Dragon Valley originally released with Battlefield 2, and it’s coming back to Battlefield for free* as part of Battlefield 4 Legacy Operations! Our goal for this map was to make an impressive, large vehicle map for Battlefield 4, but at the same time modernize the original when appropriate – and include the full spectrum of applicable game modes. We weren’t going for a perfect replica here, rather looking to mimic the gameplay from the original in a very different game.

So, what are the differences when looking at the original map and the updated Dragon Valley 2015? One major difference is the scale of each major capture point. In general, each flag area has a much bigger and more detailed layout. The map also features more total flags than any other Battlefield 4 map, lowering the overall tempo of the map, and enabling a more dynamic Battlefield.

Verticality, Dragon Valley 2015 is also taller than the original with more mountainous terrain, and the airspace is covered by layers of clouds to hinder massive sightlines.

Nearly every part of the map was upgraded and enhanced. Here’s a look at how we changed each element to make it feel more modern:

Chinese Base/Factory Area. The original map features a Conquest Assault layout. This means that all flags where owned by the Chinese team at the start of round, and the US had a start that couldn’t be captured (the carrier). In Dragon Valley 2015, regular conquest rules apply, so the map is initially neutral, which also makes the Chinese base a non-capture area.

Power Plant/Dam Area [E]. In the original map, the power plant and dam was kind of tiny in stature. The new version features a full sized dam and dam-facility area. This flag regularly features fights between US-infantry and Chinese armor, so bring your AT launcher!

Hill Village [D]. The tiny collection of houses has become a full village over several levels of terrain. It’s a very destructible area – which makes it a perfect place to ambush Chinese tanks to stop them from getting to the center of the map.

Wood Yard [F]. The wood yard still spawns a powerful vehicle like the original, making this flag a must-have for insurgent US troops wishing to confine the Chinese to their base.

The Island Flags [G/H]. The island is now significantly taller and larger. Both the Hilltop Pavilion [G] and the Temple [H] feature the most infantry-friendly areas of the map, full of hiding places and cover.

The Market [C]. This area now acts more as a counterpoint to the wood yard, featuring a powerful land vehicle and an infantry-friendly close quarters area.

The Pagoda [B]. This is very similar to the original, but featuring a significantly larger pagoda structure and better coverage.

The River Village [A]. This area no longer contains a gas station – instead, it shows the beginnings of a militarization effort from the Chinese.

Bridges, Waterways, and the Pipeline. Some of the original water crossings to the central island have been removed to focus land and armor access to the two bridges and the single water crossing towards the East. The smaller bridge from the Island to the west now also limits water traffic when destroyed, making this bridge key to control the west side of the map.

Waterfall from Battlefield 2′s Dragon Valley

Waterfall from Battlefield 4’s Dragon Valley 2015

The BF2 iconic pipeline has been converted to a subterranean system, meaning there are no massive pipeline traversing the map. There are several reasons for this change, but the major one is draw distance. Running on the pipeline used to be about flanking the enemy, which in the current version, would be almost impossible.

We hope you are excited to see Dragon Valley 2015 firsthand when it releases soon.

See you on the Battlefield!

*REQUIRES BATTLEFIELD 4 FULL GAME ON APPLICABLE PLATFORM. EXCEPT AS EXPRESSLY CREDITED, NO WEAPON, VEHICLE OR GEAR MANUFACTURER IS AFFILIATED WITH OR HAS SPONSORED OR ENDORSED THIS GAME.

Learn more about Dragon Valley 2015, coming to Battlefield 4 for free!

Last year, we asked the Battlefield community which classic map you wanted to be added to Battlefield 4, and your answers pointed us in one direction: Dragon Valley. Now, this map is being re-imagined as Dragon Valley 2015, for release on PS4, Xbox One and PC with the Legacy Operations DLC, free*  for Battlefield 4!

If you played Battlefield 2, you likely remember the map – it was huge, with a massive number of flags, and destructible and repairable bridges. Our goal for this map is to make a great, large vehicle map for Battlefield 4 but at the same time modernize the original where appropriate.

