What changes when playing a Battlefield 4™ map that takes place at night? How can you best exploit this new setting and come out the victor? This tactical guide will get you started and ready for nighttime play in Battlefield 4 Night Operations when it releases in September 2015.

ON THE GRAVEYARD SHIFT
The new night map, Zavod: Graveyard Shift (based off of Zavod 311), is dark and has several differences to its daylight counterpart.

Here are some examples:

Destructible lights
At night, the map is littered with destructible lights, which you can use to your advantage. Want to make sure you gain the upper hand using night vision scopes? Take all lights out in an area and prey on your enemies!

Ground Level fog
At night, the exterior areas are blanketed in a thick fog – this fog makes it very hard to spot players on the ground from above – unless you sport a night vision scope…

Vehicle lights
All vehicles have lights, which makes anyone inside an easy target – don’t use vehicles if you want to stay hidden!

Flanking routes
With darkness descending on the map, using flanking routes on the side of the map is a very viable tactic to get around the center area and take a backside objective from the enemy.

Use new Gun Master to your advantage
We’ve added a new Gun Master weapon preset with night vision and utility in mind – use to practice night time play if you haven’t unlocked all the needed gadgets yet. It really shines when played on the alternate Gun Master layout on Zavod: Graveyard Shift!

STEALTH GAMEPLAY AND TACTICS

Battlefield 4 Night Operations release includes several improvements to “gadgets of the night” and their usability on the Battlefield.

Think about what cues you give off:

Sprinting
Gets you quickly from point A to B, but makes footstep sounds which makes you easy to pinpoint and prey on.

Vehicle usage
Being in a vehicle normally means relative safety, but headlights and engine sounds put a rather large target on your back

Flashlight, laser, and other weapon attachments
While great help in an engagement, they draw attention to your position and exact location.

RECOMMENDED COMBINATIONS AND COUNTERS

Smoke + Nightvision scopes
An oldie but goodie, chuck a smoke grenade into an area and using your night vision scope to pick off unsuspecting enemies. This works best in narrow passages, like the underground tunnel between C & D for instance.

Flare + LMG
Used as a Smoke + Nightvision counter, Flares negate the positive aspects of night vision scopes, and you’ll be able to blanket the area with bullets as it’s engulfed in smoke.

Flashbangs + Shotgun/PDW
A tactic viable in both and nighttime play. Using a flashbang against a night scope user gives you a significant advantage in the dark, even more so than using a flashbang under normal conditions. Clean it up with a well-placed shotgun blast and you’re deadlier than ever.

Dirty, dirty claymores & mines
Claymores are very effective at nighttime, especially if you are being hunted. Remember to use sounds to your advantage, or why not your flashlight? AT Mines are also very effective in negating that pesky tank, but they do have a new little red blinky light attached to them, so you’re not all out of luck if you’re controlling a vehicle if you keep your eyes peeled!

We hope that this information equips you the tools you need for the night time playstyle.

See you during the Graveyard Shift!

 

THE DEPICTION OF ANY WEAPON OR VEHICLE IN THIS GAME DOES NOT INDICATE AFFILIATION, SPONSORSHIP OR ENDORSEMENT BY ANY WEAPON OR VEHICLE MANUFACTURER.

You see a teammate under heavy fire, hiding out behind a burning car. He stands up and tries to run for it, but the enemy has him in his sights. He zigs and zags, trying to dodge bullets, but there’s no way he’ll make it… unless you step in and intervene. For the next Community Mission, you’ll need to do just that. Be a savior to 10 teammates, and get a Gold Battlepack.

Jump into any Battlefield 4 multiplayer mode and map and get 10 Savior Kills. This mission is active between August 6, 2015 9AM PT and August 10, 2015 2AM PT.

The best part? Besides getting a shiny new Gold Battlepack, you get to walk away knowing you’ve saved ten teammates. That’s win-win in our books.

If you succeed before the mission time runs out, we’ll reward you with a Gold Battlepack (be sure to redeem your reward through Battlelog before August 10^, 2015 at 2AM PT).

To make sure you don’t lose track in all this excitement, head to the Community Missions tab to check the community’s progress. You can also see how you’re doing if you bring up Battlelog in-game – just check the “Missions” tab (“Missions” tab is only available on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One).

