Battlefield 6 developer Ripple Effect told IGN in a recent interview that the game was built “secretly console first”, a design stance that matters because it will shape aim assist, playtest defaults, and whether crossplay is optional at launch, which could change match balance and anti-cheat focus.
The studio emphasized that the decision was about correcting past imbalances rather than abandoning the PC player base. In a recent interview with IGN, senior console combat designer Matthew Nickerson said the phrase started as “a little moniker that kind of pokes fun” but underlined that “we really have to care about console at the end of the day.” Technical director Christian Buhl echoed the point, saying the team did not build a PC game and port it to consoles this time.
Design choices coming out of that approach are concrete rather than rhetorical. The developers stated that crossplay will be optional and that they have “completely redone” aim assist compared to Battlefield 2042, with playtests intentionally favoring controller users to ensure tuning matches console habits. Buhl described anti-cheat work as a dual effort with a Battlefield-specific team plus an EA anticheat group, acknowledging that eliminating all cheaters is impossible but calling the work critical to the game’s health. The new multiplatform reality, as some commentators argue, has been broadly beneficial for PC gaming, although the team did accept feedback when those menus drew criticism.
The interview also touched on community management and leaks, with developers admitting they “talked with the site about leaks” and saying the risk of getting player feedback was judged worthwhile. They repeated a stance against cosmetic excess, framing the “issue of goofy skins” as something they want to avoid in favour of a grittier tone. Early beta impressions mentioned in the conversation suggested that performance was acceptable on older hardware, which should alleviate some PC players’ concerns about a console-first mindset. Expect more clarity as the teams publish concrete tuning notes closer to launch.
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