EA is shuttering Ridgeline Games, the studio co-founded by former Halo developer Marcus Lehto that was tasked with creating the narrative marketing campaign within the subsequent Battlefield. The closure follows phrase of Lehto’s departure earlier this week and coincides with a broader restructuring introduced earlier as we speak that can see EA lay off some 670 staff amid a shift away from future licensed IPs. The work that was begun on the Battlefield single-player marketing campaign will proceed.
In an inner word, EA Leisure president Laura Miele stated that Criterion producer Danny Isaac and studio head of inventive Darren White will substitute Lehto to proceed work on the deliberate narrative marketing campaign, with some members of Ridgeline Games becoming a member of Ripple Effect to proceed working on Battlefield. DICE, Criterion and Ripple are all at present at work on the following Battlefield recreation, which has been confirmed however not totally revealed.
The closure is an abrupt finish for Ridgeline Games, which was established in 2022 to work on the marketing campaign led by Lehto. Lehto is a Bungie veteran whose portfolio contains serving as inventive director on Halo: Attain. He joined EA within the wake of criticism over Battlefield 2042’s lack of a single-player narrative marketing campaign.
Lehto not too long ago departed EA on what he says was “my very own accord,” with EA calling it a “private choice.” In her word, Miele expressed confidence within the upcoming Battlefield recreation, calling it “bold and thrilling” and saying that it’s “making significant progress.” Miele praised the studios and management she says is “dedicated to constructing a Battlefield platform our followers will love.”
EA’s strikes add to a interval of turmoil for the video games trade as Sony, Xbox, and different main publishers and platform holders reduce jobs and shut studios, with greater than 6000 video games trade employees are estimated to have misplaced their jobs in 2024 alone. CEO Andrew Wilson has stated that EA’s “major aim is to present staff members with alternatives to discover new roles and paths to transition onto different initiatives.”
“I have been within the trade for 15 years and I’ve by no means seen issues this dangerous,” stated one developer who had been not too long ago let go in our report on the continued layoffs. “Everyone seems to be scared and ready to see if their studio goes to be subsequent. I’m frightened that this 12 months goes to trigger actual, everlasting injury and scarring to the sport devs affected, and it is not going to be good. The aftershocks of this are going to resonate for the foreseeable future. Games are in the end a labor of affection and creativity, and a demoralized workforce will not be going to be at its finest.”
Kat Bailey is IGN’s Information Director in addition to co-host of Nintendo Voice Chat. Have a tip? Ship her a DM at @the_katbot.