Battlefield 6 Launches Season 4 on Aug. 18 With Top Gun Event and F-14 Tomcat

Q: Why did a crucial promotional XP boost code expire weeks before this massive Top Gun crossover even hits servers?

It appears the XP code expired early because it was tied to Season 4’s initial rollout, not the later Top Gun phase. EA’s own Season 4 roadmap split the season into stages: Phase 1 launched the broader naval update in July, while the Top Gun crossover was scheduled for August 18. The free 60-minute Hardware XP Boost code, **WELCOMES4**, was circulated on July 20 and reported as redeemable only through **August 4**. That timing lines up with a short-lived launch promotion meant to drive early engagement around Season 4’s opening week, including Tsuru Reef and the naval warfare update. There is no indication from DICE or EA that the boost was specifically marketed as a Top Gun bonus. In fact, Battlefield Bulletin’s post said players could use it to level Season 4 weapons “tomorrow,” reinforcing that it was an early-season promo rather than a crossover-day reward. This kind of mismatch is common in live-service games: publishers often run brief redemption windows to create urgency, even when the season’s headline content arrives later in phases. So the code likely expired weeks before the crossover simply because EA treated it as a **Season 4 launch incentive**, not as part of the August Top Gun event itself. If DICE wants to align promotions more clearly with the crossover, it would need to issue a separate code closer to August 18.

3 articles · Updated · GamingBolt · Aug 14

Aug. 18 marks the start of Battlefield 6 Season 4 on Xbox Series X/S, PS5 and PC, led by what DICE calls its biggest collaboration yet with Top Gun.
Top Gun: Maverick characters Rooster, Bob and Warlock join the event, while the F-14 Tomcat and new F-74A Seacat headline the aviation-themed update.
Kao Strike arrives as a new map alongside Fighter Sweep in RedSec's Gauntlet mode and Carrier Strike, billed as a Top Gun version of Carrier Assault.
Season 4 also extends beyond the crossover with Tsuru Reef, the return of Wake Island, naval mechanics, new weapons and Spectator Mode.