My Specialist/Class Feedback and Suggestions
Here are the changes I propose to Classes and Specialists in Battlefield 2042, baring in mind that no system is going to be perfect, especially because not every Specialist neatly fits into any of the distinctive Class roles, but trying to maximize the best combination of Classes/Specialists nonetheless in terms of balance and fit.
Too long, don't want to read it all? I wrote a lot so that people who really cared about the balance could read my full arguments. Here are the general points. If you care for the elaboration, read the respective above paragraphs for each point.
- Move MacKay from Assault to Recon, and he can become a sort of "Scout" using his Grappling Hook to reach vantage points rather than aggressively pushing and thereby breaking map flow and routes (just reserve that role to Sundance)
- Move Paik from Recon to Assault, embracing her role as a fast-moving, flanking, aggressive anti-infantry Specialist
- Move Dozer from Assault to Support, and he can revive with a Med Pen while simultaneously carrying his shield to cover players and draw fire so they can escape
- Move Irish from Support to Engineer, because while Support Irish is fun, he just makes more sense as an Engineer. Maybe give him more Fortifications like barbed wire and sandbags.
- Rework C5. C5 makes Assault the better anti-vehicle class than the anti-vehicle class (Engineer) because it's better at taking out ground vehicles as Sundance and MacKay with C5. Multiple options here. You could:
- Take away C5 from the Assault class, leaving it only to the Engineer (and maybe Recon as well)
- Split C5 up between Anti-Infantry C5 for Assault and Anti-Vehicle C5 for Engineer and balance them to their roles accordingly
- Take away C5 from the Engineer class, and rework C5 for the Assault class: cannot fully destroy vehicles, forcing players to rely on Engineers or other Assaults to finish them off (thereby promoting teamwork, as classes are suppose to do). But also create a "Vehicle Kill Assist Counts As Vehicle Kill" XP event to incentivize Assault players to land all three C5 down and reward them for their high risk play.
- (Maybe) Get rid of the Med Pen as the Assault's class gadget and just move it into their pool of gadgets they can select from (it's just too good)
- (Maybe) Replace the Recon's class gadget with a pair of spotting binoculars and move the Spawn Beacon into their gadget pool (lots of fun but also more balanced this way)
- Keep Rao as a Recon instead of making him an Engineer: more of a rebuttal to a popular community suggestion, but I also think DICE has the right idea here; Rao is more balanced and makes more sense as a Recon instead of an Engineer
Moving Specialists Around
First, I propose rearranging some of the Specialists around.
MacKay: Assault -> Recon
Paik: Recon -> Assault
Irish: Support -> Engineer
Dozer: Assault -> Support
MacKay reenvisioned as a Scout
Assault is essentially the "anti-infantry mobility" class, and MacKay certainly does work in this capacity. But MacKay is also currently pretty unbalanced: best Specialist in the game other than Falck. Rather than being used for offensive pushes, his Grappling Hook could be better used as a Scouting utility: reaching vantage points and using them to scout the area. It also just makes more sense for MacKay to be a scout given his character.
Paik In Assault
Paik makes more sense in the Assault role. She makes zero sense as a sniper. Recon is envisioned as a "disruption/info-gathering" class, but Paik's wall-hacking, as it works currently as temporary waves revealing enemies, is info-gathering for herself, not her teammates. Wall-hacking is more of an offensive tool. DICE's own Star Wars Battlefront 2, of all games, understood this, where one of the Assault's basic abilities was basically a wall-hack launcher. Paik's reveal had her using a shotgun. She's a close-range Specialist. The idea she should stay in Recon simply because she gathers intel is purely idealistic: it makes no sense gameplay-wise or balance-wise, and doesn't tangibly translate into the gameplay at all, since she's a close quarters operator. Paik should go into Assault.
Dozer as a Fast-Paced Offensive Support
If you keep MacKay in Assault, then you have the problem of having 5 Assaults, which is unnecessary. You get 4 if you move MacKay out, but you could also move Dozer out as an alternative. Or, because Assault is already one of the best lone-wolf classes in the game, move Dozer out as well, leaving Assault with 3 Specialists to choose from as a trade-off for being one of the stronger solo classes.
Dozer, kind of like Paik and MacKay, is one of those Specialists I talked about earlier: there's not one class where he belongs to. He works as an Assault because his shield helps him push forward offensively. But the thing is, unlike MacKay and Sundance, who rely on the element of surprise, Dozer is no surprise: you see him charging straight for you, so his quick draw to his main weapon (not to be confused with the Support's weapon proficiency) doesn't really benefit him at all in terms of his offensive ability, unlike with MacKay and Sundance.