Some things had to change when reimagining the map. Battlefield 2 featured a poor draw distance (how far you can see in the game world) by today’s standards, and the original map was built around those limitations. We tackled this in several ways: first we increased the terrain verticality to closer mimic a real life Chinese river valley – and to give us more terrain occlusion for long distances, especially on the central island. We also added a dynamic cloud layer, which not only adds a welcomed air-to-ground separation in terms of gameplay, but also helps shroud far distances at ground level. This has the added bonus effect of allowing you to have intense aerial firefights above the cloud level, which looks really, really cool in Battlefield 4.

Destructible and repairable bridges, on the other hand, were something we didn’t need to change a ton. They were something we felt had to be part of the map – this tactical element is a big part of what made the original fun – especially in the land armor department. We are happy to say that we will be bringing these bridges back – and they are a ton of fun to use!

Our Conquest setup has more flags than any other Battlefield 4 map in the game, to mimic the layout of old and get that same type of gameplay. It’s also slightly asymmetrical when it comes to vehicle spawns at flags to mimic the Conquest Assault gameplay. We are extra excited to be able to include Rush on this map, which wasn’t available as a game mode in the original. We think Rush combined with dynamic bridges brings something unique to the table!

And yes, you read that right: Battlefield 4 Legacy Operations is coming to PS4, Xbox One and PC. We really wanted to push the envelope with Dragon Valley 2015, and that meant being able to make a bigger level, with a larger scale than anything currently in Battlefield 4. Because of that, we made the decision to focus on the more powerful platforms. This doesn’t mean we’re no longer supporting players on Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3 with critical updates when needed, but we really wanted to try something big for Dragon Valley, and we think that when you play it, you’ll see the difference.

Dragon Valley 2015 will be a part of the free Battlefield 4 Legacy Operations DLC, which will come out alongside the Holiday Update later this year (the DLC and the update are two separate downloads). We’re really excited to share more about this content in the coming weeks.

See you on the Battlefield!

*REQUIRES BATTLEFIELD 4 FULL GAME ON APPLICABLE PLATFORM.

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

So, how do you play in such an environment to get out on top? Here are some tips to give you an edge.

The goal of the Community Map Project was to build a medium-size map with an infantry focus that would maximize tactical destruction (while, at the same time, being an exciting place to play). With your help, we ended up with Operation Outbreak – a lush jungle canyon, where the centerpiece temple and waterfall is ever-present, and destruction takes center stage.

So, how do you play in such an environment to get out on top? Here are some tips to give you an edge.

EMBRACE THE MAZE OF OPPORTUNITY
Operation Outbreak has a lot of paths and hiding places, many of which are completely destructible. The first step to succeed is to take in the surroundings, as the landscape changes drastically during the course of a game. Knowledge of what is destructible and what isn’t, where to hide, and what shortcuts to take to cut someone off is the first step to success. Gaining this knowledge will help you immensely when fighting for the map’s three center points: the Fishing Village, the Ghost Town, and the Temple.

GET TO KNOW THE GHOST TOWN
In the Ghost Town, everything but the water cisterns and the wrecked cars is destructible. With most of the cover being completely destructible at any point, the best tactic is to keep moving – always. No place is truly safe, and there are multiple angles to get attacked from at any point. At the downed helicopter towards the Medical Facility, you can find a unique weapon that can help you take the Ghost Town flag more easily, too – so, check that out.

USE THE BATTLE PICKUP TO KEEP THE TEMPLE
The Temple might look easy to defend, but with all its nooks and hidden passages, it’s hard to maintain dominance over this point (though it’s worth the fight as the Battle Pickup sniper rifle sits conveniently in the middle of the temple). When defending, make sure you cover the two side flanks, as there are several ways to sneak in behind and surprise the defenders. Also, be on the lookout for transport helicopters sweeping in from above and cleaning up the exposed courtyard!

USE THE LEAST EXPECTED ENTRANCE TO TAKE THE FISHING VILLAGE
The Fishing Village is built on stilts, and this creates vertical gameplay that can, at times, seem chaotic. A common tactic to take it over is to flank around the back and attack from the angle least expected. With all the houses on the top deck top being destructible, the little cover left behind by things like refrigerators means you will become very exposed – capture this flag quick and retreat to the other side of the road for an effective defense of this area.

SPAWN BEACONS WILL HELP YOU CAPTURE THE MEDICAL FACILITY
The core reason for the conflict is this Medical Facility and the virus being developed here. This area is wide open, and using vehicles as a means to capture this area is recommended. The use of spawn beacons is also a good tactic to take and keep this flag, with the US spawn close by.

