really pisses me off they cancelled support for swbf2 just to release an incomplete game and throw it under the bus also
Pretty much, I still refuse to play the game on that fact alone. Petty? Sure. Justified? Absolutely.
They cancelled D-Day and the Eastern Front for BFV for a game that didn’t even launch with a leaderboard
+ they made the extraction mode that no one even remembers anymore because it was worse than their br :D
@@Theofiilus2978 If only we can tell those who want BR to fuck off. Resources that go into BR could be used to develop the main modes.
@@mobiusraptor7 Why i feel like the ones who wants to add br or extraction shooters are only the executives? In Battlefield they literally have seen like those parents who are trying really hard to look cool to their teenage kids by doing bunch of forced cringe stuff.
will say i never expected BF2042's live service to go this long
only for clout. they realized they can't shred any remaining trust with the community for the next game so they were willing to plop a skeleton crew on it to pump out the remaining barebones content.
if they didnt they wouldnt have sold many more battlefield games. they had no choice because of how utterly fucked the game was/is.
They had to, they had to release all the promised content even if it was bad, otherwise they'd have been sued into oblivion for false advertising
Battlefield 2042 is absolutely phenomenal right now! The game is in the best state it's ever been, and the seamless crossplay has turned it into a masterpiece. The community is thriving like never before, and every match is packed with players across all platforms. The devs have outdone themselves, delivering an unparalleled gaming experience. It's a must-play for any FPS fan!
@@KA-vs7nlI get your point, but I think the live service is really about keeping the community engaged and the game fresh. The regular updates and new content show the devs' dedication to improving Battlefield 2042. Personally, I really like it and appreciate their hard work and commitment.
>stealth bomber
>look inside
>easy to spot
>stealth bomber
>look up
>there it is
>has no countermeasures
>gets 1 shotted by a wildcat
@@BourbonBandit- It has counter measures but you have to equip them. Also just fly cautiously. Targeting the AA to stop it from functioning properly
@@saintjiubtheeradicator I think it got updated since release. I'm pretty sure at launch it had no flares, idk, I dont play 2042 anymore
@@BourbonBandit-it has flares but you need to get like 480 kills to unlock it
It sucks this is the third time a Battlefield game has ended with it hinting at a 2143 when its not going to happen.
@@poymannyng1845I think one of them might be BF4 since the Last Stand DLC had some futuristic stuff
@@kayagorzan That tease was just mean because I think it showed equipment from the game being present or hinted at being prototyped... just for nothing to be made...
I dread them having the Titan Clash and how they'd handle the mechs...
@poymannyng1845
Battlefield 3&4. 3 had a futuristic drone as an Easter Egg and 4 had the whole Last Stand DLC
Oh great now the "bro trust me its a great game now especially with friends bro" guys are gonna evolve into the
"bro this game was underrated best battlefield" guys when the next dumpster fire comes out
Yeah no I always say how the game is shit, but the internet no matter what always behaves with the “Old good, New Bad” mind set
Can't wait for the Jackfrags video "this game was underrated..." a year from now
I swear, there are always those people. 6 years from now somebody will be saying BF2042 was the golden age of Battlefield.
@@cabnbeeschurgr6440Jackfrags has been doing that for years. Don't know how people watch his boring slop
@@negative6442people just like consistency, even if it’s consistent slop and garbage lmao
All the soldier designs look so silly in 2142. I really miss Battlefield 4.
They wanted the cosmetic marketplace of popular shooter games like CoD and Fortnite. It makes no sense though for Battlefield which is meant to be more grounded. I don't want to see Santa Claus flying around the map.
@@foxbat203 Exactly! I wouldn't mind some customization like in Battlebit, but a lot of the cosmetics in modern shooters makes team identification not only more difficult but they are also quite distracting.
No, 2142 was fucking awesome. 2042 sucks. 2142 came right after battlefield 2 i think. Both of those were top 5 for me
They needed customization like bf5 or call of duty ghosts for the most part. Realistic cosmetics that followed the setting and tone of the game
From launch it was clear that the team at DICE didn’t understand what players liked from BF. This always felt like a dumbed down MW and the specialists were a mistake. Portal barely got updated and it feels like the combined arms aspect was heavily neutered for the more Infantry focused gameplay. I dont really have hope for the next BF game. DICE and EA have an uphill battle especially after shutting down support for Battlefront 2 and BF5 for this only to get the same treatment.