I actually think Dozer could be a fun Support Specialist. Dozer can work like Monty from Siege: supporting pushes. He basically already does that. He's not the best for getting kills: he's good for drawing fire so he can support other players pushing in. Plus, Dozer is just not a good pick right now, and it's not only because his shield is buggy, although that makes him even worse. He just doesn't make work as an Assault because of the reasons I mentioned earlier: MacKay and Sundance are just better. If you really want to make Dozer viable, have him be able to revive players behind his shield: make it so he can revive players while also carrying his shield, effectively giving revived players cover behind his shield and drawing fire so they can make a quick escape when they're back up. Since he can't use two hands for a Defib since one is carrying his shield, maybe Dozer uses a Med Pen instead of a Defib. Makes him even more unique!
I think Dozer would be a lot of fun to play this way because he'd be like a quick, offensive medic. You don't really use his gun a lot if you play him right anyway. He doesn't work as Assault, but Support offers a fun and unique gameplay style. Not to mention, the Riot Shield went to the Support class in previous Battlefield games.
Irish as an Engineer -- Maybe?
Lastly, I think that -- maybe -- you could move Irish back to Engineer from the Support class. Don't get me wrong, I love playing as an Irish Support, it's a lot of fun. But to be honest, Falck and Angel are just kind of better for the intended role as Supports. Sure, you can throw down Irish's shield wall for cover, but the smoke grenade launcher just does the concealment better. (A Dozer in Support, while similar to Irish in this regard, would at least offer a fun, unique playstyle since he'd be quick and offensive and be able to revive players in tricky spaces.)
I like that the Engineer class in 2042 has been turned into a simultaneous defensive class. Makes a fun juxtaposition with the Assault class. Irish just make sense as a defensive Specialist. Shield walls are defensive. They're not as effective at providing cover to revive players as I thought they would be since it takes a few seconds to put them down and switch back to your gun/defib, seconds where you can easily get shot, plus the shield wall just isn't that big. Plus, Irish has Fortifications that he constructs. Engineers construct things. Irish just makes more sense as an Engineer.
Irish's APS system is the one concern since it might be somewhat OP at protecting vehicles from long-range rocket launchers since it eats them right up. I don't have the perfect solution to this. Maybe you make a new dedicated Specialist with the APS system as their gadget, and they can be Recon or something. Give Irish some other Fortifications options, like sandbags and barbed wire (actually, you should do this regardless of whether or not you take away his APS system or move him from Support, would be a lot more fun and lean into his unique Fortifications gadget while bringing back some of the Fortifications system from BFV). Alternatively, here's where my next change comes in.
Changing C5
Second, C5 is a problem right now.
C5 is a lot of fun, but it's just too good. First, every class except Support gets it. This leaves Support at a big disadvantage because every class has some sort of anti-vehicle counter except Support. An obvious potential solution to this is to give Support C5, but that doesn't really make any sense for their class, nor would it be balanced, because it would take away from the teammate dependency that the Battlefield community wants the class system to promote.
C5 Assault is better and more consistent at taking out vehicles than any Engineer
C5 quite literally destroys vehicles better than any of the Engineer Specialists can, except maybe Lis. C5 is simply the best anti-vehicle weapon in the game right now. Forget the M5. Forget Boris's or Crawford's laughable Specialist Gadgets. Rushing and flanking tanks and ground vehicles as Sundance or MacKay (another reason to move him to Recon) and dropping a bunch of C5 is just a more effective way of taking them out. They're harder to kill because they come in rapidly and move around quickly. Engineers are easier to spot and way easier to take out as a gunner or tank driver since they're attacking from range. C5 is one of the reasons the Assault class is really just the best class in the game right now (Falck is carrying Support hard since she's the other "best Specialist" other than Mackay with her powerful healing and self-healing capabilities).
Take away C5 from Assault?
You could take away C5 from Assault, leaving it with Engineer alone, or Engineer and Recon as it stands right now. But C5 is not only fun as Assault, but also a viable gadget for the class. C5 is great for clearing out rooms of enemies that are bunkered down, especially since it has a lot of range in 2042, and as an offensive anti-infantry class, it fits in well with the Assault's intended role. It's been a lot of fun using Dynamite/C5 in this way since Battlefield 1, and it's never been better I think.
Take away C5 from Engineer and rework it for Assault? (hear me out...)
I have a more radical solution here. Take away C5 from the Engineer. I know. C4/C5 is used to take out vehicles. That's how it was with the Engineer in Battlefields 3 and 4, for instance. But think of it this way, if you will. Engineer is good at attacking vehicles from range, especially since they are also a defensive class that specializes in LMGs. They're good at setting up and staying posted. (Another reason Irish works as an Engineer -- his APS would be a counter to tanks firing back, so they'd have to rely on teammates to support them, and that's what infantry do, support vehicles). C5 is a sneaky gadget. You run up and throw it and boom. Engineers should be attacking from range. C5 forces them to get up close and personal. It's a viable, alternative playstyle to the Engineer class, sure. But I think this is the best way to balance C5.
