Ranking Battlefield 2042’s maps, which are getting better

Image: EA

Hi, yes, it’s me again, one of 14 people on Earth who enjoy playing Battlefield 2042. Like I entering my sixth month of playand as I approach the game’s level cap, I’ve recently found that my attention shifts to the finer details of the cards in the game and which ones I prefer to play.

Six months ago, I think I hated them all. Or at least hadn’t yet figured out how they work in this much-tweaked entry in the series. It’s the same way I think a lot of series veterans still struggle to come to terms with so many other things about Battlefield 2042. The maps all felt so big, so empty, so fit for chopper play and tank and nothing else.

I’ve put enough hours into the game now to know that’s only partially true. Some of the cards in the game are indeed barren wastelands in dire need of readjustment, but others have become some of my favorites in the entire series. Let’s find out which is which (and note that I’m only ranking original 2042 Conquest/Breakthrough maps here, not classic Portal maps like Caspian Border that have had their day!).

8. KALEIDOSCOPE

Image: EA

Yikes. This map is a complete disaster, from top to bottom. Which, funnily enough, are the only two levels Kaleidoscope takes place at. Its flat, central “bowl” shape has turned it into a meat grinder, a place where only snipers positioned in the towers looming over the periphery can have a good time, and I will audibly groan every time I see it loading up. And I’m a sniper, so that’s saying something.

7. HOURGLASS

Image: EA

There are some cool areas here on this enormous desert map, like the half-buried stadium, residential villages, and downtown area, and when battles focus on these flashpoints they can be great! But the wide open dunes in between them are a nightmare for both infantry (because of vehicles) and vehicles (because of choppers), and whenever you hear about a player complaining about long slogs for foot soldiers, this is probably the map they’re talking about.

6. DISCARDED

Image: EA

Discarded looks a lot more interesting than it actually is. The various, enormous rusting ship hulks should be the highlight here, but the wide open spaces around them, and the repetitive architecture, makes them a bit of a drag. Instead, it’s the smaller vantage points on the edge of the map, like a temporary settlement paired with a comms tower, that lead to the most enjoyable showdowns.

5. BREAKAWAY

Image: EA

If someone is complaining about a long walk on foot and it’s not Hourglass, it’ll be Breakaway. But DICE’s depiction of a climate-ravaged Antarctic base also has some exquisitely-linked capture points in its main cluster of buildings, and a terrific elevated “gateway” point where the towering ice shelf ramps down to the valley below. I’m also a big fan of the absurdity of its mountaintop station, which can only be reached by aircraft or a single zipline.

4. RENEWAL

Image: EA

The most visually appealing map in the game, Renewal’s defining feature—and my favourite thing about it—is a gigantic wall that runs right through the middle of it, separating a desert region from lush green farmland. Enormous battles are thus almost always centred around who is holding this wall’s central entry point, which looks cool as hell, but also in turn makes any flanking breach an exciting firefight.

3. MANIFEST

Image: EA

Here’s a big surprise! If you’d asked me a week after release which was my least favourite map, I’d have said Manifest, because the fact it’s 70% stacked shipping containers was repetitive as hell. But first impressions can be deceiving, and this map’s various levels of elevation, and the endless struggles to control the central hill looking down on the rest of the map, mean this is actually one of the most interesting—and varied—maps available, in terms of the kinds of experiences it offers to all classes and vehicle types.

2. ORBITAL

Image: EA

Orbital is a big map but never feels like a chore to get around, and has wide open spaces for vehicle duels but also plenty of cover and terrain variety for infantry. It has iconic focal points but also large tracts of interesting countryside in between, and even the game’s standout map-based trick, when a huge space rocket either takes off or explodes on the launchpad mid-game.

Of all the maps the game launched with, Orbital was easily the most “Battlefieldy” of them all.

1. EXPOSURE

Image: EA

Exposure, you arrived not a moment too soon. Addressing nearly every complaint fans had with the game’s launch stages—and also likely benefitting from more time in the oven than 2042’s initial roster—Exposure is an incredible map, and for me has instantly landed in the Pantheon of all-time greats for the series. Set amidst a landslide, it’s really three maps in one, and has everything every kind of player could want, from tense firefights in cramped tunnels to tank duels on grassy plains. A particular highlight is the struggle over a boardroom jutting out from a sheer cliff face, which somehow combines intense urban combat with aerial bombardments from outside, and the verticality of letting players parachute their way out of it. The giant tank elevator is also great.

No matter where you end up on this map, it’s just fun. It’s so good that, weeks after season 1 launchDICE still runs a mode where you can just play that card over and over and over all day.

A note before we go: I’ve tried to rank them on some sort of vague overall level of enjoyment, rather than tailoring them to certain playstyles. And that’s how things are in March 2022; I’ll be adding to this list whenever the game receives new maps, which hopefully will arrive soon!

UPDATE, June 27: Now that Exposure is out, I’ve added it to the list, right at #1.