Actually, they got rid of more than what they added to portal tbh and their trailers for them are just lies now cause alot of those maps shown no longer allowing flying vehicles
Yeah, the game stumbled so much during its life cycle and somehow went back on almost all improvements made in previous Battlefield games. No BF4's big destruction events, no Hardline's well thought out new modes, no BF1's atmosphere or behemoths, no BFV's movement mechanics or fortifications. Just a pretty barebones Battlefield with maps and modes that are all over the place.
The only good new addition are really the bots. It's great to have something to fill empty slots in servers or have some live practice with vehicles against something that acts like players. Or just have a chill environment to grind something in and the game can still be playable after the players have abandoned it. It just had to happen to the weakest Battlefield that I don't see much reason to go back to.
it werent the BF dice devs that made 2042. They all left at BF1 and BF5. This was rookies doing some corporate greed commands.
@@falcoon_f_zero9450 Wish Battlefield 1 had bots. Got it SUPER late in the cycle and all the cool DLC maps and operations are dead.
>Be EA
Eastern Front in BF5 -> more 💴
>release Scraped Battle Royale that was recycled into a Battlefield Game
Earns LESS Money
For a company that loves to make money they really go the nonsensical and self destructive way to do it.
Battlefront 2 is such a gem; it did not deserve to be shoved to the side for this. 😭
@@AUDIEtheONE Imagine The D-Day and Eastern Front content we could have. I can't belive they cancelled it for this unfinished mess.
@@randodox8375 it would've been awesome. T-34/76 and IS-2, mosins, fighting in the Reichstag...man, what could've been
The problems of 2042 were so deeply rooted in the core of the game that there was no recovering.
In the end, it was just a poor asset flip with an Overwatch paint job that no one wanted.
The trailer showed a very different game from what was given
Exactly this. For something like cyberpunk the good bits and potential were there, for this game the very purpose of its existence sucked ass. You can fix things mechanically, but you can't fix what's fundamentally wrong with your game.
Dude, yes. I remember me n my die hard BF friends were so hyped cause originally it was only trailers but as soon as I saw gameplay n played the beta I knew nothing from what I loved in earlier battlefields was in this game. Was an obvious cash grab to pull in cod and battle royal players
“ There will be a bf2 update, Ea told me” - Zanny, Arkham Asylum patient
1:20 When your inner Hispanic breaks loose from the shackles of English-speaking UA-cam
@@cabnbeeschurgr6440 If you grew up around Hispanic people or learned Spanish at a young age, you're more likely to pronounce things phonetically accurate. Otherwise, you'd be forcing it, and nobody likes that.
@@Nazrat84I lost a lot of my Spanish-speaking ability but I still do that
I'll give 2042 this:
The cosmetics didn't get too out of hand and stayed on theme. Some of them are a smidge too flashy for my taste, but they are believable.
COD just went out of control on that front with skins such as:
Nikki Minaj
Snoop Dogg
Teletubbies/Sesame Street parody skins
8 bit Task Force 141
A Brain in a jar
Bad Gundam cosplay skins
As a gundam fan that shit hurt my soul. At least the 2042 people mostly looked like weird soldiers, but man our standards are in the shitter for immersion
@@cabnbeeschurgr6440 not all immersion requires realism. That said, the specialists should have been singleplayer campaign characters instead. And yes, this game should've had a singleplayer campaign in the first place
@@timur5219 but immersion does require consistency. Bf2042 and cod have none.
Didnt they add a santa claus skin a while back? or better yet a skin that looked like sheriff woodie?
I still find it bittersweet that BFV and BF2 were both sacrificed for 2042, both of which could have lasted years longer than they did.
To call 2042 a dumpster fire would be an insult to dumpster fires.
At least dumpster fires are useful because they give homeless people warmth 😂
making a realistic urban warfare map in a game where everyone run jumps around is a bit insane. This would work in a slower paced game like bf2 or arma but not this mess.
We need to stop expecting / hoping developers fix / enhance their game AFTER it releases, especially when it releases in such a poor state.
