longer for other modes because of the large amount of options currently available. On a similar note, some areas already encounter mostly bots in the existing playlists. It also seems somewhat counterintuitive that the mode won't start without a required amount of real players, despite it primarily centers on fighting AI opponents.

Finally, a major complaints is that Battlefield Portal was promised to provide full XP, including AI matches, but that was removed when they tried to remove bot farms from the system. Thus this new playlist seems like the community compromising halfway, as per a Reddit comment. A different user describes this mode as the devs "making a mistake so hard, I experienced so much fun in the first couple of days, why did they feel the need to adjust it?"

Future Prospects: Will Changes Be Made?

Should Battlefield Studios has demonstrated something to date with Battlefield 6, it is that they're listening and acting on feedback. Tasks being too difficult were adjusted very quickly, just like the specific battle pass objectives. Chances are that, should analytics indicates this recent mode is underperforming to their expectations, they will not hesitate to change it again.

Melissa Barnes
Melissa Barnes

A gaming industry consultant with over 15 years of experience in slot machine technology and casino operations across Europe.