Update: Following the publication of this article, EA got in touch to clarify Andrew Wilson’s comments. Responding to an investor question, Wilson said: “And then with the leadership change that we made in Stockholm, we’ve got really strong traction against the next Battlefield game.” EA has since explained that Wilson is referring to David Rutter, who was appointed group general manager of EA Studios Europe last year, a division that oversees DICE Stockholm, Ghost Games, and Criterion. Rutter was FIFA’s former boss, under whom Ultimate Team turned into one of EA’s biggest earners. Oskar Gabrielson remains DICE Stockholm’s studio head, a role he’s occupied since October 2016. You can read the unedited, original story below. Original story: As part of a call with investors following EA’s Q3 FY2020 earnings report, the publisher talked a little bit about the next Battlefield game from DICE. As previously revealed, the game will take advantage of next-gen hardware, and will be released between April 2021 and March 2022 - likely around fall 2021. But what we didn’t know is that EA has made some changes to the studio’s leadership as development begins on the next Battlefield. Though specifics, such as names and positions, were not shared, the move is nonetheless interesting.
Many would argue that DICE Stockholm has been on the decline since the release of Star Wars: Battlefront 2. A drop in quality that continued with Battlefield 5, which still suffers from major design problems to this day. Perhaps this change could be the start of the studio’s rebound. As part of the same call, EA also confirmed that DICE LA, which will soon be re-branded, will work on its own projects, based on internal prototypes. The publisher did not say, however, whether those will be Battlefield games. It also does not appear that Vince Zampella, who now oversees DICE LA, will be involved in the development of the next Battlefield game. Outside of sharing their excitement about the game, EA executives did not reveal any gameplay or setting details, which makes sense given its release target. Outside of Battlefield, EA said Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order exceeded its expectations and revealed that it will release 12 new games this fiscal year.
