Respawn's Star Wars Game Expected In Fiscal 2020
EA's quarterly earnings call involved some pretty significant bits of information, including the release window for Respawn's upcoming Star Wars game.
EA's next couple years will be ones to watch. 2017 and early 2018 have been pretty rocky largely due to Star Wars: Battlefront 2's poor performance, Mass Effect Andromeda's poor execution, and the gaming industry's general analysis on loot crates already influencing the development of the upcoming Anthem from Bioware. One shining light from the earnings call the company held today involves Respawn Entertainment, the development team behind Titanfall and Titanfall 2. Their upcoming Star Wars game is in the works and slated to release by March 2020.
Detailed in the report from Game Informer, a question was posed that inquired if player trust that was broken by Star Wars: Battlefront 2 would be fixed by the time a third game release in two years. EA Vice President Patrick Soderlund clarified that a third game hadn't been confirmed, in fact, and that the Star Wars game being created by Respawn Entertainment will be released in the 2020 fiscal year (meaning by March 2020).
There's a lot of work to be done when it comes to anything related to a new Star Wars game, not only because of Battlefront 2, but because of the events that led to the shuttering of Visceral Games. Respawn Entertainment, a company that came to fruition when upper level talent from Infinity Ward split around 2010, was acquired by EA last November with a $300 million deal. Another poor performance that potentially leads to another closed studio could spell major bad news for a company that has been a mainstay in gaming for decades. Before Respawn's Star Wars game, though, we will have a new Battlefield that will launch this year serve as an opportunity to right the ship.
Charles Singletary Jr keeps the updates flowing as the News Editor, breaking stories while investigating the biggest topics in gaming and technology. He's pretty active on Twitter, so feel free to reach out to him @The_CSJR. Got a hot tip? Email him at Charles.Singletary@Shacknews.com.