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Battlefield 2042's ongoing season 7 will be the last of its "official seasons," and while the devs will keep the lights on going forward, DICE and EA are instead investing in the future of the series, which apparently includes "multiplayer experiences and single-player" supported by Dead Space Remake developer Motive.
In a pair of blog posts announcing big changes for the shooter franchise, Battlefield general manager Byron Beede and Motive studio general manager Patrick Klaus confirm that a small team led by the creative heads of the stellar Dead Space Remake will work with DICE as it pursues what seems to be the series' first proper return to single-player since Battlefield 5's campaign or, to get a bit more specific, arguably the Bad Company days.
"The directors who delivered our Dead Space remake in 2023, Philippe Ducharme (Executive Producer) and Roman Campos-Oriola (Creative Director), will build a team at Motive to work alongside the Battlefield studios around the world creating what’s next for Battlefield – a universe across both multiplayer and single-player experiences," Klaus explains. "Their proven expertise in storytelling, immersive battles and developing on the Frostbite engine uniquely positions them to help advance the vision for Battlefield, led by Vince Zampella (EVP, Group GM of Respawn and Battlefield) and Byron Beede (SVP, GM Battlefield)."
"We have an ambitious vision to embrace and unlock the vast potential of the series’ class-based squad play and immersive, intense battles," Beede writes. He also echoes the wording on single-player, predicting "a Battlefield universe across connected multiplayer experiences and single-player." It's too early to say whether these "single-player experiences" will manifest as dedicated, standalone campaigns, or more like offline missions woven into the multiplayer narrative.
Motive and DICE are, of course, both EA studios, so this all reads like EA shuffling resources around its subsidiaries to prioritize different projects and hopefully get the Battlefield IP to a new golden age after a few difficult releases. The Dead Space Remake was incredible, and Battlefield 2042 only got seven seasons because, as Beede says, players had a "clear" appetite for more after the initial planned four, so the potential is definitely there.
Oh, and if you're wondering, Klaus says Motive's Iron Man game won't be derailed by this change. Iron Man's development will continue in parallel at the main studio, and it's apparently making "excellent progress," clearing "a major internal milestone and laying a robust foundation for the journey ahead."
EA promises next Battlefield will be a "reimagination" with a "connected ecosystem," but fans aren't sure they want that.
