THE FINALS is notorious for its multi-team gameplay, where teams fight over cashboxes and cashout stations to earn as much cash as possible. But season six is slightly different, as it focuses on other game modes—namely, those that feature two teams of five contestants.
Today, THE FINALS kicked off its public season six preview that I got to try out early on March 13. Right off the bat, the main thing this season is the return of Team Deathmatch as a permanent mode. TDM is here to stay and is now available on every map, including Fortune Stadium, Kyoto, and Seoul.
When TDM was available as a limited-time mode during season five, it quickly became one of my most-played game modes in THE FINALS. If I wanted to play something more traditional, I’d play World Tour, but to relax and run around, TDM was the way to go. After TDM left, I had to replace my “relaxing” mode with something else: Power Shift. Power Shift also got some love this season, expanding to Bernal and the updated Las Vegas Stadium.
Power Shift, alongside other secondary modes like Terminal Attack and Quick Cash, often ends up on the back lines when it comes to the core THE FINALS experience. Unless you really enjoy one of these modes, there’s usually no reason to queue them when you can play World Tour, as it also offers additional rewards. In season six, all Quickplay modes get a separate progression track with badges, similar to World Tour.
To dominate the updated modes, there are new weapons that all feel like worthy additions to each build’s arsenal. A full team of miniguns in a game of TDM leaves almost no building standing and is just silly to look at (but not as fun to play against). My favorite is the ARN-220 assault rifle that has dual mags, making reloading incredibly fast. Light recoil and high range make it perfect for chipping away at enemies’ health when you don’t want to play up close with a submachine gun. All the additions come alongside multiple other improvements, like a separate outfit system, new customization options, and practice range upgrades.
Despite season six’s core gameplay additions largely affecting five-vs-five modes, season six lays the groundwork for something more spectacular—its esports ecosystem. While many details are still unknown, Embark Studios aims to integrate tools for organizing, casting, and spectating matches and connect the real competition with the in-game world through billboards, commentator discussions, and more.
THE FINALS has always been about the thrill of the competition, and in 2025, starting with season six, the game slowly but surely is taking the show to the next level.
Published: Mar 19, 2025 5:03 PM UTC