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EA has added yet another tally to their ever growing wall of studios they have shut down. The latest to fall victim is none other than Visceral Games, the studio behind the Dead Space franchise, Battlefield Hardline, and an upcoming Star Wars game. According to EA, development of the Star Wars game will be handed off to another studio, but don't expect the game to be what it once was.
EA's Patrick Söderlund provided an update on the Star Wars game in a new blog posting on the EA website.
It also certainly sounds like they are going to move away from the game being a more story-driven linear experience and towards being something more akin to say Destiny. It is also not unreasonable to think that EA will push the new Star Wars game to include the whole "games as a service" idea that EA has been gunning for in recent memory. "Games as a service" means anything from a steady stream of DLC, micro-transactions, cosmetics, and loot boxes.
Thanks to the efforts at Kotaku, who have obtained an email sent to EA employees, we do have some better understanding of what is happening with the Star Wars game at present.
Please note that "Ragtag" is EA's internal name for the Star Wars game and Steve Anthony is an executive producer at EA.
More important than the fate of the games Visceral worked on is the fate of its employees. We do not know how many people have secured jobs at other studios. To those that have been impacted by this, we wish you all the best.
EA's Patrick Söderlund provided an update on the Star Wars game in a new blog posting on the EA website.
"In its current form, it was shaping up to be a story-based, linear adventure game. Throughout the development process, we have been testing the game concept with players, listening to the feedback about what and how they want to play, and closely tracking fundamental shifts in the marketplace. It has become clear that to deliver an experience that players will want to come back to and enjoy for a long time to come, we needed to pivot the design. We will maintain the stunning visuals, authenticity in the Star Wars universe, and focus on bringing a Star Wars story to life. Importantly, we are shifting the game to be a broader experience that allows for more variety and player agency, leaning into the capabilities of our Frostbite engine and reimagining central elements of the game to give players a Star Wars adventure of greater depth and breadth to explore."
It also certainly sounds like they are going to move away from the game being a more story-driven linear experience and towards being something more akin to say Destiny. It is also not unreasonable to think that EA will push the new Star Wars game to include the whole "games as a service" idea that EA has been gunning for in recent memory. "Games as a service" means anything from a steady stream of DLC, micro-transactions, cosmetics, and loot boxes.
Thanks to the efforts at Kotaku, who have obtained an email sent to EA employees, we do have some better understanding of what is happening with the Star Wars game at present.
A development team from across Worldwide Studios will take over development of Ragtag, led by the EA Vancouver team that has already been working on the project. Steve Anthony will lead this team, and we will use much of the work that has been done to date by Visceral – the assets of Ragtag that have already been built will be the foundation of this new game.
Please note that "Ragtag" is EA's internal name for the Star Wars game and Steve Anthony is an executive producer at EA.
More important than the fate of the games Visceral worked on is the fate of its employees. We do not know how many people have secured jobs at other studios. To those that have been impacted by this, we wish you all the best.