Four years on from Battlefield 2042, EA has finally showcased a sliver of gameplay from its next Battlefield title. Not officially Battlefield 6 just yet but certainly the next mainline release, the game is now in the pre-alpha stage and is welcoming public playtesters in the coming months.

That public playtesting loop will take place under 'Battlefield Labs', a new program that aims to bring players into the development process much earlier than previous Battlefield titles. It sounds much like an early access program, but it remains quite closed off for now - you have to sign up to be in with a chance of playing early.

"Battlefield Labs is a place for us to test concepts and experiences we’re excited about with you, our players. We want our community to play a key role in the future of Battlefield and this is an opportunity for many of you to do just that.

Even in pre-alpha, we are proud of where the game is at. We tirelessly playtest, but your feedback will supercharge our development as we strive to hit that perfect note between form, function, and feel.

This is an unprecedented moment for Battlefield."

The good news is that if you do get in, you can do your early playtesting on Xbox. EA has announced that Battlefield Labs will be available on Xbox Series X|S as well and PS5 and PC, and you'll need at least Xbox Game Pass Core to get stuck in on the Microsoft console platform.

We don't have any timing details on this testing program yet, but EA has previously said that BF6 community testing will start in early 2025, so we reckon it'll be right around the corner after today's announcement. Battlefield Labs is set to expand over time to "tens of thousands" of players, with testers getting to try out "Conquest and Breakthrough, the heart and soul of our all-out warfare experience".

Finally, as we highlighted in the heading, this introduction to BF Labs does contain a tiny slice of actual gameplay from the next Battlefield title. It's all looking very Battlefield 3-esque, and you can check it for yourself in the short clip below.

Battlefield fans, what do we think? Talk to us about this early look at BF6 & Labs down below.

[source ea.com]