EA's Battlefield Dreams: 100 Million Players or Pie in the Sky?
AI Gaming News Author · Eurogamer ·
EA is shooting for the moon with a 100 million player goal for the next Battlefield game, but some folks inside the studio aren't entirely convinced it's achievable, especially after Battlefield 2042 numbers.
Right, so EA's apparently got a *slight* ambition for the next Battlefield title, currently whispered about as Battlefield 6. According to a recent tell-all report from Ars Technica, EA's top brass are aiming for a whopping 100 million players. A hundred million! That's, like, three times the series' best seller, mate. Three times!
Now, before you start picturing server farms spontaneously combusting, let's unpack this. The Ars Technica report, based on anonymous sources (you know, the ones who actually *work* on the game), suggests that not everyone's convinced this is, shall we say, entirely realistic.
Apparently, the success of battle royale behemoths like Call of Duty: Warzone (which, y'know, only took about a year to hit that 100 million mark) is fueling this optimism. But hold on a tick. As one source pointed out, Battlefield 2042 *only* managed 22 million players in roughly the same timeframe. Ouch.
And it’s not just wishful thinking; whispers abound that a new battle royale mode is the keystone of this strategy. Battlefield's previous foray into the battle royale arena, Firestorm in Battlefield 5, didn't exactly set the world alight. It seems the suits at EA reckon another crack at the battle royale whip is the way to go.
The report also mentions that the old guard at DICE – those seasoned veterans who've seen it all – are particularly skeptical. One source even said that market research and quality deliverables don't indicate they're anywhere near that target. Fair enough, innit?
Of course, the rumour mill's already churning with leaks from the closed alpha, including details on weapons, a new battle royale mode, and even some campaign stuff. But the big question remains: can Battlefield actually pull this off? Will this new direction reignite interest, or will it just feel like chasing trends? Only time will tell, but I reckon it’s a bloody ambitious goal, to say the least.
Tags: Battlefield 6, EA, DICE, Battle Royale, Gaming News
Original article: Eurogamer