WATCH OUT FOR VEHICLES AT THE PALM OIL PLANTATION
The Palm Oil Plantation is a densely packed area where infantry players can find cover almost anywhere. Getting there is trickier however, and if you are on the US side, you’re going to want to use vehicles like the RHIB or the Transport Helicopter. Those, mixed with a spawn beacon conveniently placed on the outskirts of the area, is a viable tactic to take and keep this flag. As with the Medical Facility, the vicinity to the CH spawn area means you need to watch out for enemy vehicles and infantry coming from that direction.

PRACTICE YOUR JUNGLE STEALTH
Jungle cover spread across the map adds the possibility to play stealthy. When being chased by an enemy, stopping and abruptly going prone in a bush can completely fool your foe. Setting traps is easy once you know the most common footpaths used, meaning claymores, motion sensors and other tools are very effective in the thick of the jungle! Plus, there are rumors of a weapons cache with the ultimate stealth weapon placed somewhere near the Ghost Town…

See you in the jungle!

David Sirland
Producer

Learn about November’s events in Battlefield 4
November is going to give you plenty of excuses to play more Battlefield 4 – especially if you’re looking for new reasons to explore Operation Outbreak, the new map that came free* with the recently released Community Operations DLC. This month, there are three Community Missions: one will land you a Scorpio dog tag, and the others task you with resupplying your team and becoming an expert with the DAO-12. There’s also a double XP weekend, a free* Gold Battlepack, and plenty more to do.

Schedule of Events

Every Friday
#FridayNightBattlefield
Is there any better way to kick off the weekend than with a few matches of Battlefield 4? Every Friday, you can jump online to play against some of the Battlelog moderators, Answers HQ members, and some of the folks from the Battlefield community team. We’ll Tweet out the server details every Friday, so be on the lookout at twitter.com/battlefield

November 3
Gold Battlepack
Want some extra Weapon Accessories or XP Boosts? Log in to claim a free Gold Battlepack on November 3 starting at 9AM PT.

November 5 – November 8
Double XP
Want to rank up faster? From November 5 at 9AM PT until November 8 at 9AM PT, all matches played on Ranked and Official servers will earn you Double XP.

November 11 – November 17
Zodiac Mission: Scorpio
Jump into any Battlefield 4 multiplayer mode and map and score 25 kills with the CZ-3A1 to get the Scorpio Dog Tag. This mission is active between November 11, 2015 9AM PT and November 17, 2015 9AM PT**.

November 20 – November 22
Expert Community Mission: 120 Kills with the DAO-12 – CANCELLED
This community mission has been cancelled. Players will still be able to redeem a Gold Battlepack by logging into Battlefield 4 after November 20, 2015 9AM PT 

November 25 – November 28
Community Mission: 50 Resupplies
Jump into any Battlefield 4 multiplayer mode and map and score 50 resupplies to get a Gold Battlepack. This mission is active between November 25, 2015 9AM PT and November 28, 2015 9AM PT**.

*REQUIRES BATTLEFIELD 4 FULL GAME ON APPLICABLE PLATFORM.

**Be sure to redeem your rewards through Battlelog before the Community Mission is over.

The Operation Outbreak map is rolling out worldwide today with Battlefield 4 Community Operations

It’s time to harvest the fruits of your labor. The Community Map Project led to the creation of the Operation Outbreak map, and it’s rolling out worldwide today with Battlefield 4 Community Operations. Grab the free* DLC from the Origin My Games tab or the PlayStation PS Store or Xbox Marketplace.

The Battlefield 4 Fall Update is available today as well. Check out the Fall Update notes here!

Operation Outbreak has you fighting in the jungle over a Medical Clinic, Temple, Ghost Town, Logging Camp, and Palm Oil Plantation – all of which were created based on feedback and suggestions from the Battlefield 4 community. You helped build the map, and now it’s time for you to blast it apart.

Ready to check out the finale of the Community Map Project? Grab Battlefield 4 Community Operationsand head into the jungle.

Need help downloading/installing Battlefield 4 Community Operations? Check these helpful guides.
PC: http://bit.ly/bf4nopc
Console: http://bit.ly/bf4noconsole

*REQUIRES BATTLEFIELD 4 FULL GAME ON APPLICABLE PLATFORM.

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