According to Steam player data from steamdb.info, Battlefield 4 had more players than Battlefield 2042 on 17th March. Battlefield 4, which came out nine years ago, had a 24-hour peak of 3,309 players. Battlefield 2042, which only released last November, hit just 3,184.
Last week, I wrote a piece looking at the player stats up to that point and where things went wrong for Battlefield 2042. A myriad of issues at launch – headlined by extensive glitches and bugs – set the wheels in motion for 2042‘s downfall. And the gap has been closing for sometime. But now, Battlefield 2042 has hit a new low. EA’s most recent Battlefield title has less players than the three previous main entries in the series.
Battlefield 2042 24-hour Peak Players Hits Its Lowest Point Yet
Battlefield 2042‘s decline has been rapid. In its first two weeks, it lost nearly half of its player base. It went from 105,397 players to 57,186. Even holiday sales couldn’t save it. By Christmas, half of those remaining players had deserted the game.
While the pace of its decline steadied in the New Year, some harsh realties came to the fore. Not only was Battlefield 2042 failing to “live up to expectations” as EA put it – but it was also being overtaken by its predecessors.
By January, 2042‘s player base had already sunken below that of Battlefield V. But when Battlefield 1 overtook it a few weeks later, the gaming world was stunned. While the writing was on the wall after those disastrous first two weeks, it was nonetheless unbelievable.
However, the decline didn’t stop there. Between January and March, Battlefield 2042 lost more than 10,000 players on Steam. Finally, last week, it was usurped by the very title that inspired it. Battlefield 2042 now has less players than Battlefield 4, Battlefield 1 and Battlefield V.
What is EA doing about it?
Despite blaming Halo: Infinite for the negative reception and speedy decline of Battlefield 2042, EA have promised to “address the issues” with the game. However, it may be too late to right the ship.
In a recent “Battlefield Briefing” blog post on EA’s website, Senior Producer Ryan McArthur said: “We have heard you. So, we are heavily invested and committed to the future of Battlefield 2042 – working on taking action on multiple fronts to address feedback and implement extensive fixes to the game, key features that are important to you, and getting team play where it needs to be.”
In the same post, McArthur explained that EA and DICE had decided to “move the release date of our first Season to early Summer” to remain “focused on delivering these improvements”.
Upcoming improvements include the implementation of a scoreboard, all platform voice communication and player profiles.
Finally, McArthur explained a new three step process EA and DICE will be using to incorporate player feedback into future improvements and updates.
1. We will present specific, major focus areas to you along with our current thinking, detailing where we’re planning to make changes.
2. We’ll then take the time to observe and listen to the conversations that you go on to have about both the area of concern and our proposals for adjustment.
3. Later, you’ll hear from us on the topic again but this time your feedback will have been factored into our consideration and guided the decisions made for improvements.
Do you think EA are doing enough to save Battlefield 2042? Let us know in the comment section below and don’t forget to check out our other gaming articles…
