Call of Duty and Battlefield are two of the biggest names when it comes to online multiplayer FPS games. However, while Call of Duty is growing even today by adding new games to the franchise, Battlefield has hit a bit of a roadblock. The last installment of the latter was released back in 2021, Battlefield 2042, and was met with a lukewarm welcome by the community. Fans who are now eagerly awaiting a new Battlefield game will be waiting quite a bit longer as a studio closure leaves the game’s future in limbo.
EA Announces Closure of Ridgeline Games
The information comes from Andy Robinson on X, who tweeted out saying EA has closed Ridgeline Games, the studio handling a future Battlefield single-player game. This title was supposedly going to be a counterpart to Battlefield 2042, which was designed exclusively for online play.
Battlefield games have always shipped with a single-player and multiplayer mode in the same game, so this departure was quite strange for many fans. There were talks of a new game releasing in 2025, but it remains to be seen if this closure affects that project.
The announcement to shut Ridgeline Games comes in the wake of an even bigger nearly 700 company-wide layoff notice. EA Entertainment President Laura Miele confirmed that Ridgeline Games would effectively be winding down. Just last week, the Co-founder of the studio, Marcus Lehto, left the company but shared on X that he was unaware of plans to shut down the studio.
The plan now is to move some staff to the LA-based Ripple Effect. As for the Battlefield single-player project, that will now be overseen by Criterion Games, the makers of the recent Need for Speed games. When speaking on the matter, Laura Miele said;
Our vision for Battlefield is ambitious and exciting. The project is making meaningful progress, thanks to the strong leadership of Vince Zampella and Byron Beede and dedicated studios committed to building a Battlefield platform our fans will love.
Battlefield is Stalling while Call of Duty is Racing Ahead
While Battlefield’s future is questionable, it is inarguable that Call of Duty continues to expand its offerings and dominate the space. Just recently, the franchise announced the release date of Warzone Mobile and is constantly adding new content to Modern Warfare 3.
Now, that’s not to say everything is great when it comes to Call of Duty. Players are constantly posting clips on social media of bugs, glitches, and hackers present in the game. Hacking is especially concerning, as even with the implementation of anti-cheats, it does not seem to be helping the situation.
In fact, hacking has gotten so bad that many streamers and pro players have called out Call of Duty for the lack of care and solutions being created for this issue. While the devs are rolling out patches and implementing stop-gaps, something serious needs to be done to retain the Call of Duty player base.
Do you feel like EA will give up on Battlefield altogether? Should they? Let us know in the comments section below.
