EA reveals why Battlefield 6 won't be available on PS5 and Xbox Project Scarlett at launch. The publisher had surprised many of its fans by confirming that the next Battlefield game wouldn't be released until 2022, in a break from the popular shooter series' alternating release schedule.

In a call with investors and analysts, EA CEO Andrew Wilson said that the company had thought about making Battlefield 6 a PS5 and Xbox Project Scarlett launch title. The next game will be doing things that other Battlefield games haven't done and Wilson also said that it would be "cutting edge." Wilson also said that EA saw that "launching into the next-gen platforms was going to offer tremendous opportunity for innovation" but the company chose not to release Battlefield 6 in holiday 2020 when the new consoles launch for one good reason.

Wilson explained that EA "really wanted to give the install base some opportunity to grow," allowing gamers to really catch onto the PS5 and Xbox Project Scarlett, buying the consoles in their numbers before Battlefield 6 becomes available. Choosing to release Battlefield 6 like this is a "really strong move" for the company, said Wilson, and it "presents us with an opportunity for strong two years of growth."

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It may not be surprising to see EA err on the side of caution when it comes to supporting a new console. EA has said that it won't bring series like The Sims to the Nintendo Switch because it doesn't believe that people will play them. The company has released just five games on console since 2017 although the Switch has now sold more than 40 million units around the world. If early sales also suggested that the PS5 and Xbox Project Scarlett could be duds then it may not put its resources into bringing Battlefield 6 to the new consoles.

EA will also be more cautious as having a larger player base is now much more important to its sales. The company develops live service games that offer large amounts of DLC and events for players to enjoy long after launch. These games can keep players spending more for longer and make billions for publishers like EA. Bringing Battlefield 6 to PS5 and Xbox Project Scarlett early is a risk and it seems EA isn't willing to take it right now.

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Source: SeekingAlpha