But this doesn't really solve the problem of Assault being the best all-around class since they'd still have C5, and there'd be an even stronger incentive to play Assault since Engineer no longer would have C5. What do I propose? If you take away C5 and leave it only to Assault (or Assault and Recon), make it so that C5 is no longer an instant kill on vehicles even if you land all three.
Whaaaaat? Try to stay with me.
Anti-Infantry C5 for Assault vs. Anti-Vehicle C5 for Engineer
There's no more exhilarating a feeling than blowing up vehicles with C5. Yeah, it's fun. If you want to keep that option, then take away C5 from Assault and give it to the Engineer (or E/Recon) alone. Or split up C5 into two gadgets: Anti-Infantry C5 for Assault, Anti-Vehicle C5 for Engineer. Balance them differently. But this is a little silly, and not really realistic, since I don't think there are two kinds of C4s (but I'm no weapons/military expert, so correct me if I'm wrong). Yet it would be better for gameplay balance, which is more important than realism. But there is also an alternative to this proposition: my proposal of taking away C5 from Engineer and reworking it for the Assault class.
Change How C5 Works For Assault
Classes are supposed to promote teammate dependency. Assaults, like Recons and Supports, should have to rely on friendly vehicles and Engineers to take out enemy vehicles, not be better than them at it. They can contribute to that effort, sure. But finishing them off should take more than that. Now, the following isn't supposed to be the exact damage values, but rather, a model or ratio to explain my suggestion. How about one C5 takes away 25% of a vehicle's health, two C5 takes 50%, and three C5 takes 75%? That way, C5 can still be high-risk, high-reward if you choose to sneak up on a vehicle with it. But you would also need to rely on Engineers (or I suppose another Assault with C5) to finish them off. It strengthens the Engineer's anti-vehicle role. 75% can also give a new "Vehicle Kill Counts As Assist" XP event reward (basically just the Kill Assist Counts As Kill when you do most of the damage to players but someone else gets the last shot), so there's still incentive for the Assault player to try and land all three (because it would be frustrating to just have an Engineer knab your kill after you did all the risk, but at least it does the job of taking out that pesky tank or MAV taking out everyone and spawning a bunch of troops).
This could also work as a counter to Irish's APS if he's moved back to the Engineer role. One C5 on the APS (and make it so that APS can't swallow C5, because why should it?), two on the tank, if an Irish has an APS set up nearby a camping or defensively-posted up tank. Boom.
So, those are the main changes I'd make. Rearrange some Specialists around the classes, play with them a little bit, and change how C5 works in this game through any of the numerous proposals I suggested. Or come up with a better one, DICE. You're the professionals getting paid the big bucks and benefits, after all. I'm just a DICE and Battlefield fan who wants to see them as the best possible versions they can be!
Some additional, albeit less thought-out and less important ideas I've considered...
I also think Assault shouldn't get a class gadget (forget the Med Pen, make it a normal gadget they have to pick from, it's just too good). Assault is already a strong class on its own, it doesn't need a special gadget it gets to keep at all times. There's got to be trade-offs. The Med Pen is also part of the problem that makes the Assault class just too good. And finally, I think Recon's class gadget should be a pair of spotting binoculars like from BFV, like a downgraded SOFLAM without the targeting/painting capabilities, and the Spawn Beacon should be moved to their gadget pool. It's great fun as their default class gadget, but it's also too strong I think. A pair of spotting binoculars just makes more sense as their standard gadget, especially if you move MacKay over to the Recon class since he'd be like a Scout.
I do agree that Rao works as a Recon rather than an Engineer. His gadget is basically a beefed up SOFLAM, which, as long as he's a Recon, is balanced I think. He can hack vehicles from afar while sniping or DMRing, and rely on his teammates to do the rest of the dirty work, thereby promoting that "teammate dependency" with the classes that I've talked about. Rao's not really an Engineer. He's not defensive, he's not building things, and giving him the Engineer gadget pool would turn him into a one-man army, which is exactly what people said they didn't like about Specialists in the first place. Yeah, it's good for taking down those really annoying helicopter pilots, but it's got to be balanced, too. Rao as an Engineer doesn't make sense for his character nor for gameplay balance nor for class teamwork/synergy. So that's a wise decision made by DICE.
So, that's that. What does everyone else think? Any other ideas? Thanks for reading it all, if you did.
