Talk of a potential Star Wars Battlefront 3 has intensified this week, with multiple studios reportedly being considered for the development of the shooter sequel. The current wave of speculation began when Jeff Grubb of Giant Bomb shared a snippet from Electronic Gaming Monthly’s revived Quarterman column. This column claimed that Lucasfilm has significant plans for the Star Wars Battlefront series and is actively seeking a development partner.
According to EGM, two studios have been mentioned as being interested in the project: DICE, the original developer of the Battlefield and Battlefront series, and Bungie, known for its work on Halo, Destiny, and the upcoming Marathon.
While DICE would seem a natural fit, its ongoing work on the Battlefield series raises questions about its capacity. Bungie’s involvement would represent a significant surprise, especially given its current focus on turning around its extraction shooter Marathon and its continued commitment to the Destiny franchise. It seems unlikely that Bungie would have the bandwidth for a full-scale Battlefront 3 project in the near future.
Adding another layer to the rumors, Joe Brammer, head of Wardogs developer Bulkhead, suggested on X (formerly Twitter) that the project might involve a collaboration between DICE and Respawn Entertainment, the studio behind Titanfall, Apex Legends, and the Star Wars Jedi series. Brammer stated, "DICE and from what I’ve heard Respawn are working on Battlefront 3," but expressed uncertainty about the implications for the Battlefield franchise.
It appears that Star Wars Battlefront 3 may not yet be in active production, given that Lucasfilm is reportedly still searching for development partners. However, it is plausible that DICE and Respawn have engaged in pre-production activities, defining the game's concept and mechanics while seeking additional studios for assistance.
Fans of the Battlefront series have experienced similar anticipation before. The development of a Star Wars Battlefront 3 by Free Radical Design was reportedly near completion around 2008 before being canceled, with assets and builds of the game surfacing online over the years. EA later tasked DICE with rebooting the series in 2015 with the well-received Star Wars Battlefront. Its successor, Battlefront 2, faced a difficult launch in 2017 due to backlash surrounding its loot box mechanics. DICE subsequently spent years refining Battlefront 2, and the game is now held in high regard by many players.
Should DICE be involved in Battlefront 3, it will likely operate without many of the original team members who dispersed to various studios following Battlefront 2's release. Some of these former developers have joined Embark Studios, known for The Finals and Arc Raiders, leading to suggestions that Embark could be a suitable candidate for developing Battlefront 3.
The Star Wars gaming landscape is currently vibrant, with positive receptions to titles like Bit Reactor's strategy game Zero Company and Fuse Games' Galactic Racer fueling anticipation for future releases. Douglas Reilly, vice president of Lucasfilm Games, has stated that "huge triple-A games like Battlefront are always going to be an essential part of the strategy," while also confirming that smaller-scale games across various genres are in development. Reilly indicated that Lucasfilm Games is open to working with experienced teams and is exploring diverse projects, both large and small, with partners that may surprise the industry.