Hello there,
With Season 3: Escalation now in your hands, and with it the EMKV90-TOR, we thought it would be a good time to stop by and talk about vehicles, alongside some changes we’re making in the not-so-distant future.
Before we detail a few of the things that we’ll be working on throughout the rest of Season 3, we first wanted to talk a little bit about the TOR.
We have wanted to do another Main Battle Tank for some time now, and Season 3 provided us with the perfect opportunity. Not only could we do another MBT, but the technological theme of the season allowed us to differentiate it from our existing lineup.
One of our main goals with the TOR was to create a Railgun-powered tank that, while technologically advanced, wouldn’t feel out of place alongside our existing roster of vehicles. It’s always important to us that regardless of what a vehicle may be, it has to feel at home on the battlefield.
Far from being a traditional tank, it did pose a number of obstacles to overcome - some bigger than others.
One of the things we wanted to ensure is that we reworked the cook-off effect. While you can enjoy a game of turret-tossing with our other tanks, that’s not the case with the TOR. With no traditional ammo cache within the tank, it felt wrong to give it this effect.
It would be hard to not mention the TOR without calling out the work our Audio team did on it. We presented the design and asked for something that sounded threatening and monstrous, and they certainly delivered. There is just something inherently satisfying about listening to a shot charge up and then fire off into the distance.
Research plays a big part in everything we do, as we take cues from the real world on how vehicles will look, behave, sound and feel. For the TOR, we had to blend what little research was possible with some creative freedom, allowing us to package up the tank in a way we felt would feel suitable for the world of 2042.
We’re really proud of how the EMKV90-TOR turned out, and hope you’ve been enjoying it as much as we had a good time developing it.
Active Protection System
One of the pieces of equipment available to the TOR is the Active Protection System.
When we brought this feature to the EBLC-RAM in Season 2 we knew we would want to release it across other vehicles. We also know this is something you’ve been asking for, especially on the likes of the M1A5 or the T28.
With the release of the Active Protection System alongside the TOR, we have completely reworked it. This won’t be anything that you will notice at first glance. However, from an under-the-hood perspective, it will now be working smoother, better on performance and a lot more efficiently.
This now gives us the opportunity to close the loop on your request for Active Protection across additional vehicles.
Now is also a good time to point out, to those of you who have not yet discovered it, that the TOR’s primary railgun punches right through any defence put up by the Active Protection Systems. So if you see an enemy vehicle with Active Protection engaged, you know what to do.
As we move forward within Season 3 we plan to release the Active Protection System on both the M1A5 and T28. Once released it will be available for you to unlock, equip, and will work the same way as it does currently across the RAM and TOR.
Turret Speeds
Speaking of vehicles with turrets, something else we’ve been working on is the turret rotation speed.
Across a number of vehicles, we have tweaked the speed at which turrets will rotate, as we felt they were too sluggish compared to the overall pace of the game.
The speed of the turret will depend on the turret itself and the vehicle it belongs to, with 3 different speeds in total.
Here’s a breakdown of how things are currently shaping up, what speed of turret will be applied and how that differs from what you’re experiencing today.
M1A5 and T28
- MPAT - Medium speed - Increased by 100%
- Staff - Medium Speed - Increased by 100%
- HE - Slow Speed - increased by 65%
EMKV90-TOR
- Regular weapon - Medium Speed - Increased by 100%
- Upgrade weapon - Slow speed - Increased by 65%
EBLC-RAM
- 40mm - Fast speed - Untouched
- Missiles - Fast speed - Untouched
- Howitzer - Medium speed - 20% decrease
EBAA Wildcat
- 30mm AA - Fast speed - Increased by 140%
- 40MM - Medium speed - increased by 100%
- 57mm - Slow speed - Increased by 65%
As always, we will continue to tweak and balance over time, so some of these values may change.
Below Radar
Coming later in Season 3 will be Below Radar, where flying an aircraft below 30 meters from the ground will make you immune to any lock-ons from vehicle-based weapons.
Of course, flying that close to the ground comes with its own set of risks, so you’ll be wanting to pick your moments carefully. While it may seem inviting to fly in low for a staffing run, keep in mind that soldier-based lock-ons will still find their target.
If you’re flying and do get a lock-on, dropping below 30 meters won’t break the lock either.
Height Limits
Also coming for aircraft will be some tweaks to the height limits in which they can fly.
We’ll be reducing the height at which helicopters can fly to help combat instances where they are so high that locking on wasn’t possible.
This will also help address an issue where helicopter pilots could stay at maximum height and quickly make short work of any fighter jet that spawned below them.
Jet planes are not included in this tweak, and currently do not have a limit. We’re hoping will bring some of that rock, paper, scissors gameplay more to the forefront amongst our aircraft.
We’ll sign off, but before we do, we’d like to thank all of you for your continued feedback and support.
We know how important vehicles are for Battlefield, and we’re dedicated to making them the best they can be, both through Quality-of-Life additions and with the introduction of new Vehicles altogether.
We are deep into the development of Season 4, and we can’t wait to show you more. Before that though, we’ve some great additions for Season 3 on the way.
We’ll see you on, and above the Battlefield.
//Battlefield 2042 Vehicles Team