I remember when Bethesda was getting sued for doing exactly that. Now it's industry norm
that would require the masses to be smart with their money and not buy every piece of shit they slap on those idiots foreheads. they keep buying EA keeps pumping
The saddest part is like you said "all the right decisions at the wrong time". Something tells me next bf won’t have QOL improvements and balance changes that 2042 had
This game may have been made by DICE, but it was made *for* EA.
I don't think Battlefield needs a sequel until DICE can either (A) get some courage and tell EA to "f*** off," and let them make a Battlefield game they wanna make, or (B) have a radical reorganization that may be them seperating from EA. I wouldn't care if Battlefield games started coming out every 5+ years, or have BF4 (or even BF3) graphics, if it meant we'd get a great game overall.
Would any of this matter anyway? Like, didn't most of the OG DICE team behind BF1 and BF4, etc already leave during/after BFV?
@@PoisoningShadow671 Doesn't mean there aren't a bunch of people at DICE (or DICE LA) who wanna make a good game.
I'll take a guess that many of them probably want to make a Battlefield game they want to play in their free time, and take pride in the fact that they made it. I'd bet they wanna make a Battlefield game people will enjoy for this generation of PCs and consoles. Something to prove that the old DICE (now Embark Studios) isn't the end for good games from this studio.
It doesn't have to be a Battlefield game if it's the passion of many there, but I doubt many of the people there now are there because they wanted to make a Battlefront 3 or Mirror's Edge (Catalyst) sequel. Heck, if people there feel they wanna make a Medal of Honor resurrection or brand new IP, then I'll give it a shot if they're truly passionate about it. (And not "passionate" like some people are who play live-service games because there is always an objective to chase.)
precisely. a problem is that theyre making a game theyre told to make, not a game they want to play themselves for fun (I heard a while ago that even the devs chose to play older battlefield games rather than 2042).
And games are best when theyre made by devs who want to play the game (Like Manor Lords, made by one guy who wanted a game like Manor Lords so he made it. Or Battlebit, made by three guys. Or maybe the Galactic Contention mod for Squad, making it a star wars game)
@@crus1118Ah, but you see, as an EA executive, these games don’t have the omega statistics that cause the super stocks to begin rising ultra high, so we must now fire, lay off, and shutdown people and studios to fund infinite growth by converting everything into a live service game.
I hope to see you play our live service FIFA x Battlefield game and dump $50,000 on skins and micro-transactions.
Oh, I almost forgot! We’ll be sure to fire our entire bug-testing and play-testing divisions and then blame the player base and the dev team when bugs and glitches inevitably occur.
I feel like Battlefield won't ever be good again unless EA pulls DICE from the franchise.
Give it to Ripple Effect. Give it to Criterion. Anyone can make a better Battlefield than DICE nowadays
This whole video should be shortened to: "play battlefield 1"
Yes ( me responding while I play battlefield 1 on my steam deck outside)
It's fun and all but I swear I always get the team that is mostly new EA play users, thene other team is level 150s
Me still playing bf1 and tf2 while this shit has finally been ended fuck yeah.
Ps2 battlefront or dice/battlefront? I personally play ps2 versions to this day over the abominations that where released recently but there both better then this shit lol
@@highoffgunpowder8208 I persoanlly find matches on cape helles, argonne forest and fort de vaux. I live in southern europe and play at weekends around midnight.
I hate the idea of "events." they really dont do anything or add anything but give the illusion of new or more content.
2016: battlefield 1 launches to an absolute blow out. Slamming cod Into the ground by the neck and absolutely dominating
2018: battlefield 5 launches to absolute disaster and horrendous PR fuckery. The game was marred in controversy from the start. But in the end, it was to some degree, salvaged and ended off being a pretty enjoyable game given everything that happened.
2021: battlefield 2042 launches off the heels of the craziest hype train ever only to be the most broken buggy disaster of a game, borderline unplayable at the best of times. The game died incredibly fast and even now, 3 years later and numerous updates, the game, though fun, will never shake off the stink of the abysmal launch Soo bad it actually made battlefield 5 look like a masterpiece by comparison.
What makes battlefield 2042 worse is the fact that this game was SUPPOSED to be a return to form, AND in some way, an apology for the tremendous fuck up that was battlefield 5. 2042 was supposed to be dice going "we're sorry that the last game was a stinking pile of shit, here's this new game that's actually good" but it wasn't. It was just doubling down on disappointed and broken promises.
Here we are, 3 years after launch and 5 years after battlefield 5's launch and what do we have?
