EA Announces New Era for Frostbite, but Points Out That Developers are Free to Choose the Engine
Electronic Arts is changing its philosophy regarding the Frostbite engine and wants developers to use the right engine for their games. It is up to the company to make sure that the technology is the best choice.
Electronic Arts is opening another chapter in the history of the Frostbite engine. The publisher has unveiled a new logo, which (as we read in a post on the company's official website) is meant to represent the technology as a "platform for collaborative innovation" and an "authentic partnership" with developers.
Leaving aside discussion of the genesis of the revised "handprint," EA stressed that Frostbite is set to become a "next-generation engine" (without revealing any technical details of the pending upgrade, however). The "philosophy" of the technology is also set to change: the company will place a "new emphasis on partnerships with teams and developers."
The evolution of the Frostbite technology logo.Source: Electronic Arts.
Interestingly, the post notes that although Frostbite was created "specifically for EA," publisher studios have a free hand in choosing the engine for their projects. It is up to the company to try to make sure that its own technology is the best choice for games developed by its member teams:
"Frostbite was developed specifically for EA and we are deeply committed to creating the best tools and technology for our games. In this new era, our mission is to unite and intensify the knowledge and efforts of every EA team that uses Frostbite, adapting to their unique needs in a way that only we can.
EA teams can develop games on any engine. It's our job to make Frostbite the best choice for our games."
This last statement seems to be true (vide the use of Unreal Engine 5 by the developers of new Mass Effect) and probably pleases developers (and gamers). After all, the former happened to complain about Frostbite. It was the problems with this technology that were to make themselves felt during work on such titles as Anthem and Dragon Age: Inquisition. Even DICE, which created Frostbite, allegedly did not avoid trouble.
