How does the list of maps in 2042 compare to those in earlier Battlefield games?
When Battlefield 2042 came out, it had seven new maps, but none of Ripple Effect’s Portal remade levels. Most of these maps weren’t very good when the game first came out, so DICE has spent each season improving them and adding a new one. Since 2042 has been out for a while, there are now a lot of maps that work well in both Conquest and Breakthrough.
All of these maps have changed since the game first came out, but some are much better than others. This list ranks every new Battlefield 2042 map from worst to best based on how it plays in both Conquest and Breakthrough. The maps range from Hourglass to Exposure.
Kaleidoscope
When it first came out, Kaleidoscope was by far one of the worst maps in Battlefield 2042. Breakpoint was almost impossible to play, Conquest was too wild without enough cover, and fighting with troops was generally annoying. Kaleidoscope was one of the first maps that DICE worked on again in 2042, but the changes they made weren’t enough.
There was nothing good about the Conquest update that changed Kaleidoscope. Even though sand bags and shipping bins were added to the map to make it feel less like a clean city, the flat play area doesn’t work with Battlefield’s combined arms gameplay, and the Specialist tools can’t make up for the lack of cover. The buildings don’t add anything to this map either; they’re just a novelty in Conquest and a difficult goal in Breakthrough. In general, Kaleidoscope is a map that isn’t great at any one thing. There isn’t a standout game mode here, and the new layout makes Kaleidoscope feel dull and unimaginative. The map is already broken, so adding shipping crates and sand bags won’t help.
Hourglass
When it first came out, Hourglass was by far the worst map in Battlefield 2042. It was mostly a desert, but there were two interesting things there: a group of buildings and an empty stadium. DICE changed this map to make Hourglass less overwhelming and to shift the focus of the Conquest mode more toward combined arms gameplay.
Sadly, that second attempt wasn’t completely successful. DICE pretty much took away the part of the map on the left, added a hole to the C flag, and made more cover along the highway that separates the US and RU starts. The problem is that Hourglass still tells your team to split up between the desert and city parts of the map, which makes Conquest games feel empty. For easy kills with the railgun tank, vehicle users stick to the desert. Infantry users, on the other hand, stick to the city because it’s the only place to play with lots of cover. It’s fun to fight for the C flag on Conquest now, but other than that, this map still plays the same as it did before the changes.
Flashpoint
It’s hard to rank Flashpoint. Depending on how many players are on it and the type of game being played, this map offers very different experiences. With 64 people, Flashpoint has some of the best army battles in 2042, and well-coordinated teams can win games by themselves. However, Flashpoint doesn’t work at all when you have 128 people playing.
Part of the reason for this is how the map is laid out. The setup of Flashpoint is the same on both 64-player and 128-player sites, even though it looks like the map was made with 64 people in mind. With a lot of players, this makes the map’s small fighting areas, like flags C and E, almost impossible to play in. If you choose to play on a 64-player server, those small areas for military fighting become less fun because the map is so big. Flashpoint is too big for 64-player games, and with 128 people, it’s almost impossible to play.
Manifest
Manifest is a great example of how the Specialist tools of 2042 have changed the way some maps are made. The cranes that line the docking bay on the southern edge of the map are the worst thing about it. Anyone who is playing as Mackay can easily use the Grappling Hook to climb up the cranes and shoot other players from the other side of the map.
Everyone else will die all the time because there are too many cars on a map with not enough cover, especially in the northern half of the map. Breakthrough has the same problems, which is why players are told to use Mackay or Falck to get through the enemy shooters and cars’ hail of bullets. It’s by far the worst Breakthrough map in 2042. On the other hand, Manifest is a fairly fun Conquest map if you don’t mind using cars or playing as Mackay.
Reclaimed
The map Zavod 311 from Battlefield 4 has been redesigned as Reclaimed, which has more buildings and a bigger play area. It’s a map made for close 64-player Breakthrough games, and it does very well in those situations. On this map, Breakthrough has mostly fair chokepoints and a great sense of fighting with more than one weapon.
For Conquest, it’s not true. As an infantry player, you should push the warehouse on C flag or the bunkers near RU start because there isn’t much flow on this map. Because of this, the US team usually has to use trucks to push the C building, which keeps the Russian troops from moving. Without a good team, this map can make games feel much more unfair than most other 2042 maps. You won’t be able to play Reclaimed well on Conquest, but the map is great for Breakthrough. Also, this map was made for 64 people, so don’t think that 128-player modes will work well here.
Stranded
Stranded is a lot like Discarded in that it has a big cargo ship that fighters on foot and cars use as the main battleground. Instead of having as many cars as Discarded, Stranded only focuses on fighting people, unlike its bigger sibling. Stranded is a great Breakthrough map, but not so great for Conquest. This is typical of most DICE maps made after the game came out.
Stranded’s biggest problem, at least for Conquest, is how big it is. There are two flags inside the huge ship and one flag in each corner of the map. Most of the game takes place inside the ship because these spawn next to US and RU spawns. Because this ship is so tall, the map is too small for 64 players. But Stranded feels way too small for 128 players. Breakthrough does a lot better this time. If you don’t count the first set of goals, Stranded’s Breakthrough games are very different and make the most of 2042’s unique military playground.
