EA delays Need for Speed, puts Criterion on Battlefield 6

Electronic Arts will postpone the upcoming Need for Speed ​​game for a year and put its studio – Criterion Games – at EA DICE’s service on the Battlefield series, which debuts on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X this fall. In an interview, EA’s top studio executive pointed out that neither the franchise is in trouble, nor that Criterion is being pulled from its Need for Speed ​​project.

Laura Miele, director of EA studios, told Polygon that pandemic working conditions and the acquisition of Codemasters already delivering at least one racing game for EA later this year made Criterion’s reassignment a call. rational.

“[Battlefield] It’s going really well, the team worked incredibly hard, they pushed hard last year, and yes, we are working from home, ”Miele told Polygon. “And it’s hard; it is difficult to create games from home, and the [EA DICE] the team is a little tired.

“We have a great game and incredible potential with this game,” added Miele. “We play to win; we’re playing to bring a great battlefield game to market. “

Electronic Arts told investors in November that Need for Speed ​​and Battlefield would both receive new games, on the latest generation of consoles, by March 2022. Battlefield’s next game, which has yet to be released. titled, was first mentioned (on an investor call) in 2019. The most recent battleground was in 2018 Battlefield 5, set in WWII.

A year ago, EA sent the Need for Speed ​​series back to Criterion after three lackluster entries from Ghost Games, which was revamped into a studio supporting Frostbite development. Last fall, Criterion, the creators of the Burnout series, released a 2010 remastered edition Need for Speed ​​pursuit (which they also developed the original).

Miele seemed to recognize that players and fans alike could take Monday’s news – especially after last week’s announcement that BioWare would be dropping development on the underwhelming Anthem – as a sign, the studio system of one of the biggest game publishers is having problems with its attributions. No, Miele insisted.

“It is impossible that we have made a decision like this without including [Criterion] and discussing with them first, and the impact they might have on [Battlefield]Miele said. “They worked on [Star Wars] Battlefront, they’ve worked on Battlefields, and they have a very close, very close collaborative partnership with DICE. I have no doubts that it will be a pretty positive victory for them.

Criterion supported by DICE on Star Wars Battlefront (2015) and Battlefront 2 (2017), and developed the Firestorm battle royale mode for Battlefield 5.

In a sense, Miele said, EA buying out motorsport specialists Codemasters (this deal will close by late spring) has given the company the bandwidth it needs to make that move. Codemasters shipped Dirt 5 and F1 2020 last year, and three titles in 2019. He’s scheduled for at least one more game on the annual Formula 1 license this year.

Image: Criterion Games, Stellar Entertainment / Electronic Arts

Rather than scrambling to push the next Need for Speed ​​out the door, when it could be lost or cannibalized by some version of Codemasters around the same time, Criterion’s abilities would be better used on Battlefield, Miele said. . But, she pointed out, Criterion Games will return to work on Need for Speed ​​- the series is not being shut down, removed from the Guildford, England studio, or handed over to Codemasters, which is a two-hour drive away. in Southam. The next Need for Speed ​​will also launch on current and previous generations of PlayStation and Xbox, Miele said.

“They own the Need for Speed ​​franchise; that’s why they handled the remaster, ”Miele said. “Everything that happens within the Need for Speed ​​brand, which they are responsible for, or things go through them to make sure they buy into it.”

A year of working from home, however, and the potential EA’s top executives see with what DICE is building in Battlefield, were more pressing issues that needed solutions, Miele said.

“Making games is one of the most sophisticated and complicated forms of media out there, and it requires creative energy and connection with team members,” she said. “I think there was, you know, fatigue and some burnout from working from home. Much of it even has to do with the needs that people have with their families; some people take care of their children at home [while they work]. So our productivity is not as high, and the creative connection and creative energy is not as high when working from home. “

Miele said that DICE Los Angeles, who now reports to Respawn Entertainment founder Vince Zampella, is also involved in the development of Battlefield, primarily the live-service components of the game. “They’ve been working on it for over a year, and they do some really great things in live service. ”

Rumors from last summer suggested that Battlefield 6 – EA has yet to announce the title of the game – would revert to a modern setting, with multiplayer maps supporting up to 128 players. Miele wouldn’t comment on the specific features or innovations EA expects from the upcoming Battlefield, other than calling the game “a love letter to our fans” and “we want to be awesome.”

“We’re going to put all the resources we have on this,” Miele said.