I mean we don't even have any information on the next game and it's been almost a full 3 years (it's really only been like 2 and a half years but you know what I mean.) battlefield as a franchise is, for lack of a better term, dead. It sucks, I'm hoping we get SOMETHING regarding future titles but I'm not holding my breath at this point.
While not officially confirmed by EA themselves we know that the next title is set in the 2030s with a big emphasis on next gen destruction and Drones with the NATO going up against a PMC. But everything can change since if you look at the files in this game you can see stuff that suggested the original time periods for 2042 was actually set in 2035
@@thecosmonaut4221Another thing is that the next BF is going to be a "live service". Game has not been revealed but this alone means its already dead.
Fanbases need to learn to gatekeep more. There are fanbases who tell you yhat if you dont like how things are, they tell you fuck off and play something else.
@@thecosmonaut4221 I really wish we'd get a 2142 remaster or something. I never got to play the game, but I remember watching gameplay for it years ago and it looked really fun. Shame it's one of the lesser favored games by the fandom
I’m just hoping they make it a gritty, immersive and somewhat relatable atmosphere that takes the games ‘war’ theme seriously.
But we all know that’s just how it is sometimes.
I’m seething that we didn’t get a 2142 season as a send off even though I stopped around season 3
@@T0asty- I must’ve Miss understood the video thought he said it was some limited events that had 2142 themed stuff
@@Insanebeast123Yeah, the last season is geared towards 2142 but not really. Some lore talking about how the PAC and reformed EU started out and how they’re fighting over the new map. A bunch of PAC inspired skins for specialists and barely any EU ones and some PAC skins for vehicles that give the 2042 vehicles the green and tan paint job from 2142. Other than that, not much 2142 stuff
I'm glad. I don't want 2142 to be dragged through the mudd by appearing in this dumpster fire
I would ask the next game be 2143, but I know they would fuck it up so I won't bother.
DICE: "Hey, Battlefield fans! We have this exciting new Battlefield. 2143! Everyone loved the old one so this is a love letter to those fans. However the game is completely broken at launch and barely holds together. 70% of the guns are ported from BF2042 and we've used most of the development time on wacky skins and a half assed extraction mode that's all the hype these days. Oh what? You want walkers in the game? We know they were in the trailers but our team couldn't get them working because technical limitations. Please support us by buying some 30$ skin bundles at the store and in 2 years we might add them in on the final season of the game before we abandon it."
I would love to see that 2 hour review of this games lifespan from you, that would be some trip.
It’s crazy to see that it lasted this long, let alone putting in a narrative to tie in 2142. After the nuking of a dedicated single player campaign and disastrous launch, this really is a testament to what’s left of the development team to make something out of this game.
Lastly, I worry for the next Battlefield game, since it has been confirmed from that 4chan leak a year ago that they are dead set on keeping specialists, along with making bigger maps with the inclusion of a “Battlefield universe”.
You say that Haven favors defenders, but my team always refuses to stay near to point so they always get capped within 5 min of retreating.
Despite the shit launch, its quiet surprising they did get past year 1 and let out 3 extra unexpected seasons. As a bf3 vet I still do find 2042 to be fun, just kept back by its downfalls and lack of care
i will never purchase another battlefield ever these "new" devs are soo useless its not the same people back in the day
@@sussyman9034
It's the devs. They fucked over the gamr again and again, both e
with the low amount of post launch content, the shitty lost lainch maps and their horrible balance practices.
With DICE at the helm, Battlefield will never be good again.
All i know is a chunk of battlefield devs went and made The Finals and that shit fucking rocks
Theres just something about the lightning, textures and overall presentation that makes this game look like a 2010 free to play shooter. Unbelievable how BF3 and BF4 look wsy better
I haven't touched this game for months, been playing gems like BF4, XDEFIANT, INSURGENCY SANDSTORM, ACE COMBAT 7, and Mudrunner on my PS5.
Wowbro thats so relevant that you've found other things to do with your time like mudrunnet
Ahh yes. Games I have to force myself to play to get my money's worth 😂
Insurgency one of the most slept on fps games period! Cannot wait until they release a new title made on new console engines my god!
@@allpraisewebb1142 they won't, embracer group owns its souk now it prolly won't last very long sadly.
