Transformers: Battlegrounds

The name or term "Battlegrounds" refers to more than one character or idea. For a list of other meanings, see Battlegrounds (disambiguation).

Cyberverse » Toyline Cartoon Home Video Video Game

Transformers: Battlegrounds
Good luck, Commander. We will be watching.
Developer	Coatsink
Publisher	Outright Games Bandai Namco Entertainment (Europe)
Platform	Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC
Release date	October 23, 2020
Ratings	ESRB: RP PEGI: 7+

Transformers: Battlegrounds is a video game by Coatsink, released October 23, 2020. It is the first new Transformers game released for a home console since Activision's previous game development license expired. Described as a "tactical warfare adventure" game, Battlegrounds is based on the Cyberverse franchise, featuring the character designs and voice actors from the accompanying animated series.

Synopsis

Act I

In Central City the Decepticons are attacking. Bumblebee saves a random human. When asked to move the human to safety, Teletraan-X takes them into the sky to Bumblebee's complete confusion. Afterwards, he takes the fight to the Decepticon forces, relying on the human's guidance to navigate the suburban landscape. Along the way, he links up with Windblade, fights Shadow Striker, and rescues Grimlock from a unit of Seekers led by Slipstream. After the trio reunite, they deal with Soundwave and Starscream before heading off to locate Optimus Prime.

Act II

In the desert, Arcee and Wheeljack are in hiding, hoping to delay the Decepticons when Teletraan-X arrives. After complaining about the drone's lack of clarity and bemusement at the new commander, they set out to find Optimus, regrouping with the other Autobots. They find an injured Windblade after battling a group of Deceptions, then team up with her to face Shockwave and a trio of his drones. With Shockwave defeated, Bumblebee and Grimlock arrive.

Featured characters

(Numbers indicate order of appearance.)

Autobots	Decepticons	Others
Optimus Prime (Jake Foushee) Bumblebee (Jeremy Levy) Arcee (Jaime Lamchick) Grimlock (Ryan Andes) Windblade (Jessica DiGiovanni) Wheeljack (Billy Bob Thompson)	Megatron (Marc Thompson) Soundwave (Marc Swint) Shockwave (Ryan Andes) Shadow Striker (Deanna McGovern) Hyperdrive (Kellen Goff) Offroad (Marc Swint) Dead End Battletrap Blackjack Roadtrap Seekers Starscream (Billy Bob Thompson) Slipstream (Erin Yvette) Acid Storm (Jaime Lamchick) Thundercracker Nova Storm Thrust Ramjet Dirge	Teletraan-X (Tony Daniels) You

Quotes

"After countless cycles, it's mine."
"Enough."
"What? The Allspark - it SPEAKS!"
"No, Megatron. I am Optimus Prime."

— Megatron's supposed talk with the Allspark prior to Optimus Prime revealing himself.

Gameplay

Downloadable content

Several pieces of downloadable content were released for Battlegrounds:

• A "Nemesis Prime and Goldfire Bumblebee" pack was available only as a pre-order bonus for the game. This pack adds skins based on Nemesis Prime and Goldfire for Optimus and Bumblebee respectively.
• Four different packs containing new skins for each of the six Autobots were released at launch, available individually or as part of the Deluxe Edition. These include the "Energon Autobot Skin Pack", the "Gold Autobot Skin Pack", the "Battle Autobot Skin Pack", and the "Neon Autobot Skin Pack".
• A "Cube Arcade Mode Add-on" was released at launch and can only be obtained as part of the Deluxe Edition. This adds a Cube game type to the Arcade mode, allowing up to two players to compete against one another in the sport.
• A full expansion, "Shattered Spacebridge", was released on February 26, 2021. The expansion adds a new mini campaign in which the Autobots are trapped in a spacebridge hub, forcing them to travel the multiverse and win randomly-generated encounters to recover the pieces of their own spacebridge and return home.

Notes

Continuity notes

• Battlegrounds is set in an alternate version of the Cyberverse cartoon continuity; although it picks up where "Eruption" left off, it is otherwise largely irreconcilable with the events of that show's second season. A conversation between Arcee and Wheeljack suggests that this game takes place in one of the many alternate universes that the Cyberverse cartoon repeatedly alluded to over the course of its second and third seasons.

Transformers references

• Windblade namedrops Ratchet during her first transmission to Bumblebee.
• The Decepticon Scout model is based off the original Generation 1 Dead End toy whereas the Decepticon Bruiser model is based off the Combinder Wars Offroad toy. We are reaching the return of Combiner Wars redeco frenzies, folks.

• Ramjet and Dirge are depicted as redecos of the male Seeker design, rather than their distinct conehead designs used in the show itself.
• Dead End is one of three individuals whose design is a recolor of the Decepticon Scouts, rather than his Combiner Wars-inspired design from the cartoon.
  • The other two Scout recolors are new versions of Generation 1 Micromasters Blackjack and Hyperdrive.
• Of the three indiviuals whose design is a recolor of the Decepticon Brusiers, Offroad retains his G1 namesake's color scheme.
  • The other two Bruiser are new versions of Roadtrap from Power of the Primes and classic G1 character Battletrap.

Other notes

• None of the Autobots understand why Teletraan-X kidnapped a human to be their commander. Somehow, the Decepticons never notice them despite the amount of Seekers fought during the game.
• All the named Seekers outside of Skywarp appear in the game, despite the ending taking place on Cybertron where she is stationed.
• How did no one notice a space bridge in the middle of central city?