Battlefield REDSEC launches alongside Battlefield 6 Season 1 and includes Battle Royale, Challenge and Portal modes — here’s everything you need to know
Blog Andrew Joseph 29 Oct , 2025 0
free games Battlefield 6 The battle royale game mode has officially arrived in the form of Battlefield REDSEC – but it might not be quite what you thought.
EA and Battlefield Studios Surprise launch They just had months of experience playing the Battlefield battle royale experience on PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X and S rumor and leakage Finally, there's a standalone game that's free for players who and don't own Battlefield 6. Its name, short for “Redacted Sector,” previews an updated version of the popular multiplayer game that bundles two additional modes: Gauntlet and Portal. REDSEC's capabilities exceed fan expectations, and all of them are tightly integrated into the Battlefield 6 experience under a unified framework.
Battle Royale
Battle Royale is undoubtedly the headliner here, offering 100-player matches that combine classic Battle Royale gameplay with modes from Battlefield 6. In the first trailer, grunts can be seen parachuting into explosive firefights, revealing how BF Studios is incorporating familiar elements into the Battlefield universe, while 2Pac and Dr. Dre's California Love plays in the background.
Finding rare loot, hoarding armor plates, mastering points of interest large and small, and completing missions with friends are core parts of many battle royale experiences, and each is also necessary to survive in Battlegrounds. It's more like Warzone than Fortnite, but REDSEC has a few features that make it stand out.
Lindenberg, a location in Southern California that EA and BF Studios call “the largest battle map ever created,” serves as the backdrop for every game. With the trailer highlighting crumbling buildings, REDSEC aims to convince players that it can build on the foundation of the battle royale game without sacrificing what many people love about the series: tactical destruction.
Map-altering vehicles are the backbone of any true Battlefield experience, and the same goes for the Battlefield 6 battle royale game, which features everything from tanks to assault ships to golf carts. With the ever-present, shrinking ring of fire (fans may remember the ring of fire from Battlefield V: Firestorm) forcing the team to flee the frying pan, spotting the M1 Abrams could mean the difference between victory and succumbing to the flames. There will be plenty of less threatening vehicles to be found around the new battle royale map, but those who want to pilot a heavily armored tank will first need to complete missions, earn key card rewards, and then use it to unlock specific garages.
Battlefield 6 and REDSEC will co-exist, so those who already enjoy the former can expect to find familiar vehicles, guns, and gadgets in the latter – in addition to a few tweaks. Class upgrades are just one factor to consider and provide Assault, Engineer, Support and Recon players with an upgrade direction to work towards. For example, by gaining enough experience points as a Scout, you'll gain an enhanced drone's bomb-dropping ability. Custom loadouts can also be built and used, and players can earn them by completing missions or betting on the slightly riskier option of waiting for limited global drop events.
Battlefield 6 players have been impatiently waiting for a battle royale update for months. Now that REDSEC has finally thrown Battlefield into the blender of battle royale games, fans should know that's not the only new experience coming out today.
challenge
If you need a break from battle royale, Gauntlet is a separate mode that's also part of today's new standalone free-to-play experience. While the Battle Royale games in Battlefield might see squads searching for loot between gunfights in longer matches, Challenge is a relatively short, elimination-oriented experience.
Instead of 100 players, Lindenberg's tournament featured only 32 players (eight teams of four players each). BF Studios says Gauntlet is structured as a tournament, with teams tasked with completing fast-paced turn-based missions.
Players have five minutes to complete each round's objectives, and Gauntlet keeps everyone on their toes by rotating missions and locations. As goals and circumstances change, teamwork will determine which team emerges victorious.
Portal
Battlefield fans have been familiar with Portal since its inception. Starting in Battlefield 2042. Although the community has already started using the Battlefield 6 portal Create bizarre game modes and recreate fan-favorite mapsthe REDSEC Portal opens a door to new possibilities.
REDSEC promises unlimited game creation tools and brings them to Lindenburg's large play area. It gives fans more room to use their imaginations, and one example we saw included an aerial obstacle course complete with golf carts, colorful shipping containers and narrow pathways.
REDSEC Portal looks more like Grand Theft Auto Online than Battlefield, but that seems to be what EA and BF Studios are aiming for. Two official portal maps will be available at launch, with more to come.
How does Battlefield 6 work with REDSEC?
Battlefield 6's base experience is modeled after Call of Duty, bundling REDSEC so players can access it from a main menu. Those who don't have the recently released Battlefield game can still download REDSEC without issue and at no additional cost, but there are some differences for those who have the full, premium experience and those who don't.
coincident with Season 1 launched today is Battlefield 6's battle pass system that shares unlock rewards and XP progress between the base game and its REDSEC counterpart. While some unique challenges and events will be associated with each experience, and some Battlefield 6 vehicle skins won't appear in some REDSEC experiences, EA says there are “no plans” to roll out unlockables exclusive to REDSEC.
Portals are where things get slightly more complicated. Creative fans who own Battlefield 6 can enjoy completely unrestricted access to REDSEC's new portal tool, giving them access to all the new standalone experiences Lindenberg has to offer. However, those without the base game will not be able to access any Battlefield 6-exclusive content, such as maps, when making a portal. These restrictions don't stop at the creation of user-generated community content hubs, either, as EA clarified that REDSEC-exclusive players will not be able to create or play any content using Battlefield 6 assets.
Battlefield REDSEC isn't just a battle royale game, it's an entirely different beast. This three-pillar standalone experience will change as seasonal updates continue to roll out, and if the weeks since Battlefield 6's release are any indication, that experience may change quickly as community feedback pours in.
Battlefield 6 releases on October 10 for PC, PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X | Battlefield 6 is proving to be a big moment for the series, but the real test of its potential began with REDSEC and Season 1. While we wait to see how EA and BF Studios plan to maintain another major addition to the Battlefield universe, you can read All changes introduced in season one. You can also learn about How Engineer players can make the most of their repair toolsalso Multiplayer skins that ignite the community.
Michael Cripe is a freelance writer for IGN. He is known for his work on websites such as The Pitch, The Escapist and OnlySP. Be sure to follow him on Bluesky (@mikecripe.bsky.social) and Twitter (@MikeCripe).