Renewal
Like Kaleidoscope, Renewal got a light update during the early seasons of Battlefield 2042, adding more cover places and small changes to the landscape to make it more interesting. All around, these changes have made Renewal a much more fun game than Kaleidoscope.
Breakthrough is what makes this one stand out. In the desert part, the starting goals are fun to fight and protect because of the landscape. Renewal’s changes have made the fairly high vehicle density much more bearable for infantry play by adding more cover. Renewal has a lot of vehicles, which makes conquest less useful. However, this can be seen as a good thing by players who like to use vehicles instead of fighting with people. People who like Battlefield’s bigger, more vehicle-focused maps will really enjoy this one.
Discarded
Even though Discarded might not have as polished of a Breakthrough experience as Stranded. This map is a great place to play Conquest. DICE changed this map so that all the fighting is now centered on the wrecked ship at C flag. The top half of the map was taken away. Which made it easier for teams to work together in 64- and 128-player Conquest.
In contrast to Stranded, Discarded puts a lot more focus on driving. It’s easy for tanks and aircraft to kill soldiers from a distance on this map. Because the ship is much less hidden and open. Thanks to well-placed cover, vehicles aren’t a big problem on this map. This makes for a tight Conquest experience that feels fair to both the US and RU teams. Breakthrough works well on Discarded too, but not as well as it does on Stranded.
Breakaway
In Season 4, DICE made big changes to Breakaway. The map went from having too many flags to being a tight 32v32 game. The most changes were made to Conquest, which got rid of the E flag that held the small base that was built to look like the Damavand Peak jump from Battlefield 3. Most of the flags were moved around in smart ways to keep gunfights near the small group of buildings across from the oil rig. The 64-player version of Conquest has great battle flow and might be one of the best Conquest maps in 2042. It’s also not a bad time in Breakaway, especially when the attackers get to the oil rig.
The only really bad thing about Breakaway is how it goes with 128 people. Some of the map’s extra features are back in these playlist versions, like the huge glacier on flag F2. This gives the US team a big edge when it comes to taking flags that are close together. With this many people, Basket Random also gets pretty messy, especially on Breakthrough. Broken Away is a great map for all kinds of games as long as there are 64 people.
Redacted
Redacted is like Operation: Metro and Operation: Locker, which were past Battlefield games. The maps in Battlefield 2042 have mostly focused on combined arms battle, with big maps and areas with more than one flag. The collection of maps really needed an infantry-only map that pushed classes to work together. Redacted keeps that promise, thankfully, and does so with flying colors.
Players will fight their way through different biomes in an underground facility. From places with trees to halls made of concrete that look like Operation: Locker. Redacted’s Conquest and Breakthrough are great because they have a lot of verticality and lots of side paths. Specialist tools have a bigger effect on Redacted than on other maps. But other than that, it’s the most like a classic Battlefield 2042 combat game. With the rest of the maps in this game, that’s exactly what 2042 needed.
Spearhead
Don’t be fooled by the sparse scenery. Spearhead is without a doubt one of the best maps in Battlefield 2042. It has a great plan for both Conquest and Breakthrough. The huge cube buildings on the map are divided by rough ground that provides cover for troops without making it too hard for vehicles to fight. All goals are easy to see, flags are put correctly, and cars have a clear role without feeling powerful. To put it simply, Spearhead is a great game for many types of play.
Orbital
A lot of fans already thought Orbital was one of the best maps in 2042. Even before it was fixed up. Engagements naturally went to the launch platforms that were placed near the middle of the map. This made Conquest more targeted without taking away from Breakthrough. Some might say that Breakthrough with 128 players was too wild for Orbital. But that could be said about almost every 2042 map.
This map is now one of the best in 2042, thanks to Orbital’s work on it. Infantry players can get to each goal in a number of different ways that don’t involve being destroyed by vehicles. However, there are enough open choke points for vehicles to be very important to the success of your team. It’s also the only map besides Hourglass where the storm risk feels real. Conquest and Breakthrough matches become completely chaotic in the best way possible when the storm gets close to the launch platform. It has all the things you could want in a Battlefield game.
Exposure
With 2042’s start coming after a string of average maps, not many people thought that the first season would include a map as good as Exposure. Exposure takes players to the Rocky Mountains, where they fight in huge battles. The worn-down mountain shows many caves, lifts, and a huge building that looks over the whole map. There are two places where players can fight: on top of the mountain or in the rubble below.
This map’s flow is great for Conquest because both sides have plenty of cars to take over all of the flags. The map in Exposure is almost totally vertical, and the fighting moves quickly on such a huge map thanks to zip lines and caves. For 64-player and 128-player groups, this keeps the map full of fighting between people and vehicles. Breakthrough isn’t as great because most of the flags have tight chokepoints. But these “meat grinder” parts don’t take away from Exposure’s great battle flow or general look. If you want to play Battlefield 2042 games, Exposure is the best map.
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