Delta Force: Hawk Ops will tide you over until the next Battlefield

This story is part of our Summer Gaming Marathon series.

We’re in a lull between Battlefield games right now. Although EA confirmed that the next Battlefield is in active development, it does not yet have a release window. It’s also been a couple of years since the arrival of Battlefield 2042, which Digital Trends enjoyed, but is a divisive entry in the series overall. If you’re looking for another first-person shooter with similar large-scale action to fill some time during that wait, you’ll want to keep your eye on Delta Force: Hawk Ops.

Delta Force: Hawk Ops is Team Jade and TiMi’s revival of a classic tactical shooter series from NovaLogic. In practice, this franchise’s modern reinterpretation is a melting pot of modern near-future shooters. It has the visceral shooting of previous Delta Force games, multiplayer modes inspired by Battlefield and Escape from Tarkov, and operators with special abilities like XDefiant. It is not a particular standout in any one of those categories, but it offers up a good time as we wait for Battlefield to make a comeback.

The beta for Delta Force features two modes: Havoc Warfare and Hazard Operations. For fans of Battlefield, Havoc Warfare is the mode that you’ll want to check out. It’s a 32v32 mode where one team attacks and tries to capture enemy sectors while the other defends and whittles the opposing team’s forces down. It’s a well-trodden multiplayer shooter mode at this point — for good reason.

Like its peers with similar modes, Havoc Warfare captures the intensity of storming into enemy territory with a lot of other soldiers. It’s chaotic, but smart play and teamwork are key to success. Players are put into a squad of four, who can all revive each other and spawn on each other after death. If I was on the attacking side, I always waited as long as possible for a teammate to come and heal me so we didn’t waste any lives.

Delta Force’s maps aren’t as destructible as those in Battlefield, but they still felt well-designed,