Electronic Arts’ Battlefield franchise is in a weird position these days. Battlefield 2042’s launch was disastrous, though DICE has made several changes and improvements over the last 17 months. Nevertheless, the publisher still considers it a “meaningful part of our future.”
In its recent Q4 2023 earnings call (transcript via The Motley Fool), CEO Andrew Wilson was asked if there were any updates on projects associated with the Battlefield IP. Wilson said, “We don’t have any date announcements or future announcements, if that’s the question, certainly this time. What I’d say is I think we’ve put together an extraordinary creative leadership team. I know we’ve got the team gathering this week in Sweden.
“I had a call this morning with some of the leadership, and they’re very bullish on how that’s progressing. I think we’ve got extraordinary confidence in that team and extraordinary confidence in the progress they’re making against the future of that franchise. And I come back to we’re not just building a game. We’re building a platform, content as a platform, to drive live services over the decades to come.”
Over time and when it’s appropriate, Electronic Arts will talk more about Battlefield’s future. However, it’s “firmly implanted” in “that first pillar of our strategy: building games and experiences that attract and entertain massive online communities across platforms, business models and geographies. And we think that Battlefield is going to be a meaningful part of our future. And we’ll share more as time progresses.”
Following the release of Battlefield 2042, EA established a multi-studio initiative to work on the series with Respawn Entertainment head Vince Zampella as the franchise head. DICE is rumored to be working on a new mainline title, which could launch in 2024, while Ripple Effect Studios has a new Battlefield experience in the works. Then there’s Ridgeline Games, led by Halo co-creator Marcus Lehto, working on a narrative campaign for Battlefield. Stay tuned for any updates in the coming years.
