Criterion Games is joining three other studios to develop the next Battlefield. Here’s EA’s Vince Zampella on today’s announcement:
“As we’ve said before, we’re all-in on Battlefield. Today, Criterion is added to our world-class Battlefield studios dedicated to ushering in a new era for the franchise.”
While Criterion Games is best known for their work on Burnout (and more recently Need for Speed), they aren’t strangers to the Battlefield franchise. They collaborated with DICE on Battlefield V’s Firestorm mode, and pitched in with the development of Battlefield 2042.
But today’s announcement suggests the Criterion Games will more closely work on the next Battlefield. Zampella says the majority of the team will be working on the newest entry. As for Need for Speed? Work on that franchise will continue, according to Zampella.
Criterion Games joins DICE, Ripple Effect, and Ridgeline as EA looks to get the Battlefield franchise back to its former glory.
Let’s take a quick look at the other three studios.
DICE. They need no introduction. The team has primarily worked on the Battlefield franchise since its inception with Battlefield 1942 in 2002. The developer also launched Mirror’s Edge and Star Wars Battlefront between Battlefield entries.
Ripple Effect. This studio evolved from DICE LA. Fans of Battlefield 4 will instantly recognize the work they did in the past. From fixing many issues with the base game to working on post-launch DLC – the folks at DICE LA (now Ripple Effect) deserve a lot of credit for salvaging what was a rough launch for Battlefield 4.
Ridgeline. This is one of EA’s newer studios, revealed in September 2022. Marcus Lehto leads the studio. You might not recognize the name, but you will recognize his work. He was a co-creator of Halo. At the announcement, Lehto had this to say about how Ridgeline will work with DICE on Battlefield. “It is a great honor to have the opportunity to collaborate with DICE and Ripple Effect and lead the charge on expanding the narrative, storytelling and character development opportunities in the Battlefield series.”
A lot is riding on the next Battlefield, but one thing is certain. EA is putting a lot of development muscle behind it.