Inside The Metaverse: Progression in Battlefield Hardline

Battlefield Troopers,

The Open Beta is just around the corner! We've had one helluva ride getting here, but I'm glad many of you have taken this journey with us. For the first time, we brought our community deep into the making of Battlefield, and you've undeniably shaped the experience for the better. I hope the Beta lets you, our kick ass co-developers, enjoy the fruits of all our labors.

Before you play it, let me initiate you into the metagame in Battlefield Hardline - our multiplayer progression systems.

In Hardline, you earn in-game cash for positive gameplay actions. One of our big philosophies is encouraging team work. Getting kills will net you some dough, but the big bucks are earned through team play and dominating a game mode. Hanging out of a Hotwire car filled with squad mates while launching grenades at pursuing enemies? Oh yeah, that'll get you money.

You can then spend that fresh cake on new weapons or gadgets. You told us that you don't want to wait behind a long grind for your favorite gun, and we listened – you can now buy good ol' Betsy right away.

Reach for the Service Stars

Service Stars are back in three tiers – Bronze, Silver, and Gold – to individually track your progression on different parts of Hardline. Earning Bronze Service Stars nets you gameplay options – such as vehicle modifications, weapon attachments and class loadouts – while Silver and Gold Service Stars are pure vanity, with their own flashy unlocks. See a criminal with a blazing red jacket and a gold AKM? That's a Hardline master.

But what about the players who really want to stand out? I know you're reading this – you've been here all along, giving us feedback and improving our game. You want the world to know you're a top tier Hardline player. The. Hard. Core. What have we done for you?

Let's get into it.

From Easy to Insane: Hardline Assignments

There are over two hundred Assignments in Battlefield Hardline, each with specific requirements that range from fairly straight-forward to almost impossible. Completing these will earn you an in-game Patch, and some even reward you with new weapon unlocks.

But there's one extra-evil, overtly-maniacal, only-the-crazies-will-ever-try-to-earn-these, type of Assignments: Syndicates. Syndicate Assignments are so challenging that we're not even sure if they can all be completed before the earth is engulfed by the sun. Did I mention their criteria are hidden? If you see someone who has earned any of these, just smile, nod, and pray that they don't point their weapon in your direction.

Climb the Ranks

All the while you'll be earning Rank – a game-wide metric we use to measure overall game progress. There are 150 Ranks and we suspect absolutely no one will manage to get to the top during the Beta, but we'd love to be proven wrong – and there's a free cookie to the first person who does it.

And all of this is available in the Beta. No gates. No strings. It's all there.

Is that enough to whet your appetites? I'm salivating already.

I'm glad I can share our metagame philosophies with our fantastic community. I can't wait to get in the Beta with all of you. It's almost here. I'll see you on the streets!

Ben Gaciu
Systems Designer
@TheSureBen