Byron Beede, a former General Manager of the Call of Duty franchise and Bungie's Destiny 2, has been hired by Electronic Arts to manage the Battlefield franchise. Both first-person shooter series have become staples of the popular genre, with Battlefield first releasing in 2002 and Call of Duty arriving a year later in 2003. Over nearly two decades both franchises have grown and changed, adding modern technology and innovations to the classic first-person shooter formula.
Managing to coexist as staples of the always-popular FPS genre, both the Call of Duty and Battlefield series show no signs of stopping in the near future. Call of Duty Warzone, a free-to-play battle royale installment in the franchise which first launched in 2020, is expected to enter its fourth season in the near future. The game's seasonal structure allows for periodic additions and changes, and the transition from Season 3 to Season 4 will surely be no exception. Meanwhile, Battlefield publisher EA recently announced that the next game in the series, Battlefield 6, will be announced on June 9. The game will be the newest title in the franchise to release since 2018's Battlefield V.
A report from IGN reveals that EA recently hired former Call of Duty General Manager, Byron Beede, to help grow the Battlefield franchise. Beede's impressive resume also lists him as a Senior Vice President on Bungie's Destiny 2, a role which he will also fill for Battlefield. In light of the impending announcement of Battlefield 6, the acquisition of Beede suggests that EA is looking to ensure the success of the new project and strengthen the franchise moving forward.
With highly experienced new talent and an impending announcement, the Battlefield franchise is looking to be in a strong position. Xbox and EA recently teased that Battlefield 6 will launch as an Xbox Game Pass title, which would add even more value to Microsoft's digital gaming service. The Twitter accounts belonging to both companies tweeted, "June is our favorite month. it rhymes with soon," with the EA tweet referring to Battlefield 6 and the Xbox tweet relating to Game Pass. The suspiciously identical phrasing certainly hints to a connection between the two, and more may be revealed when the next Battlefield installment is announced on June 9.
Byron Beede's resume demonstrates a ton of experience with managing a first-person shooter franchise, making EA's acquisition a fantastic achievement. With the announcement of the next Battlefield game imminent, it is possible that EA is preparing to give the dominant Call of Duty franchise a healthy dose of competition by hiring the Destiny 2 veteran.
Source: IGN