The Prospects for the Continuation of "Star Wars Battlefront"
Gamers and Star Wars Enthusiasts Aren't Letting Go of Battlefront III Dreams
Lately, gamers and Star Wars fanatics alike have been eagerly clamoring for another installment of Star Wars Battlefront. DICE's 2017 Battlefront II saw a surprising resurgence in popularity recently, with its player count skyrocketing on PC. The community hopes to build on this momentum with a global daylong event, proving the devotion of the Battlefront community.
This recent wave of enthusiasm was kicked off by Star Wars actor Muhannad Ben Amor, who starred as Wilmon in Andor, encouraging another entry: "Grew up with Battlefront II; been a veteran since day one, let's hope for a Battlefront III."
Spanning close to 20 years, the multiplayer shooter series has lived through two major life cycles. The original two games were developed by Pandemic Studios during the Star Wars prequel era. Meanwhile, the subsequent games have come from Battlefield developer DICE. Regrettably, neither has made it to next number-three, although there was once a development for Battlefront III involving Free Radical Design, creators of Timesplitters.
Anticipation about the possibility of a third game raises two key questions: Is another Star Wars Battlefront feasible, and should it be brought back? Addressing these queries can be tricky due to the occasional challenges associated with crafting games based on the Star Wars franchise. Some of the most notable Star Wars games never came to fruition, like the Boba Fett-starring 1313 or third entries for Knights of the Old Republic and Force Unleashed, two rival series that coexisted with Battlefront.
EA, owners of the Star Wars game license, also struggled with projects in the past, canceling the pirate-centric work by Visceral Games and Motive Studios, and more recently killing a Mando-focused first-person shooter from Respawn.
DICE is currently devoted to developing the next Battlefield game, with other EA studios stepping up as support. This means another Battlefront wouldn't be feasible from EA, let alone in the near future. Mats Holm, a former live producer on Battlefront II, reiterated this sentiment on Reddit, suggesting a remaster of the previous game as a starting point for a sequel, preferably spearheaded by members of the original team. However, the main obstacle there lies with EA: although the Pandemic-created Battlefront games have been remastered, Electronic Arts is not always tempted to remaster or remake titles.
Since 2019's Fallen Order, Star Wars has focused primarily on single-player titles, like Ubisoft's Star Wars Outlaws, 2026's Zero Company from Bit Reactor, and space combat-focused Star Wars Squadrons. EA has yet to recommit to Star Wars multiplayer, possibly due to the controversy surrounding Battlefront II's initial monetization, which was heavily criticized and disastrous. As a result, other developers, like Epic Games with Fortnite, have become integral in the franchise's multiplayer endeavors.
Fortnite has been weaving its web around Star Wars for some time, increasingly becoming the franchise's central multiplayer shooter. Over the past few years, Fortnite has offered numerous in-game skins for Star Wars characters, including a plot-significant audio log revealing Palpatine's return for Rise of Skywalker.
In the past, Battlefront games served as a platform for all aspects of the Star Wars universe to coalesce. Battlefront II was already marketed as a unification point for all three trilogies, while its post-launch updates incorporated maps, weapons, and characters from the sequels, prequels, Rogue One, and Solo. However, since ending support for Battlefront II in 2019, Star Wars hasn't managed to maintain steady momentum, raising doubts about the feasibility of a real Battlefront III.
By 2026, The Mandalorian and Grogu will likely cross paths with Fortnite, as will the Disney+ series Maul: Shadow Lord and the 2027 Starfighter film. Star Wars seems to be caught in Fortnite's clutches, with Disney unlikely to sever its partnership with Epic Games anytime soon.
Nevertheless, the wish for a Battlefront III won't fade as long as there are devoted fans hoping for its arrival. Star Wars is entering a new phase with upcoming movies and shows, potentially exploring times during and after the sequels. It remains to be seen how a third Battlefront game fits into the franchise's grand design and if it can survive in a world where online games are quickly overshadowed by the latest trends.
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- Despite the growing interest for a third installment of Star Wars Battlefront, the prospect of a Battlefront III seems remote, as current focus lies on single-player titles and collaborations with Fortnite.
- Gamers, tech enthusiasts, and Star Wars fanatics continue to look towards Gizmodo, Io9, and other tech outlets for updates on the potential development of Battlefront III, given the ongoing success of games like Star Wars Battlefront II.
- As EA remains focused on the development of Battlefield games and multiplayer titles shift towards collaborations with Fortnite, the future of Star Wars-based gadgets and games may lie beyond traditional starts-digital-one-number-three.