Just found your channel through this video. Where have you been all these years? I’ve been missing actual battlefield franchise youtubing ever since the ogs left for call of duty
Big props for playing BO3 custom zombies
I played battlefield 2042 once. And then I uninstalled it and went back to Battlefield 1.
I don't think they would've ended the franchise with a bang in season 8. Everything, i mean EVERYTHING which DICE had done for BF2042 was total and utter bare minimum work. Every time a new update or Event was teased, even the small spark of excitement I had for it was ruined by something low effort. A supposed Season 8 would not have been much different from it's pathetic ending in Season 7. Lets hope the devs and publishers learnt something, but who am i kidding? They didnt. I hope that the next Battlefield at least has good gameplay. We all know its launch will probably be abysmal as always.
They say they will stop developping content by season 7 but we still get new cosmetic bundle every week , i wonder how many cosmetic bundle they have left until the game is really out of new content
As someone who pre-ordered the game, i wish they never changed any with the class.
I was so excited for 2042 when i saw the first trailers, im still sad to see that it went down like this
Playing orbital the other day and the stealth bomber with the kerosene bombs kept nuking D. Until this video I didn’t know it was a flying piece of paper, but with no opposition it really does damage
I remember playing the last medal of honor, BF3, BF4 and WW2. This looks dope, should play BF again.
I just wish that next game doesn't have universal operators. Faction based ones are fine to me. I hope they won't make the guns a complete laser guns like they're in 2042 (BF V, 1, 4 and 3 has way better gunplay). I hope if they bring optical sights to next game they improve them, 2042 optics are absolutely horrible. I felt like vehicles got nerfed to the ground almost immediately in 2042... I still remember those days when all the custom servers had rules like no stinger / javelin to protect the vehicles... I didn't like those rules but also nerfing the vehicles into barely usable ones is annoying. There should be just more ways to counter them. Not to make them weak.
individual operators remove any imagination one has towards the actual game i felt.Obviously they did it for money but why couldn’t just have paid for uniforms and make a short singleplayer game with diversity to get the esg points? some serious iq points are lacking at dice studios
They can just do it like bfv and have different classes have a bunch of assault options. Aside from the hero skins or whatever, bfv's customization was amazing
@@hoplite-official5011 I totally agree with you. But i feel like because it makes them money, they're going to implement it anyway. That's why i keep my hopes kinda low and wish they would atleast limit them to factions.
@@cabnbeeschurgr6440 if the operators in 2042 were like elite skins in BFV it would've been fine so long as we had country-based uniforms
Its weird honestly kinda forgot this game existed for a bit. Its really the only Battlefield game I haven't gotten since I started playing playing with 3
5:55 me realizing that’s literally a building model from Battlefield 4
Still crazy how batlefield and bf2 are enenies yet friends
How did they release a new aircraft set in some semi rralistic future setting WITHOUT COUNTERMEASURES?!
The DFR Strife is the only LMG that can switch between box mags and belt feed, is that not unique enough for you? Lol it's like a modernized m249 SAW.
In a game where you can change your mags on the fly not really and I used it to poke holes at Dice’s design philosophy that they have kept for years now
As someone who doesn't play Battlefield or have any idea of what's going on, I agree!
they're still doing smaller content drops lmao it was just the last big seasonal update
We will be there hopefully when the next game comes out unless stuff happens.
I'd never heard of Battlefield 2143 before. I'll have to look into its story, but the skins calling back to that make me wonder, are they trying to imply the next battlefield game is going to be a reboot of 2143? Or is that a completely wacky guess? We won't know until announcement I guess, and there's always room for internal shakeups too.
Excellent video, I really like your editing style and your opinion on things. I just wanted to correct something : The Draugr has a jammer, you need to enable it before the rocket get shot
I forgot this game was a thing. Still gonna watch your video
A big shame 2042 didn’t have a campaign. I actually liked most of the lore that built the world before, during, and after the conflict of 2042 and wish they could’ve done something more impactful than calling card descriptions and the codex. Although looking back on how it launched, I’m kinda glad they didn’t have that chance to fumble.
The LMG is also from BF4, its the AWS
2042 is honestly in a great spot right now. Game should have released in this state but overall excited for the sophomore year of the new dev team
really hits hard to know the battlefield 2142 references won't go anywhere. 2142 was a game I spent way too much time in!
