A YouTube clip regarding the color palette of Battlefield 6 has ignited a controversy within the community concerning supposed downgrading. The developers have also commented on the subject.
The Battlefield community is in turmoil once more. Roughly a week after the conclusion of the second public beta phase, a YouTube video has triggered a discussion regarding the color scheme of the latest entry in the series.
The criticism: Battlefield 6 appears significantly less impressive than in the alpha screenshots; the new color grading renders the visuals as washed out and somber. Thousands of comments have surfaced on Reddit, yet the developers at DICE have already issued a counterargument.
What transpired?
On August 23, the previously unknown YouTuber Vic’s Corner uploaded a video to his channel entitled “Why Battlefield 6 Looks Like THAT (De-graded)”. In this video, the creator, who is clearly knowledgeable in film and video game post-production, spends 13 minutes meticulously examining the color scheme of the Battlefield maps presented in the beta to date. Vic’s Corner launches his analysis with older Battlefield titles and elucidates that each installment in the series features a slightly varied color palette to form a unique visual identity. This coloring process through filters, effects, and post-production is termed color grading.
For instance, Battlefield 3 employed a blue color scheme, while BF 2042 predominantly showcased high saturation. Conversely, Battlefield 1 featured very little color grading, which led many players to perceive it as the most realistic Battlefield title.
Too blue, too reminiscent of Battlefield 3
Regarding Battlefield 6, the YouTuber observes that numerous players have expressed negative feedback concerning the visual filters currently utilized during the beta. The appearance is “too blue, too reminiscent of Battlefield 3,” causing the maps to seem washed out.
For comparison, the YouTuber displayed images where he applied filters of his own creation to replicate the graphics style of an earlier alpha version of Battlefield 6 from an internal test. The Cairo map appeared considerably yellower and more saturated there, while in the previous beta, the visuals seemed dull and excessively bright – yet also more realistic.
On Reddit, the video incited a vigorous debate over the supposedly inferior visuals. Players lamented that the alpha version was much more legible. There were fewer distracting reflections and less dust in the air. However, others remarked that they did not find the color grading distracting whatsoever.
What is DICE’s perspective on this?
The Reddit discourse has not gone unnoticed by the Battlefield developers. In one of the threads regarding color grading, DICE’s Global Community Manager Kevin Johnson contributed to the discussion.
He stated that Battlefield 6 does not merely apply a single filter across all maps, as many other games tend to do. Rather, the game reacts dynamically to the specific map being played and the player’s location on the battlefield, adjusting visuals as necessary. For instance, indoor and outdoor areas are color graded differently.
However, the issue does not appear to be as significant, since during the beta phase of Battlefield 6, there were no complaints about the colors; the critiques were entirely different. It is only following Vic’s Corner’s YouTube video that a debate has unexpectedly arisen that isn’t truly a debate at all. The conversation surrounding the color scheme is purely aesthetic. A slight variation in saturation does not genuinely impact gameplay.
What are your thoughts on the color controversy surrounding Battlefield 6? Do you lean towards yellow and bright or blue and cold? Share your opinions in the comments!
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