EA Acquires Respawn, Confirms New 'Titanfall' Game
After closing Down Visceral games, Electronic Arts (EA) decided to buy the company behind a critically-acclaimed multiplayer shooter game.
In a press release, EA announced that it has agreed to acquire Respawn Entertainment, the developer behind the "Titanfall" franchise. EA and Respawn have been working together, with the former publishing "Titanfall" and "Titanfall 2. "
"We've seen firsthand the world-class caliber of Respawn as a development studio with incredible vision, deep talent and an inspiring creative mindset," said Electronic Arts CEO Andrew Wilson. "Our longtime partnership is grounded in a shared desire to push the boundaries and deliver extraordinary and innovative new experiences for players around the world," he added.
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Wilson also said that "exciting plans to accomplish" now that Respawn is officially part of the EA family. Furthermore, he also confirmed that there will be a new title to be developed for the "Titanfall" franchise.
Meanwhile, Respawn CEO Vince Zampella explained that "to compete in the future" and face the challenges of a "rapidly changing landscape," it was time for them to "combine forces with a global industry leader like EA." Moreover, he said that he will still be in charge or running the operations at Respawn and that "no layoffs" will take place.
In addition, Zampella noted that the acquisition will benefit the company, saying that EA will provide "more resources, access to new technologies, and expertise" they can use to develop more titles without compromising the culture and creative freedom they enjoyed as an independent company.
EA will pay $151 million to acquire Respawn upfront, with an additional $164 million to be paid over the next four years.
According to Gamespot, Wilson shared some details during EA's recent Earnings Call concerning their decision to shut down Visceral Games. Wilson said that they had to think and go through about it very carefully before opting to pull the plug.
"Anytime you close a studio, it's a very, very tough decision and something that we take very seriously," said Wilson. "We spend a lot of time working through before we make such a decision. But it does happen from time to time as part of the creative process," he added.
In addition, he clarified that the decision was not because of a move to shift their production course toward Visceral's unannounced "Star Wars" game, and its single-player nature.
