The Latest Relaxed Playlist Sparks Intense Debates Regarding AI Players, XP Rewards, and Wait Times

Over the weekend, Battlefield Studios introduced a fresh playlist titled Relaxed Breakthrough. To put it simply, this option mirrors the regular Breakthrough format but features several key changes:

  • Each team has only 8 human participants, with the rest made up of 32 bots.
  • Actions done by real players grant full XP, while AI activities offer lower rewards.
  • Only two locations can be played: Cairo Siege and Empire State.
  • Elements like Player tags, accolades, and stat tracking are disabled.

So essentially, this mode delivers on its name: it's a casual take of Breakthrough. On the surface, you might think it's a good idea, since it gives more options for players seeking alternative ways to enjoy the game. However, if video games have taught us anything, it's that you can't please everyone. Which is to say, a lot of BF6 players are mad.

Community Reactions: From Fury to Praise

"Gamers prefer human opponents. Avoid making the errors of your rivals," reads one reply to the mode reveal. "Absolutely shocking idea," says a different user. Meanwhile, on the Battlefield subreddit, one user notes, "It's unclear where we are headed with this title," and another details 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, improve hit detection. We do not require this bot mode."

However, amid the criticism, there are players explaining how much they're enjoying the new mode. "It's enjoyable to warm up, human participants prevent it from being a total farmfest but it's quite laid-back," says a forum post. "The community fails to see that there are gamers who have lives and can't play this game all the time. Allow them to find a middle ground," states another. A response via social media explains that as they're "a battledad with limited time, this is great for me," and someone else praises the mode for "not being overcompetitive."

Constructive Concerns and Community Feedback

Despite the support, players have valid points to criticize Casual Breakthrough. A few folks have highlighted that it could increase queue times even longer for different playlists due to the large amount of playlists currently available. On a similar note, certain regions already encounter mostly bots in the existing playlists. Additionally, it appears a little backwards that the mode won't start without a minimum number of human gamers, despite it primarily centers on fighting AI opponents.

Lastly, a major grievances is that Battlefield Portal was promised to provide complete rewards, even against bots, but that got canned when they tried to remove bot farms from the system. Thus this new playlist seems like the community meeting them halfway, as per forum feedback. A different user labels this addition as the devs "making a mistake significantly, I experienced great enjoyment in the first couple of days, why did they feel the need to change it?"

Looking Ahead: Will Changes Be Made?

Should Battlefield Studios has proven anything to date with the latest installment, it's that they're listening and responding to player input. Tasks that were overly hard were adjusted very quickly, as did the required Redsec challenges. Chances are that, if their data indicates this new playlist is underperforming to their standards, they will not hesitate to make further modifications.

Stephanie Dominguez
Stephanie Dominguez

A tech journalist and digital strategist with over a decade of experience covering AI, cybersecurity, and future tech trends across Europe.