Electronic Arts’ Chief Studios Officer Laura Miele announced that the next-gen Need for Speed game in development at Criterion Games has been postponed, the studio will now support EA Dice with the development of the next Battlefield game.
Miele confirmed the delay during an interview with Polygon where she claims that neither franchise is in financial trouble, nor is Criterion being taken off its Need for Speed project.
Is important to mention that Electronic Arts recently acquired Codemasters, a specialist in producing racing videogames such as WRC, F1, Project CARS, GRID, DIRT. Miele’s information affirms that Codemasters will not take over the Need for Speed franchise, nor the franchise will take a different direction.
“[Battlefield] is shaping up great, the team has been working incredibly hard, they pushed hard last year, and yes, we have been working from home,” Miele said. “And it’s hard; it’s hard to make games from home, and the [EA DICE] team is fatigued a bit.
“We have a great game and some incredible potential with this game. We’re playing to win; we’re playing to put a great Battlefield game out in the market.”
Miele added that the EA executives discussed the decision with Criterion first and mentioned they previously support EA Dice on the two recent Star Wars Battlefront games and the battle royale mode for Battlefield V.
“There’s no way we would have made a decision like this without including [Criterion] and discussing this with them first, and the impact that they could have on [Battlefield],” Miele said.
“They’ve worked on [Star Wars] Battlefront, they’ve worked on Battlefields, and they have a really tight, close collaborative partnership with DICE. I’m really confident that this is going to be a pretty positive win for them.”
“They own the Need for Speed franchise; that’s why they managed the remaster,” Miele added. “Anything that’s happening within the Need for Speed brand, they are responsible for, or things come through them to ensure that they’re on board with it.”
“Making games is one of the more sophisticated, and complicated, forms of media that exists, and it requires creative energy and connection to team members,” she said. “I think that there’s been, you know, fatigue and some burnout, working from home.
“A lot of that even has to do with just the needs that people have with their families; some people are taking care of their kids at home [while they work]. So our productivity is not as high, and then the creative connection and creative energy aren’t as high when they’re working from home.”
Source: Polygon
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