As if it needed to be said, Electronic Arts had a rough go of it with its last game for the Star Wars franchise with 2017's launch of Battlefront 2, especially when one considers the fact that the company's stock dropped in value by $3.1 billion following the fallout from the shooter sequel's loot box controversy. Now, though, it looks as if the publisher plans on forging ahead with another video game inspired by the property, as a recent job listing suggests that EA is working on an open world game inspired by the science fiction brand.
According to the job listing, Electronic Arts is looking for someone to fill the position of Lead Online Engineer in Burnaby – home to EA Vancouver's studio – that will help "lead a team to deliver Online features for a Star Wars Open World project." Unfortunately, though, the remainder of the post doesn't offer much in the way of concrete details regarding the contents of the unnamed project. However, there are references to the game being multi-platform, as well as a line stating that applicants will need to have "experience implementing Online features such as Matchmaking, Asynchronous interactions, Live services, Server-host migration, etc."
For those unaware, this isn't the first time that evidence has cropped up regarding Electronic Arts potentially working on a Star Wars game with an open world design. As a matter of fact, a 2013 job listing on EA’s recruitment site sought an Animation Director for a new project that fit a similar description. However, it's quite possible that due to the tumultuous nature of Electronic Arts' last several months, the aforementioned Animation Director position could have no bearing on the upcoming Star Wars title that needs a Lead Online Engineer.
Speaking of turbulence related to Electronic Arts, many were surprised a few months back when the publisher decided to close Visceral Games and shut down the now-defunct studio's then-in-development Star Wars game, as it was cited as being too linear. What's more is that the company also announced that the title was no longer going to be a story-based project and would instead provide a "broader experience that allows for more variety and player agency," with EA Vancouver being enlisted to take over production.
Taking all of this into consideration, it's difficult to confirm whether or not this recent job post for a Lead Online Engineer for the integration of "Live services" is in any way related to the Star Wars project that was once being worked on by Visceral Games. However, when one considers the fact that the position is going to be based in Burnaby – which, again, is home to EA Vancouver's studio, the publisher's branch that took over development of Visceral's shuttered project – it seems as if the once linear and story-based game is now being morphed into an online open world experience. Should this be the case regarding the origins of the unannounced open world Star Wars project, then it would lend credence to ex-BioWare developer Manveer Heir's claims that EA's motives are purely for financial gain in that it favors open world games to push microtransactions.
Electronic Arts' open world Star Wars title has yet to be officially confirmed.
Source: EA – Careers