EA has commented on Battlefield games returning to releasing every two years.
Earlier this week in an investors call, EA CEO Andrew Wilson was asked about whether the company was considering a return to releasing a Battlefield game every two years (via VGC). "I think that is our orientation but more importantly I think you should think about Battlefield as a service," Wilson said.
"You know, what we’re doing for the launch of this game is really revolutionising and reinventing what all our epic scale warfare is in the context of gameplay," Wilson continued, before going on to highlight Battlefield Portal and Hazard Zone as modes that will keep players engaged for an extended period of time. "So that while an every other year launch probably makes sense if we think about it today, we’re really focused on 365-day engagement in the franchise at a platform level across any device that consumers may want to play on," Wilson concluded.
If you're unfamiliar with the history of EA's shooter series, Battlefield had a more regular release schedule nearly a decade ago. Battlefield 3 launched in 2011, and Battlefield arrived two years later in 2013. Spin-off game Battlefield Hardline would launch just one year later in 2014, followed by Battlefield 1 releasing in 2016, and Battlefield 5 launching two years after that in 2018.
There's clear precedent for the Battlefield series releasing a game every two years, but Wilson's comments don't entirely point towards a return to that. The CEO clearly views Battlefield Portal, a game mode where players can create their own modes and matches, as something that can retain players for a prolonged period of time, extending Battlefield 2042's lifecycle beyond a year or two.
Battlefield 2042 launches later this year on October 22 for PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and Xbox Series S. Earlier this week, details of a forthcoming technical test were leaked online, and EA has already pencilled in an open beta period for the game next month in September.
For a list of all the other games launching this year, head over to our new games 2021 guide for more.
