When news broke last week thatElectronic Arts is purchasing developer Respawn Entertainment, gamers everywhere immediately thought of one thing: what this acquisition means for the development of future Titanfall and Star Wars games.
Not much, actually.
In a letter to fans, Respawn Entertainment co-founder addressed the recent purchase of the studio, and explained why the sale just made sense from a developer point-of-view.
“While it wasn’t necessary, going with EA made a lot of sense. With Titanfall and Star Wars, EA has been a great development partner that supports us and doesn’t interfere with our process for making games or studio culture. EA will provide us with more resources, access to new technologies, and expertise that we can tap into to that will help us make better games, and Respawn will retain the same creative freedom and culture we’ve always had. We’ve been talking closely with the leadership at EA and we share their values and vision for the future of being a developer-focused company that puts the players first.”
Zampella assured that Titanfall “is and will remain a major part of the studio’s DNA.” We learned in the press release that Respawn is currently working on a new Titanfall game.
As for the mysterious Star Wars game in development at the studio, Respawn will continue to work on it. “Development is going well and we have a great relationship with Lucasfilm,” said Zampella.
As for future IPs beyond Titanfall and Star Wars, Respawn still has the creative freedom “to explore new IP’s and will work with EA’s studio leadership to plan future projects.”
My only concern, as evidenced with Star Wars Battlefront II, is how EA could impact the overall scope of a game with its desire to drive up revenue via microtransactions and now loot boxes.
Perhaps the best news in all of this is that the purchase will not result in any layoffs or major org changes. Development on titles currently in the pipeline will “continue uninterrupted.”
