REACTION - Ripple Effect Studios Is A Chance For New Beginnings

Out of the shadows.

By Jay Tee
08/07/21

It can be a tough pill to swallow when you see talented development teams, who have an existing pedigree of creating their own projects, getting relegated to support status. Studio collaborations are one thing, and a necessity within AAA development. But when you see amazing teams like Rare forced into Kinect and Xbox Avatars, Toys 4 Bob getting repurposed to focus on Call of Duty, or Vicarious Visions being absorbed into Blizzard, it’s a tad deflating from a creative standpoint.

DICE LA (formerly known as Danger Close Games, and EA Los Angeles before that) have transformed once again into Ripple Effect Studios. While they are currently working on a mode in Battlefield 2042, they’re also staffing up for a brand new IP. Anytime a new AAA studio enters that space, the potential is palpable.

It’s nice to see EA investing more into their studio infrastructure, after a series of high profile closures (I’m still bitter about Visceral).