With the end of the Battlefield 5 Open Beta, DICE is now setting out to make a variety of changes to the game prior to the final release in November. The studio recently identified eight key areas which they will be working on based on feedback from the beta. Among those is one important pair of factors; the Battlefield 5 TTK and TTD balancing.
Tweaking the Battlefield 5 TTK and TTD
TTK (Time-to-Kill) and TTD (Time-to-Death) are central factors in any first-person shooter. Developers want to ensure that players have an enjoyable experience, and ideally the TTK and TTD should be balanced to ensure that; players don’t want to die too often, but also don’t want to take too long to get kills. Obviously, these factors are directly opposed, so finding an even balance is usually a major factor for any triple-A shooter. In a recent update, DICE highlighted both TTK and TTD as areas to tweak before the November release; “We’re adjusting automatic weapons to make the Time to Kill and Time to Death as fair and fun as possible.”
After the second Closed Alpha event, DICE also addressed the balancing of TTK and TTD; “as these things are often tightly integrated,” they said; “changing one side risks messing up the other… Overall, a lot of the gameplay elements in the first Closed Alpha were preferred by the community compared to the second. However, going in to the Open Beta, we believe we have a system that will outshine them both.”
Why TTK and TTD Must be Balanced
It seems that the adjustments to TTK and TTD for the Open Beta were certainly an improvement. However, DICE still appears to not be entirely satisfied with the balancing when it comes to automatic weapons. It’s unknown if the studio is only planning to tweak automatic weapons, or other areas as well. However, while the changes made in this area could be fairly minute, the knock-on effect to gameplay can be very significant. Players might not notice a few seconds difference here and there, but over time, the cumulative effects of an imbalanced TTK/TTD ratio can drive fans away from a game. DICE are no doubt aware of this, and certainly seem to be approaching the area with a perfectionist attitude. That can only be a good thing for Battlefield fans.