Battlefield 6 is opening its main multiplayer for a limited free trial, giving anyone a full week to stress-test the gunplay, vehicles, and new Season 1 content without paying for the base game.
Battlefield 6 free trial dates, platforms, and access
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Start time | November 25, 4 a.m. PT (12 p.m. UTC) |
| End time | December 2, 4 a.m. PT (12 p.m. UTC) |
| Platforms | PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, Windows PC |
| Focus | Multiplayer only (no single‑player campaign) |
| Access route | Via the free-to-play Battlefield REDSEC client |
| Trial type | Limited slice of the main multiplayer with select maps and modes |
| Progress carryover | All progress during the week carries into the full game on purchase |
Access runs for a strict seven-day window. Once it ends, the multiplayer playlists in the trial lock unless you buy the full Battlefield 6 client.
How to install and launch the Battlefield 6 free trial
| Step | What to do |
|---|---|
| 1. Install REDSEC | Download the free-to-play Battlefield REDSEC client on your platform’s store or from the Battlefield site at ea.com/games/battlefield/redsec. |
| 2. Update to Season 1 | Ensure the game is fully updated so it includes the Season 1 “California Resistance” patch and the free trial hooks. |
| 3. Log in with EA account | Sign in with the same EA account you plan to use for Battlefield 6 to keep rank and unlocks tied together. |
| 4. Select Battlefield 6 trial | From REDSEC’s main menu, switch to the Battlefield 6 multiplayer trial playlists once the window is live. |
On consoles, the trial is surfaced through the REDSEC entry rather than as a separate timed-demo download. On PC, the same rule applies through the EA app, Steam, or the Epic Games Store, as long as REDSEC is installed and patched.
Note: Standard platform requirements still apply. An EA account and an online connection are mandatory, and console online subscriptions may be needed depending on how each platform handles free-to-play access during timed events.
What’s included in the Battlefield 6 free week
The free week is built around a cut-down version of the full multiplayer, but it is still broad enough to show the game’s different pacing styles, from chaotic close-quarters to classic large-scale Conquest.
| Category | Included content |
|---|---|
| Maps | Cairo (often listed as Siege of Cairo), Eastwood, Blackwell Fields |
| Core modes | Conquest, Breakthrough |
| Season 1 mode | Sabotage (limited-time 8v8 objective mode) |
| Close-quarters mode | Team Deathmatch |
| Additional free-trial mode | One extra playlist slot reserved for a rotating or unannounced mode |
| Playlists | Three curated playlists, including at least one more casual multiplayer rotation |
The free lobby setup is built to showcase Season 1’s new content rather than the full catalog of launch maps and modes. That means Eastwood and Blackwell Fields sit alongside Cairo as the constant rotation, while five total modes run across them.
From the player side, the experience behaves like the full game: you join 64-player matches, earn XP, unlock hardware, and progress challenges. The main limitation is the smaller pool of maps and modes.
How progression and REDSEC carryover work
The trial is tightly integrated with Battlefield REDSEC, the free battle royale experience that shares progression systems with the premium multiplayer.
| Progress type | During trial | After purchase |
|---|---|---|
| Career Rank | Earned through standard play in trial playlists | All rank gained is retained in the full Battlefield 6 client |
| Hardware unlocks | Weapons, gadgets, and attachments unlocked as usual | All unlocked hardware remains accessible when you own the game |
| Levels on hardware | Weapon and gadget levels progress while you play | Levels and attachment unlocks stay tied to your account |
| Customization | Skins and cosmetics unlocked via challenges or rewards | All cosmetic unlocks persist into the full game |
| Existing REDSEC progress | Imported into the trial automatically when you log in | Continues forward, shared with full Battlefield 6 and REDSEC |
If you already spend time in REDSEC, you enter the trial with your existing rank, hardware unlocks, and cosmetics. If you decide to buy Battlefield 6 later, nothing from the trial is lost; the client simply expands your access to the rest of the game’s maps and modes.
Season 1 “California Resistance” context
The timing of the free week is framed around the mid-season “California Resistance” update for Season 1. That patch lands ahead of the trial and adds a mix of content that trial players will run into immediately.
| Area | Season 1 additions around the trial window |
|---|---|
| New multiplayer map | Eastwood, an affluent Southern California neighborhood of villas and golf courses turned into a combat zone |
| Existing Season 1 map | Blackwell Fields, a more linear, high-chaos space that shows up heavily in objective and close-quarters modes |
| Limited-time mode | Sabotage, with two rounds of attack/defend play around destructible cargo objectives |
| Weapons | DB-12 shotgun (functional base weapon unlocked via a bonus path) and M357 Trait sidearm |
| Vehicles | Turfpro PTV Royale, a four-seat golf cart used on Eastwood alongside conventional armor |
| Battle Pickups | Rorsch Mk‑2 SMRW railgun and MP‑RMG minigun, found in high-value caches across modes |
| REDSEC addition | Rodeo Gauntlet mission, a tank-focused operation where vehicle kills give triple points |
| Portal | New Sandbox map based on a flat, structure-free version of Siege of Cairo for custom modes |
Even within the limited trial playlist, that larger seasonal backdrop matters: Eastwood and Blackwell Fields both feature Sabotage during its run, and Battle Pickups can appear in supported modes to swing fights in unexpected ways. The golf cart on Eastwood in particular underlines how Season 1 leans into more playful traversal inside otherwise grounded battles.
California Resistance Bonus Path and how trial players interact with it
Alongside the standard Season 1 Battle Pass, the mid-season update adds a standalone “California Resistance Bonus Path” with 11 tiers. It sits next to the Battle Pass rather than replacing it.
| Tier range | Total Bonus Path Points to reach | Key free items | Premium items (Battle Pass required) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1–3 | 10–30 | Player card background, PW7A2 SMG weapon package | Soldier patch, XP boost |
| 4–8 | 40–80 | Weapon sticker, “Cali Cruiser” vehicle skin | Weapon charm, vehicle decal, hardware XP boost, cosmetics |
| 9–11 | 90–110 | DB‑12 shotgun as a functional base weapon at Tier 11 | “Bad Neighbor” soldier skin |
Bonus Path progress is earned via:
- Weekly Challenges that explicitly grant Bonus Path Points
- California Resistance Event Challenges tied to new content like Sabotage and launcher kills
The Bonus Path runs until December 9, overlapping entirely with the free week. That allows trial players to push through some of these tiers during the event, including the DB‑12 unlock if they play enough and complete the right objectives. All Bonus Path unlocks made during the trial persist when upgrading to the full game.
What’s not in the free trial
For scope clarity, several major pieces of Battlefield 6 are outside the free week:
| Not included | Impact during trial |
|---|---|
| Single‑player campaign | Story missions are inaccessible; the trial is focused solely on multiplayer experiences. |
| Full map pool | Only Cairo, Eastwood, and Blackwell Fields are in rotation, not the complete list of launch maps. |
| All multiplayer modes | Only five modes are available; other variants and niche playlists remain exclusive to owners. |
| Permanent access | Once the window closes, multiplayer via the trial shuts off entirely unless the full game is purchased. |
REDSEC as a separate battle royale product remains free and fully playable before, during, and after the week, but the curated Battlefield 6 multiplayer playlists themselves are tied to the trial period.
The end result is a compact but representative cross-section of Battlefield 6 during its first full season. Three very different maps, the core large‑scale and objective modes, and the more chaotic Sabotage and Team Deathmatch all live under a single, time-limited banner — with every unlock made across REDSEC and the trial carrying forward if you decide the full package is worth buying.
