The Outlook for the Continuation of 'Star Wars Battlefront' Series
Fervor for a new Star Wars Battlefront title has resurged among gamers and fans, spearheaded by the renewed popularity of DICE's Battlefront II from 2017. The game's player count on PC has surged, prompting the community to organize a global day-long event to capitalize on the momentum and exhibit the resilience of the Battlefront community.
This revival in interest has been triggered by Star Wars' May 4 holiday and actor Muhannad Ben Amor, best known for his role as Wilmon in the Andor series, expressing his desire for another entry in the franchise.
Over nearly two decades, the multiplayer shooter series has seen two distinct phases. Its initial games were launched during the Star Wars prequel era by the now-defunct Pandemic Studios, while the more contemporary editions were developed by DICE. Despite numerous attempts, neither series reached a third installment. A Battlefront III for the original series was in development with several studios, including Timesplitters creator Free Radical Design. However, endeavors to restart the games under LucasArts, such as an online-only entry, a smaller-scale multiplayer game, and a fourth game featuring Obi-Wan and Luke as Sith Lords, were futile.
The question of whether Star Wars Battlefront will return and why it should is intricate and challenging to answer. The challenge of crafting engaging games based on the Star Wars property has been a recurring obstacle over the years. Some of the most iconic Star Wars games have been those that never materialized, such as the Boba Fett-starring 1313 or third entries for the Knights of the Old Republic and Force Unleashed series, two sub-series that parallelized Battlefront. Even Electronic Arts (EA), the current license holder, faced challenges; it canceled a pirate-focused project from Visceral Games and Motive Studios, and later abandoned a first-person shooter centered on a Mandalorian in development at Respawn, the creators of the critically acclaimed Star Wars Jedi games.
At present, DICE is solely focused on the next installation of Battlefield, with other EA studios on standby to assist. Given this focus, another Battlefront title doesn't seem imminent, let alone in the near future, according to a former live producer on Battlefront II who addressed the issue on Reddit. He suggested a remaster of the previous game as a stepping stone before developing a proper sequel, ideally involving members of the original team who were interested in working on it. Such a remaster could potentially serve as a viable entry point, but whether EA would be open to the idea is uncertain, given that the Pandemic-made Battlefront games have been remastered less frequently than other titles in the company's catalog.
Since 2019's Fallen Order, Star Wars has primarily explored single-player titles, including Star Wars Outlaws by Ubisoft and the 2026 Zero Company project by Bit Reactor. apart from the space combat-focused Star Wars Squadrons, EA has yet to commit to a new Star Wars multiplayer game, potentially due to the backlash surrounding Battlefront II's initial monetization. Additionally, the success of Fortnite's "Galactic Battle" event and numerous in-game skins for Star Wars characters, coupled with the plot-significant audio log revealing Palpatine's return in Rise of Skywalker, have cemented Fortnite as the most significant multiplayer shooter in the Star Wars franchise.
Borrowing from the Star Wars universe, both past iterations of Star Wars Battlefront existed at a time when they could serve as the primary hub for all Star Wars content. Battlefront II was already marketed as a unification point for all three trilogies, and as part of the game's rehabilitation efforts, DICE invested heavily in post-launch updates that incorporated maps, weapons, and characters from the sequels, prequels, Rogue One, and Solo. In the time since DICE ended support for the game in 2019, Star Wars has been increasingly tied to Fortnite, and it remains uncertain whether the franchise has the momentum to justify a genuine Battlefront III.
With the release of The Mandalorian & Grogu in 2026, a Fortnite tie-in event is likely, alongside similar collaborations for Disney+'s Maul: Shadow Lord series and the 2027 Starfighter film. much like Star Wars, electronic Arts seems entangled in the web of Epic Games, and it's unclear whether Disney will sever this partnership anytime soon.
Despite the seemingly insurmountable odds, hope for a Star Wars Battlefront III persists. But as Star Wars enters a new phase with promises of more movies and shows, questions arise as to how such a game would fit into the franchise's larger designs, and who will be available to develop it in an era where online games, regardless of scale, are often cast aside.
- Gizmodo and io9 have been discussing the potential future of Star Wars Battlefront, given the surge in interest from gamers and fans, as well as the comments made by actor Muhannad Ben Amor about the possibility of another game in the franchise.
- The success of Fortnite's "Galactic Battle" event and the plot-significant return of Palpatine in Rise of Skywalker have made Fortnite the most significant multiplayer shooter in the Star Wars franchise, leaving room for speculation about the viability of a Star Wars Battlefront III.
- In a Reddit post, a former live producer on Battlefront II suggested that a remaster of the previous game could serve as a stepping stone for a proper sequel, ideally involving members of the original team who are interested in working on it, thus keeping hope alive for a potential Star Wars Battlefront III in the face of the current focus on Battlefield and the unclear future of Star Wars multiplayer games.
