Electronic Arts wants to make more Star Wars Battlefront games, but there’s much more potential to the Star Wars name than multiplayer shooter sequels.
Star Wars Battlefront may have only just released, but Electronic Arts has made no delay in announcing further plans for the franchise. Last week, the publisher hinted that there were more Battlefront titles to come. EA CFO Blake Jorgenson gave a less-than-cryptic message during last week’s UBS Global Technology Conference, stating that the publisher aims to “make future Battlefront games.”
This may come as a surprise, given the lukewarm reception to the game from critics. Although Star Wars Battlefront looks, sounds, and feels incredibly authentic for Star Wars fans, there has been criticism over a perceived lack of depth, with worries that the fun may run out quite quickly. With only 12 maps available, spread thin across four locations and a limited number of game modes, there’s a real worry that the game may have little by way of replayability.
EA is almost certainly not worried about any kind of commercial failings – in fact, the publisher had to up its estimated sales from 9 million to 13 million units sold. However, Battlefront’s longevity is no sure-fire thing, and recent gaming history is littered with multiplayer games that have lost their user base rapidly. Evolve, predicted as a must-have multiplayer game, saw a dramatic drop in its player numbers just after launch.
Rather than focusing on future Star Wars Battlefront titles, there’s plenty of potential for Star Wars video games that hit on fresh new ground. EA, who acquired the right to make Star Wars games from Disney after the media powerhouse bought Lucasfilm for a cool $4 billion, has suggested that there are a number of other Star Wars games in the works. We already know a little about some of them - and they aren’t simple tie-ins to the new movie trilogy.
According to reports, EA Canada is working on an open-world game set in the Star Wars universe. Although information is still incredibly thin on the ground, there’s potential for EA to create something interesting with the Star Wars license. EA CEO Andrew Wilson has even cited Rocksteady’s Batman Arkham games as inspiration for how EA, and its studios such as DICE, Visceral, and BioWare, should treat the license - building upon the power of the IP to tell an immersive story in its own right.
It’s why the news that EA is already thinking of another Battlefront game is a little disappointing. Aside from the fact that Star Wars Battlefront has proved to be a little underwhelming, with promises of an additional 16 season pass maps little solace for those who have bought the game at full price, there is so much more to do within Star Wars, and so much new ground to cover. After all, where best to explore new ideas than within an entire galaxy?