 

THIS OFFER IS BEING ISSUED TO YOU FOR PROMOTIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A CREDIT, CHARGE, DEBIT OR GIFT CARD. REQUIRES BATTLEFIELD 4 (“PRODUCT”) ON APPLICABLE PLATFORM, INTERNET CONNECTION AND EA/ORIGIN ACCOUNT TO PARTICIPATE AND ACCESS IN-GAME CONTENT. LIMIT ONE OFFER PER EA/ORIGIN ACCOUNT. PC PRODUCT REQUIRES ACCEPTANCE OF THE ORIGIN END USER AGREEMENT AND INSTALLATION OF THE ORIGIN CLIENT SOFTWARE (WWW.ORIGIN.COM/ABOUT). YOU MUST BE 13+ TO REGISTER. EA ONLINE PRIVACY AND COOKIE POLICY AND TERMS OF SERVICE ARE AVAILABLE AT WWW.EA.COM. SEE APPLICABLE END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT AND DISCLOSURES ON WWW.EA.COM/1/PRODUCT-EULAS. VALID WHEREVER BATTLEFIELD 4 IS OFFERED. MAY NOT BE COMBINED WITH ANY OTHER OFFER, GIFT CARD, REBATE OR DISCOUNT COUPON. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED, TAXED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW.

EXCEPT AS EXPRESSLY CREDITED, NO WEAPON, VEHICLE OR GEAR MANUFACTURER IS AFFILIATED WITH OR HAS SPONSORED OR ENDORSED THIS GAME.

When you talk, we listen, and when we heard that the Battlefield community wanted a new night map, we set out to make this idea a reality. It’ll be coming in Battlefield 4™ Night Operations, hitting the Battlefield in September 2015.

STARTING THE GRAVEYARD SHIFT

We quickly realized there was more to it than just making a pretty map. It would need to feature a new sound landscape, destructible lights, and a different sort of gameplay. This lead to us focusing on the creation of Zavod: Graveyard Shift, based on Zavod 311, a new map that brings with it several improvements and tweaks to allow for more stealthy and tactical gameplay.

We touched things like passive/active spotting to make it easier to flank your opponent. We’ve improved the sound system so you can pinpoint where those footsteps come from. Additionally, we’ve also given the gadgets and tools of the night an improvement pass to make them shine in the dark (but less so during the day).

MORE GUNMASTER

Zavod: Graveyard Shift supports the standard game modes: Conquest, Rush, Team Deathmatch, Obliteration, Domination and Gun Master. When playing Gun Master (which plays very differently at night), we realized it would be cool to have a second, even darker layout – one with a special new Weapons Preset specifically tailored for nighttime. So, we made one – this is the first time we created a secondary layout to a map for any game mode.

IT’S NOT ALL NIGHT

While the focus of this release has been night gameplay, we have several other improvements and new features as well. There’s a new public server team balancer, some weapons tweaks, and additional netcode improvements.

You have to adapt to survive here, and we hope you like it as much as we do!

Stay tuned as we will be rolling out more information about Battlefield 4 Night Operations soon.

See you on the Battlefield!

 

THE DEPICTION OF ANY WEAPON OR VEHICLE IN THIS GAME DOES NOT INDICATE AFFILIATION, SPONSORSHIP OR ENDORSEMENT BY ANY WEAPON OR VEHICLE MANUFACTURER.

Who will be crowned champion of the ESL One Battlefield 4 summer 2015 season?

The ESL One Battlefield 4 Summer 2015 season is coming to an end. On August 6th and 7th, the eight best teams from around the world will gather in Cologne, Germany to face off against each other at gamescom for a prize pool of €35,000.

The teams have fought their way through multiple opponents in difficult qualifiers and group stages to become one of the eight teams participating in the season finals. Let’s take a look at some of the participating teams!

Fnatic (Europe)

The reigning champions and by far the best team in all of Battlefield 4 ESL One history, Fnatic has managed to claim four ESL One titles for themselves. The team consists of five incredibly skilled players whose teamwork is almost flawless. Can anyone stop these juggernauts?

