On 15 September Battlefield 6 started Tidal Strike, the final phase of Season 4, and Update 1.4.3.0 went live with it. It brings proximity voice chat in the REDSEC battle royale, the Deep Six event with a new knife, the Phantom Program operation and a big batch of balance changes. EA also opened a free trial: until 22 September you can play Battlefield 6 without buying it.
Free until 22 September: what you get
- Maps. Tsuru Reef, Battlefield 6's biggest map, an island chain with bungalows, cliffs and naval combat, plus the returning Wake Island with an aircraft carrier offshore.
- Modes. Three to choose from, including classic Conquest with tanks, jets and helicopters.
- What you need. The free Battlefield REDSEC installed with all updates, and an EA account. The trial can be played once per account, and EA says the trial time may change.
Update 1.4.3.0 became available at 8:00 UTC, and Tidal Strike content switched on at 12:00 UTC. There is no new map in this phase: Tidal Strike wraps up the season with events, REDSEC changes and balance work.
Proximity chat in REDSEC
This is the headline feature for the battle royale. Who you hear depends on where they stand: voices come from their direction, walls muffle them, indoor spaces change the sound, and being in a vehicle affects it too. You can hear up to four players at once, and extra speakers are muted until a slot frees up. You can see who is talking and mute, report or block them from the scoreboard. Solo players and parties default to regular game voice chat.
DICE is upfront that this is a test. During the testing period proximity chat may be switched on and off while the studio tunes range, clarity and moderation tools.
Deep Six, the Diver's Knife and the Phantom Program
- Deep Six. A collection event from 15 September to 12 October across Battlefield 6 and REDSEC. Complete contracts and gather intel devices for Weapon Packages and cosmetics.
- Diver's Knife. Modelled on the Royal Navy dive knife, it is the top reward for finishing the whole event.
- Phantom Program. A limited-time REDSEC operation: investigate Fort Lyndon and piece together an access code that can turn a match.
Balance changes
- MANPADs versus pilots. The SLM-93A and 9K38 Igla no longer give pilots a directional indicator for the lock-on. Pilots now have to break off earlier or trace the missile trail to find the shooter.
- Interdictor. Minimum damage up from 62 to 80, limbs now take the same as the chest, and the 150-damage sweet spot is gone. In REDSEC it deals 100 to armor at any range.
- RCB90 Patrol Boat. Health up from 800 to 1000, with more responsive steering.
- AH-6 Little Bird. The minigun overheats about 33% faster, and its damage to RCB90s and ATPs is cut by half.
- Carrier Strike. Out-of-bounds volumes on the carrier deck to cut spawn camping, and jets no longer spawn on a carrier once it is breached.
- Tsuru Reef Breakthrough. Every sector is bigger, with boats and more flanking routes.
Every reticle redrawn
1.4.3.0 overhauls reticles on all optics, launchers and gadgets: crisper lines, a more pronounced glow, better-sized center dots and clearer readability against any background. There is also a new option to turn off Picture-in-Picture zoom on optics, so magnification comes only from field of view. On PS5 some scopes still show overly thick black borders, and DICE plans to fix that in Update 1.4.3.5 in a few weeks.
Sources
The free trial dates and terms, the Tsuru Reef and Wake Island maps and the Phantom Program description come from EA's announcements in Battlefield 6's Steam news on 15 September 2026. Update and content times, proximity chat, the Deep Six event, the Diver's Knife, balance changes to MANPADs, the Interdictor, RCB90 and AH-6, the Carrier Strike and Tsuru Reef changes, the reticle overhaul and the PS5 border bug come from the official Update 1.4.3.0 notes DICE posted on Steam on 14 September 2026. That Tidal Strike closes Season 4 without a new map comes from the season roadmap on EA's site. The video is the official Season 4 gameplay trailer from the Battlefield channel, and the images come from the patch notes and the game's Steam page.
