An initiative similar to Valve’s Steam Free Weekend specials, Microsoft routinely collaborates with developers of all sizes to give gamers a chance to experience games on which they may have initially missed out. Highlighting everything from major AAA releases to under-the-radar indie outings, there’s usually something for every type of player. With a new host of games to try more or less every weekend, the service isa great bonus for Xbox Live Gold members.
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That said, it’s fairly rare to see games ofBattlefield 2042’s caliber appear on the platform. Similar big-budget shooters likeGhost Recon: BreakpointandBorderlands 3were made available during recent Free Play Days events, but they have both been out for more than two years at this point. Electronic Arts may be trying to get as many eyes on the new release as possible, but attention from the gaming community doesn’t seem to be something the title is lacking.
Other games in theBattlefieldfranchise such asBattlefield V,Battlefield 1, andBattlefield 4were offered sporadically during certain weekends in 2021, likely in the hopes that these titles would direct new players to the newest entry in the series, which debuted in November. However,Battlefield 2042launched in a significantly less stable state than any of the titles previously offered during prior Free Play Days periods, and newcomers to the series may be turned away by the unpolished product pushed by Electronic Arts.
This may also be a move meant to inflate concurrent player numbers which have been falling rapidly in recent weeks. The game’s player base dropped significantly just two weeks after launch, and the publisher may feel that offering the game as part of Xbox’s free-to-play initiative may help to level outBattlefield’s now diminished community.