Dexterity (America)

Last season, Dexterity showed their strength against the European teams in their first ever ESL One Battlefield 4 season. The team gave us an incredibly skilled performance as they defeated all but one European team. Fnatic was able to stop Dexterity in their tracks, but it wasn’t an easy feat. The American team managed once again to qualify for the season finals and is out for revenge against the European juggernauts.

Team Exile 5 (Oceania)

A lot of skill and a bit of luck is what brings Team Exile 5 to the ESL One Battlefield 4 Summer 2015 season finals. After an incredible performance in the Oceania playoffs series, the team lost to Legionnaires in the grand final and all seemed lost. However, Legionnaires found themselves unable to attend the season finals and Team Exile 5 took their place. Can they prove their Australian strength at gamescom?

The other teams heading to the ESL One Battlefield 4 summer 2015 season finals are:

• Epsilon eSports (Europe)
• House Hupsux (Europe)
• PENTA Sports (Europe)
• InFamouS (Europe)
• Team NABAB (Europe)

Battleground Cologne

These eight teams will be waging war at gamescom 2015 in Cologne, Germany! gamescom is Europe’s biggest trade fair for interactive games and entertainment, and with over 335,000 visitors yearly, it is the world’s largest gaming event. At this gigantic games fair, these eight teams from all over the world will have to prove their worth in front of a massive crowd.

Don’t miss any of the action! Be part of the live action at gamescom or join thousands of others online at http://www.esl-one.com/battlefield/summer/channel/esltv-bf4/

For the latest news about ESL One Battlefield 4, be sure to follow ESL Battlefield on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ESLBattlefield or on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ESLBattlefield.

 

ESL One tournaments are organized and sponsored by Turtle Entertainment GmbH. Information on tournament rules and setup can be found at Battlefield.ESL.eu and ESL-one.com/Battlefield.

The M4 Carbine is a classic gun, and one you’re no doubt familiar with if you’ve seen a war movie in the past 10 years. And if you want to score a Gold Battlepack in this new Expert Community Mission, you’re going to want to polish up your skills with it.

Jump into any Battlefield 4 multiplayer mode and map and score 99 kills with an M4 Carbine. This mission is active between July 31, 2015 at 9AM PT and August 2, 2015 at 2AM PT.

Yep, that’s right, 99 kills. By yourself. In three days. No, this isn’t one of those “we’re all in this together” Community Missions, you’re going to have to clean shop yourself.

If you succeed before the mission time runs out, we’ll reward you with a Gold Battlepack (be sure to redeem your reward through Battlelog before August 2, 2015 at 2AM PT).

You can also see how you’re doing if you bring up Battlelog in-game – just check the “Missions” tab (“Missions” tab is only available on PC, PlayStation 4, and Xbox One).

 

THIS OFFER IS BEING ISSUED TO YOU FOR PROMOTIONAL PURPOSES ONLY AND DOES NOT CONSTITUTE A CREDIT, CHARGE, DEBIT OR GIFT CARD. REQUIRES BATTLEFIELD 4 (“PRODUCT”) ON APPLICABLE PLATFORM, INTERNET CONNECTION AND EA/ORIGIN ACCOUNT TO PARTICIPATE AND ACCESS IN-GAME CONTENT. LIMIT ONE OFFER PER EA/ORIGIN ACCOUNT. PC PRODUCT REQUIRES ACCEPTANCE OF THE ORIGIN END USER AGREEMENT AND INSTALLATION OF THE ORIGIN CLIENT SOFTWARE (WWW.ORIGIN.COM/ABOUT). YOU MUST BE 13+ TO REGISTER. EA ONLINE PRIVACY AND COOKIE POLICY AND TERMS OF SERVICE ARE AVAILABLE AT WWW.EA.COM. SEE APPLICABLE END USER LICENSE AGREEMENT AND DISCLOSURES ON WWW.EA.COM/1/PRODUCT-EULAS. VALID WHEREVER BATTLEFIELD 4 IS OFFERED. MAY NOT BE COMBINED WITH ANY OTHER OFFER, GIFT CARD, REBATE OR DISCOUNT COUPON. VOID WHERE PROHIBITED, TAXED OR RESTRICTED BY LAW.

EXCEPT AS EXPRESSLY CREDITED, NO WEAPON, VEHICLE OR GEAR MANUFACTURER IS AFFILIATED WITH OR HAS SPONSORED OR ENDORSED THIS GAME.