Battlefield Redsec review: "Ticks all the right boxes for a battle royale, but it's not especially unique"

Dropping into the sun-soaked coastal hills of Fort Lyndon in my first Battlefield Redsec mission, it's immediately apparent which other battle royale game is its core inspiration. Scrabbling for guns that I've never used in regular Battlefield 6 multiplayer, shoving armor plates down my vest while getting shot at from any number of abandoned military installations, and trying to make sense of all sorts of tactical jargon objectives to get better loot for the endgame – it's all a bit Call of Duty: Warzone.

That's hardly surprising given that Warzone is also based on the bones of a modern military shooter and was a big success – why wouldn't EA and Battlefield Studios want to use that as reference for its own modern military battle royale? But Battlefield Redsec arriving late to the party, wearing the same outfit as someone else, and riding the coattails of an old friend, means I can't help but feel a little disappointed. The instant familiarity from both Battlefield 6 and Call of Duty: Warzone means Redsec is easy to dive into, but it doesn't exactly stand out for its innovations in the battle royale space, especially this late to the game.

However, that's not to say Battlefield Redsec is a bad time overall. While Battle Royale is its focus, this free-to-play Battlefield 6 spinoff clearly has ambitions to become much bigger and last for years to come. There's certainly promise as Redsec at least packs a few flourishes and refinements, too, making for a foundation that is undeniably solid, but not necessarily the most exciting if you're after something truly fresh.

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One battle royale after another

Battlefield Redsec's Battle Royale mode is, to put it concisely, perfectly adequate – it ticks all the right boxes for a battle royale, but it's not especially unique either. After getting my first win from a tense few minutes of riding the inescapable ring with only a pathetic bus shelter for cover, only to be forced to charge the final duo, the celebration I mustered was more a relieved sigh than a victorious cheer.

The problem I've found with Battlefield Redsec's battle royale is that, even after just a few matches, I feel like I've seen everything already – it just feels like a streamlined version of Call of Duty: Warzone. The Missions system offers powerful rewards directly rather than using Warzone's cash approach. Gadgets and killstreak reward-like items, such as air strikes, UAVs, and defibrillators, are available as floor loot rather than from Buy Stations. And everyone gets a free second chance to drop back in after dying, skipping the nerve-shredding one-on-one Gulag fight. I certainly prefer this streamlined approach as it keeps things simple, circumventing the money middleman, but it's not exactly exciting innovation.

Even when it tries to be different, I'm still not totally convinced by its efforts either. One of the major differences I've noticed in Redsec compared to other battle royale games is that its chemical fire ring is always closing in and lethal right from the start. It's not something I've personally seen before, save for a limited-time mode in Apex Legends, and I think there's a reason for that. The looming threat of incineration means matches are sometimes a blur of mild-to-severe panic rather than a rollercoaster of intensity that comes from a traditional multi-stage ring. Some players will relish that tension, but I much prefer having the chance to catch my breath and plan with my team.

Although, these improvements make Battlefield Redsec Battle Royale an undeniably solid foundation. Fort Lyndon is a good first stab at a battle royale map with a nice mix of landmarks, mixing urban and suburban architecture with military installations, verdant hills, and dust bowls with the California sun keeping drab tones at bay. Tanks are also present to add some all-out warfare zing but aren't easy to get and thankfully can't always run riot due to the amount of anti-tank gear squads can come by.

However, it lacks a killer element to really set it above anything that has come before, especially with the signature Battlefield class system feeling sidelined despite each class having bespoke Training Paths and perks. Redsec's refinements over Warzone feel more like quality-of-life improvements rather than a unique take on the formula.

Running the gauntlet

But Redsec doesn't start and end with Battle Royale as (for now) there's another game mode that has been an unexpected delight. In Gauntlet, eight four-player squads are pitted against each other in short, chaotic rounds where playing the objective is all that matters. At the end of each round, the two lowest-scoring teams are eliminated, with the fourth round being a final showdown between the top two teams for ultimate victory.

The variety of objectives means your first few matches can be a trial by fire, but once you've got the hang of things, Gauntlet is fantastically intense and highly competitive – the scoreboard in the top-right corner marking which teams are up for elimination feeling like a guillotine over the neck of every squad.

Whether you're delivering batches of data drives to drones, blowing up M-COMs, or asserting control over a hex grid, making it through any round is an exciting rush, especially if evenly matched teams are jockeying for position right until the last second. Communication and objective play being crucial to success means teamwork is richly rewarded and every win feels hard-fought and supremely satisfying, particularly with friends.

Strangely, that all makes Gauntlet "feel" like the more Battlefield-y of the two Redsec modes, despite also butchering some of the franchise's hallmarks, arguably more so than Battle Royale. While the class system is the same as in regular multiplayer, my friends and I quickly figured out that the constant rushing around for objectives, long respawn times, and points for revives meant that the Support class was preferable in every round, making the other three classes almost redundant – we’d typically run four Supports, only occasionally swapping one for an Engineer if an IFV was proving especially troublesome. This isn't to say Recon and Assault are useless, but simply being able to revive and heal quickly, and coordinate well, meant we could easily make up for the lack of class variety.

Furthermore, the relatively small maps made from Fort Lyndon's points-of-interest heavily favor chaotic infantry combat, with the signature combined arms warfare of Battlefield – one of my favorite aspects of the franchise – being lost. IFVs make appearances in the early rounds and can be disruptive, serving as a neutral, Halo-style power weapon for any team to grab, but the tight focus on objectives means vehicles are almost exclusively for getting around. It'd be nice to see some vehicle-oriented rounds get added to mix things up from the constant footslogging and make the most of Battlefield 6's sandbox.

Battle plans

Battlefield Redsec is far from a flawless package that, for me at least, is largely held up by Gauntlet, with Battle Royale lacking a unique identity to keep me dropping back in. Where Gauntlet feels like a great fit, in spite of its problems, Battle Royale perhaps reveals that the franchise's all-out warfare and objective-based gameplay just isn't compatible with the free-for-all nature of the genre.

However, it's clear that EA isn't stopping here with Battlefield Redsec, calling it the "ultimate free-to-play FPS destination built on Battlefield’s iconic DNA" – almost certainly a playground of engagement a la Fortnite or Roblox, but everyone's a NATO or Pax Armata soldier rather than a pop culture reference, and it's all powered by a rather hideous microtransactions store.

My biggest concern is how this will sit alongside the premium Battlefield 6 and the eventual plans for yearly Battlefield releases – Call of Duty hasn't exactly been cannibalized by Warzone, but it's clear that the need for all games to be Warzone-compatible has impacted development. Bearing all that in mind, it's difficult for me to get on board with Battlefield Redsec on the whole, but after its first week or so, it remains a smooth and competitive experience in its own right that will be sticking around for the long run whether you like it or not.

Take a look at our best Battlefield Redsec weapons tier list for some starting tips!