Battlefield 4 is now a month from release so DICE decided it's time to give full details on the multiplayer experience. They've released the list of modes and maps that will be shipping with the shooter.
There are seven game modes shipping with the game. Conquest is the standard Battlefield experience, with teams fighting for control of capture points across the map. Domination is an infantry-only, faster-paced variation with more restrictive maps. Both modes will be available in the BF4 beta, which you can read more about here.
DICE is introducing two new game modes in BF4 as well. "Obliteration" is a 24-32 player battle in which teams battle over a bomb that's been randomly spawned on the map. Each team tries to grab the bomb and bring it to one of the enemy team's bases. Once a bomb has been used to blow up a base, a new one will spawn. The map ends when one team successfully destroys the other team's three objectives.
"Compared to Conquest, the action in Obliteration tends to be heavily focused on wherever the bomb is located," DICE says. "Since there’s only one bomb at a time, you will often find yourself going from attacker to defender in the blink of an eye. You need to be able to predict enemy movement to defend at the right place at the right time and reclaim the offensive – or intercept the enemy to reclaim possession of the bomb. The constantly shifting playing field from offense to defense is partly inspired by American football – with the detonation of an enemy installation being the Battlefield equivalent of scoring a touchdown."
Defuse is five-on-five match that also revolves around bombs. Two squads of five players try to detonate a bomb on each other's objective. Players only have one life per round so it's possible to win simply by wiping out the other team. It's a bit like Counter-Strike and, like that game, will probably be promoted as an eSport.
The other modes should be familiar to Battlefield vets. Team Deathmatch has two teams trying to rack up the highest kill count. Squad Deathmatch is the same except with four teams of five players. Rush is an attack/defense mode in which one team tries to blow up a series of objectives with planted explosives while another team tries to stop them.
The game will ship with ten multiplayer maps. Each supports all of the game modes:
- Siege of Shanghai
- Paracel Storm
- Zavod 311
- Lancang Dam
- Flood Zone
- Rogue Transmission
- Hainan Resort
- Dawnbreaker
- Operation Locker
- Golmud Railway
DICE has previewed a few of these maps in the past. Today they gave a run-down on Zavod 311. This map takes place at an abandoned Soviet tank factory. Trees and bushes have grown throughout the crumbling ruins. Inside the factory is an active warhead that players can detonate. The warhead's blast will make the factory's chimney collapse. This will change the layout of the map while also restricting the use of ground vehicles. There are highly explosive materials stored throughout the map that can be exploited as well.
EA plans to release additional maps and modes after the game's launch as well. They have five expansion packs planned.