I hope we are all ready for whatever is coming next to be even worse
Now can they go work on battlefront 3?
I hope if the next game is 2140 that it doesn't have any laser weapons as primary and just those ballistic
Is the game worth getting for $5 or whatever the steam sale is rn?
Yes. The game is worth $5 that’s a steal for the contnet you’re getting upfront
Back to BF1 with the boys, going back in time to save the title 😂
HOW MANY MONTHS DID IT TAKE?!
Played BF4 last night for the 1st time in years got into a DLC map only playlist … it was night and day compared to BF2024 … how do you go so wrong …
I actually really liked Frontlines. I thought it was fun and unique. Future Strike thing was also really fun until, like you said, people stopped playing the objective. Still thought this season was fine, but could’ve been better.
Stealth Heli sounds like a Night Futy from HTTYD
holy shit buildings you can actually destroy
Maybe new BF Vietnam?
They’ll make a “modern version with modern narratives, think of CoD Cold War
I would love that but they would butcher it with modern politics. And I don't want to see that.
I think they're probably going to do another modern game. Set before 2042 but after bf4
With 80% of the BF5 story being hot garbage, I wouldn't be surprised if we ended up with another "do you speak Japanese" scene
Wait this game was still going?!
"The darkness of the afterlife is all that awaits you now, may you find more peace in that world than you did in this one."
Where your profile pic from I love it
Redacted being the best Metro-like? Surprised Underground didn't get a mention. It took all the learned lessons from the updated Metro of BF4, and then added proper flanking and overwatch verticality.
17:59 That is a MECH/Mechanically Enhanced Cybernetic Humanoid.
Well, I have BF1, Insurgency Sandstorm & Hell Let Loose (soon Squad as well) that I'll happily play until Battlefield stops being crap.
Love the vid man, but I really gotta disagree on Redacted. Personally, I hate it. It feels like they wanted to make another metro, but the specialist system destroys it. I'm more of an Exposure guy: big open map, lots of great close quarters areas, beautiful design.
I was expecting chito to narate this video, but i guess she'll never come back...
Have you read Shimeji?
I like Haven on Breakthrough only, I can't stand it on CQ, they need to remove it from the Close Quarters playlist and just make it Stadium and Redacted 24/7. Everytime Haven comes around, I leave the server, and there is only 1 server on that playlist in OCE so I have to sit and wait until the next round to play the other infantry maps.
Wait noooo its the cod killer, they haven't killed Cod yet I thought they gonna kill cod
The two franchises so desperate to finish eachother off that they ended up finishing themselves off.
really enjoyed all those bf4 weapons in the last season
So this is like the last ever? Didnt this game come out like two years ago
0:17 Waluigi pinball go brrrr
Not too much new stuff said here but totally agree on shutdown actually beeing one of the best modes of 2042 - actually, I thought this was the first mode the characters actually made sense
So this means battlefront 2 is getting updates???? (I know it’s not)
Objective E on amines is hell.
I wish that they added back customization like bf5 but kept the realism up
They should have tried an early Titan mode from 2142
I bought the game when it was on sale a few months ago and I’m so glad I didn’t pay full price for it. I don’t think it’s a bad game but it’s a huge disappointment
With a whimper
Finally, one finale mistake and it over for this franchise just 3 strikes.
The next battlefield being another “tremendous live service”
Huge respect to your pfp, I love girls last tour it holds a specials place in my heart
I only play 64v64 so I haven’t seen a lot of the new maps.
2142 was so dope hopefully we get something like this in le futuer
truly the battlefield of all time
1:20 The map is in Chile… why the fuck did I say Costa Rica
lol
I was about to say something, this DEFINITELY doesnt look like Costa Rica. lol
The only thing I only hate most maps breakaway spearhead season 5 discarded season 7 is OK but it's problem snipers issues hackers not hourglass is good other map that I hate reworked upstairs cover looks really interesting my teammates where getting killed I was getting pinned down taken fire shooting that map is garbage 🗑 dog shit trash my team wasn't happy thay where angry I never ever played again no thanks to DICE
VAMOS CHILE 🇨🇱🇨🇱🇨🇱🇨🇱‼️‼️🗣️🔥‼️🔥🗣️🇨🇱🇨🇱🇨🇱🇨🇱
Me I Costa Rica wondering where TF is the desert