For a game fans still know so little about, Anthem has been in the spotlight quite a bit over the last week. It began with rumors hinting at a possible delay, which ultimately caused EA's stocks to drop before the company could get out ahead of it. EA confirmed the news days later, though management like CFO Blake Jorgensen was clearly frustrated at how the delay was being perceived. Thanks to EA's quarterly earnings call, fans now have a bit more insight into not only why the game was delayed but how development is shaping up at BioWare.

According to EA CEO Andrew Wilson, Anthem is tracking well and meeting all of its development milestones. Wilson is also very confident of the game's ship date and doesn't actually consider the new 2019 launch window as an actual delay, even though it's being portrayed as such. In this case, however, EA made the decision based on portfolio considerations rather than a need from a development or readiness standpoint.

EA announces 350-person layoffs

In this case, EA is fairly excited at how the latest Battlefield game is coming together, which is expected sometime in the fall of 2018. Considering Anthem is a new IP, and that the Battlefield franchise is so well-known and popular already, it doesn't make much sense to launch to two products near each other. To help give Anthem a little more room to breathe and the attention it needs from fans, the decision was made to launch it sometime during the less crowded months of January through March 31, 2019.

This isn't the first time fans have seen a scheduling situation like this with EA, though the most recent example didn't go quite so smoothly for one of its games. Titanfall 2, the sequel to its well-received predecessor, had a lot going for it prior to release. Respawn Entertainment showed off a stylish single-player campaign, a deeper multiplayer experience, and revealed plans for DLC expansions at no cost to the player. Unfortunately, Titanfall 2 was scheduled for release between the juggernaut that would be Battlefield 1, and that year's installment of Call of Duty. While Titanfall 2 wasn't a new IP at this point, Battlefield and Call of Duty remain two very strong franchises with dedicated players, which ultimately resulted in slower than expected sales for the well-reviewed shooter.

Anthem is planned for release in early 2019 for the PC, PS4, and Xbox One.

Source: EA