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Burnout and a Bloated Budget: Battlefield 6 Devs Open Up About Troubled Production

July 3, 2025, 01:00 PM

Ars Technica has published an in-depth report on the development of the next Battlefield installment, based on conversations with current and former developers. Here are the key takeaways:

The game’s troubled journey began with the launch of Battlefield 2042, a title that left both fans and the development team disappointed. In response, EA implemented new internal processes aimed at catching issues earlier in development;
The company also brought in several high-profile executives, including former Call of Duty GM Byron Beede, Halo co-creator Marcus Lehto, and Respawn veteran Vince Zampella. The leadership shake-up led to the departure of some longtime DICE developers;
EA is reportedly targeting 100 million players with Battlefield 6, aiming to compete directly with Call of Duty and Fortnite. For context, the franchise's most successful entry to date, Battlefield 1, drew about 30 million players;
That ambitious goal will be supported by two free-to-play modes — a battle royale and a new mode called Gauntlet — in addition to a six-hour single-player campaign, traditional multiplayer, and a returning Portal editor;
Battlefield 6 is shaping up to be the most expensive game in the series. In 2023, the budget was reportedly $400 million, but ongoing development issues have inflated that figure further;
Serious problems began in 2024, when Ridgeline — the studio behind the single-player campaign — presented its work after two years of development. EA leadership was reportedly unimpressed, shut down the studio, and saw Marcus Lehto exit the project;
The campaign was then handed off to Criterion, DICE, and Motive, who had to rebuild it from scratch. As of late spring 2025, it remained the only mode not to reach alpha testing, putting it two years behind schedule;
Much of the planned content is expected to launch post-release, and players should brace for massive day-one patches — a factor that could hurt early reviews;
Internal sources say crunch and burnout have become common. Some developers reportedly took extended medical leave due to stress and exhaustion lasting for months.

A full reveal of Battlefield 6 is expected later this summer. A release date has yet to be announced.

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About the author

Eduard Zamikhovsky

News Author

News writer at VGTimes. I've fallen in love with games since childhood and began writing about them professionally in 2018. Equally passionate about Fable, PlayStation exclusives, and The Legend of Zelda.

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