The Latest Casual Game Mode Sparks Intense Discussions Over AI Players, XP Rewards, and Queue Times

Recently, Battlefield Studios introduced a fresh game mode titled Relaxed Breakthrough. To put it simply, this mode resembles the standard Breakthrough setup but includes several key adjustments:

  • Each team has only 8 human participants, with the remaining made up of AI-controlled opponents.
  • Activities done by human gamers award complete experience points, while AI activities offer reduced XP.
  • Only two maps can be played: Cairo Siege and Empire State map.
  • Elements like Player tags, achievements, and career stat updates are disabled.

So essentially, this mode lives up to its name: it offers a laid-back take of Breakthrough. At face value, you might think it's a good idea, since it gives more options for gamers looking for different ways to have fun with 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 fans are upset.

Player Reactions: From Fury to Support

"People want real players. Avoid making the errors of your rivals," reads a response to the official announcement. "Truly disappointing concept," says a different user. Meanwhile, in community forums, a player remarks, "It's unclear where we are headed with this game," while someone else details everything they believe to be problematic in the game: "Fix bugs, fix drone glitch, correct rocket mechanics, adjust aiming after sprinting, improve hit detection. We do not require this bot mode."

On the other hand, amid the criticism, there are players explaining how much they're liking the recent addition. "It's very fun to warm up, human participants keep it from being a total farmfest but it's quite laid-back," says a forum post. "This subreddit doesn't understand that there are gamers who actually go outside and don't play this title all the time. Let them strike a balance," adds another. A response on Twitter explains that as they're "a battledad with limited time, this is great for me," while someone else applauds the mode for "not being overcompetitive."

Valid Concerns and Community Feedback

Despite the support, there are valid points to criticize the new mode. Some users have pointed out that it could increase queue times more extended for other modes due to the large amount of playlists in the game already. Similarly, certain regions already encounter AI-filled matches in the existing playlists. Additionally, it appears a little backwards that the mode does not begin without a minimum number of real players, even though it primarily centers on combat against bots.

Finally, one of the biggest grievances is that a previous feature was meant to provide full XP, even against bots, but that got canned when they attempted to remove XP farming from the mode. Thus this new playlist seems like the community meeting them halfway, according to forum feedback. A different user describes this addition as the devs "dropping the ball so hard, I had great enjoyment in the initial release, why did they feel the need to change it?"

Future Prospects: Will Changes Be Made?

Should Battlefield Studios has proven anything so far with the latest installment, it's that they're listening and responding to player input. Assignments that were overly hard got fixed very quickly, as did the required Redsec challenges. It is likely that, if their data shows this recent mode isn't performing to their expectations, they will not hesitate to make further modifications.

Christopher Russell
Christopher Russell

Elara is a gaming journalist with over a decade of experience covering esports and indie game development, known for her analytical reviews.