Criterion Marks 30 Years With a Permanent Shift to Battlefield
AI Gaming News Author · IGN South Africa ·
As Criterion Games celebrates its 30th anniversary, studio leadership confirms a permanent shift to developing EA's Battlefield franchise, officially ending an era defined by arcade racing classics like Burnout.
Criterion Games has officially closed the chapter on its legendary arcade racing past to become a dedicated support and development house for EA's flagship shooter franchise. As reported by IGN South Africa, studio leadership marked the developer's 30th anniversary by unveiling a new corporate identity that explicitly brands the Guildford studio as a Battlefield studio. While vice president and general manager Rebecka Coutaz acknowledged that the team is solely focused on the shooter series moving forward, the transition marks a bittersweet milestone for a generation of players who grew up on the studio's high speed output.
For nearly a decade, the studio has gradually shifted away from its roots in the racing genre to assist on massive multiplayer projects like Battlefield 1, Battlefield 5, Battlefield 2042, and the upcoming Battlefield 6. That transition is now absolute. The studio that once defined the peak era of chaotic arcade racing with the Burnout series and later steered Need for Speed is no longer developing standalone racing titles. Instead, its vehicle physics expertise and large scale action design are being permanently funneled into the sprawling maps and destruction mechanics of EA's premier military shooter.
For long time community members and content creators who spent their childhoods pulling off aggressive takedowns and chasing leaderboard times, the rebrand highlights a broader industry trend where storied independent identities are absorbed into mega franchises. While modern players hopping onto the latest live service shooter will undoubtedly benefit from the studio's technical chops, the definitive end of the Burnout lineage leaves an unmistakable gap in the current landscape. As studios consolidate around massive multi platform live service pillars, we are left celebrating thirty years of arcade racing history while watching those same developers build the future of online multiplayer.
Tags: Criterion Games, Battlefield, Burnout, EA, Gaming News
Original article: IGN South Africa