Battlefield 4 lacks the option to squad up with your mates in the lobby before diving into online play. The feature was last seen in Battlefield 3, but won’t be making a return any time soon, according to developer DICE.

It follows the leaking of Battlefield 4: Second Assault’s Xbox One achievements.

MP1st spotted a statement from DICE over on the Battlefield 4 Facebook hub.

Replying to a fan query, the studio wrote, “We have a new feature in Battlefield where a new squad is created when a friend joins your game. You can toggle this option on or off by going into the options menu. We’re not offering the old squad join feature because we didn’t feel that the feature in Battlefield 3 was on par with the quality that we wanted to offer our players. We have no plans to add it in the future.”

It basically means you can’t make a private lobby, invite your mates into the squad and then search for a game. The Facebook post is followed by fans saying that the new method doesn’t work. What’s your experience of it so far?

Do you feel this system should return? Let us know what you think below.