It would be an understatement to say that the modern state of theBattlefieldfranchise and AAA multiplayer gaming as a whole is a bit chaotic at the moment. Even before the messy launch ofBattlefield 2042, multiplayer shooters had already shifted away from legacy titles likeCall Of DutyandHaloand into a separate live-service field driven by games likeFortnite.
Around the turn of the 2020s, it was time for the next wave of multiplayer games to make their mark, or die out in the process.While we got semi-smooth transitions, likeCall Of Duty Warzone,Battlefield 2042was proof that not every franchise had the means to overcome the hurdle of modern multiplayer infrastructure.
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Out of the way, GTA 6.
So, as it came time to see what EA has in store for us next, it seems as though they have decided to double down on the issue, and you’ve likely seen tons of leaks of theupcoming Battlefield title, namedBattlefield 6by fans, with the internal name of Glacier.
Although there has not been any proper release of this upcoming game, the big question has been what EA is doing to avoid another 2042 fiasco.To some, their solution appears to be taking out a second mortgage after losing everything on black.
As an excellent in-depthreport by Ars Technicahas pointed out, EA seems to be putting all its chips intoBattlefield 6, with ambitious goals and expectations, despite the rocky state of game development and even its own developers' predictions of failure.
The one major ambition that Ars Technica highlights isEA’s goal of reaching 100 million players within a certain timeframe following the launch.By comparison, this seems to surpass the player base of any previous Battlefield game.
For more examples,Fortnite, in its nearly 8-year-long cycle, hasachieved a player baseof over 650 million. And while previousBattlefieldtitles haven’t been free-to-play, this still boasts an expected average greater than anything we can reasonably predict.
Even within EA’s own team, employees aren’t expecting nearly this number of players. One source explained to Ars Technica, “nothing in the market research or our quality deliverables indicates that we would be anywhere near that.
There’s a lot of distrust and disbelief… when it comes to just operating toward numbers that very few people believe in apart from the leadership.
Although outsiders can speculate all they want, internal statements of this nature are never a good sign.
Another person explains the tensions within the team, as work is being outsourced to other studios across the globe. They explain that “DICE being originally a Swedish studio, they are a bit more humble,” but with work being sourced to countries like America, everything seems to be getting a bit too complex for the humble ambitions.
With the game now likely to have easily surpassed the $500 million mark, the budget continues to skyrocket every day without a return on investment.It almost feels like EA is digging itself a hole, with the thought of one day building a rocket to blast them not only out of it, but to the surface of Mars.
EA: To Mars and Back
This is going to sound a bit hyperbolic, but at this point, for many of us, it’s very crystal clear where this project is headed, and it’s evident how much of an empty statementBattlefield 6is going to be for the entirety of the AAA industry.
Fan speculation has readily shifted away from being politely cautious about a game before its launch, as now it’s apparent that massive live-service flops likeConcordare bound to fail. Fans, economists, and even employees all have the capability of seeing a burning ship as it appears on the horizon.
You can chalk this up to massive development issues or to AAA publishers being unaware of their actual audiences, but ultimately, it comes down to the fact that gaming has grown too large for its own good. These companies are almost delaying how long it takes for this bubble to burst, as these problemshave been constantfor nearly a decade.
And year by year, as quarterly reports go by, there’s a need to chase that higher number.Like a JRPG fan min-maxing their build, simply achieving bigger numbers, player counts, and profit margins is a higher priority over anything else.
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This might be one for the history books.
One of the most breakout successful multiplayer titles of recent years,Helldivers 2, which received massive fan response and support, has likely only sold below 20 million units. Success is possible, even for AAA games we’ve had enough of, but not when they’re chasing a flash-in-the-pan sensation.
And as Ars Technica’s report ultimately shows,a larger development pipeline leads to more development goals, which in turn leads to higher development costs, longer work cycles that consume years of time, ultimately culminating in free-to-play, problem-riddled launches that chase success rather than innovation.
We’ve seen enough mass layoffs, such asthose at Microsoft, that was announced just earlier today. We’ve also seen numerous companies, such as EA, create games likeBattlefield 6that are almost destined for failure. In my opinion, the best outcome is that this marks the new rise of AA development, where creativity can finally be prized above rising player numbers and revenue.
Otherwise, we highly recommend the fullArs Technica articleto learn even more about the internal working conditions and production cycle of EA and the AAA industry.
