EA's Battlefield franchise has had a rough go of it these past couple of years. 2018's Battlefield V received solid enough reviews for its gameplay and new multiplayer modes, but it was criticized for the lack of available content at launch. With just over 7 million copies sold by the end of 2018, EA deemed it a commercial disappointment.
2021's Battlefield 2042 was a complete disaster with many criticizing the game's technical issues, bugs, and lack of features at launch. EA also made multiple changes to the core Battlefield gameplay experience that was met with pushback from fans. It was the lowest-rated installment in the Battlefield series on Metacritic and one of the worst-reviewed games on Steam. Like its predecessor, Battlefield 2042 also failed to meet EA's sales expectations.
With EA's flagship shooter series seemingly at a critical point, the publisher is taking every step necessary to ensure the new Battlefield lives up to fan expectations. And a new exclusive report from Insider-Gaming sheds light on what EA is doing.
"On a funding front, the next Battlefield has the most resources in the franchise’s history," the report states, revealing that four studios are currently working on the game: DICE, Motive, Criterion Games, and Ripple Effect.
Perhaps even more promising is the "player first approach" that EA is reportedly taking. The site notes that EA is conducting many more playtests this time around, ranging from small feedback sessions to large-scale player tests.
More importantly, EA and its studios seem more interested in gaining player feedback this time around. Of course, it’s not uncommon for games to have playtests during development. Almost every game has them at one point or another, but this time around, things are a lot different.
Sources say that playtests with external players are happening much more frequently than in past installments, and the amount of data and feedback collected is the most the franchise has seen in its history. From small feedback sessions to large-scale player tests, Battlefield is now taking the much-needed “player first” approach. It’s an approach that we’ll see continued to be played out coming to the start of the year, too, as it’s understood that EA and its studios have been eying up the return of the Battlefield Community Test Environment, but to what scale that’s incorporated at this time is unclear.
Back in September, EA's Vince Zampella, Head of Respawn & Group GM for EA Studios Organization, shared the first key art for the new Battlefield game. Zampella suggested a return to the franchise roots — more specifically, the Battlefield 3 and Battlefield 4 era "where everything was modern." The game is also said to be returning to 64-player maps as opposed to the 128-player maps that Battlefield 2042 introduced. Additionally, Specialists will not be returning.
EA has not yet announced when the new Battlefield game will be released, although some expect it could come in late 2025.