EA Delays Battlefield to Avoid Clash with GTA 6

2025 is shaping up to be an epic year for triple-A video games. Not only are we eagerly anticipating the launch of the Nintendo Switch 2 and its exclusive titles, but we're also looking forward to a slew of major releases later in the year, including Borderlands 4, Mafia: The Old Country, and Ghost of Yōtei. And, as expected, Activision is set to release another installment in the Call of Duty franchise, likely in October or November.

However, the game that everyone's eyes are on is Rockstar's highly anticipated Grand Theft Auto 6, slated for a fall 2025 release on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S. While Take-Two, Rockstar's parent company, remains committed to this timeline, there's always the looming possibility of a delay. This uncertainty, combined with the crowded field of big releases, poses a significant challenge for EA's next Battlefield game in finding its own space in the market.

EA has scheduled the next Battlefield for its 2026 fiscal year, which ends in April 2026. This puts it right in the thick of potential competition from GTA 6, as well as other heavy hitters like Call of Duty and Borderlands 4. How much should EA take into account the release dates of these competing titles? According to EA CEO Andrew Wilson, the answer is quite a bit—and they might even consider delaying Battlefield if necessary.

In a recent financial call, Wilson acknowledged the competitive nature of the gaming industry, stating, "Certainly we exist in a competitive marketplace... We've invested more in this Battlefield than any Battlefield before. We have four studios. We've had a meaningful amount of time. We're looking for this to be the biggest Battlefield we've ever made. And we of course want to make sure that we launch that into a window where we can deliver on the fullness of the promise of what Battlefield can be and grow the community to a level that is commensurate with the size of the game that we're making."

He further elaborated, "I do believe that this year might be a nuanced year relative to competition. There may be some things happening in the year that may cause us to think differently about our launch timing. We have an FY 26 launch window that the team is targeting. We believe the game will be great and ready at that time, but if we got close to that timeframe and believed that this wasn't going to be a great window for us, then we would take a look at what an alternate window might be that would give us the appropriate time, energy, and player acquisition opportunity for this Battlefield to be all that it needed to be."

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Currently, the new Battlefield is set to release before April 2026. If we speculate a November 2025 launch (considering Battlefield 2042 was released in November 2021 and Battlefield 5 in November 2018), what happens if GTA 6 launches around the same time? EA might opt to delay Battlefield to the first quarter of 2026, still within its fiscal year.

Alternatively, if EA plans to release Battlefield in Q1 2026 and Rockstar delays GTA 6 to the same period, EA could consider moving Battlefield forward or, if necessary, push it beyond its fiscal year into the next. This would be a significant decision, but one that Wilson's comments suggest EA is ready to make.

It's clear why EA, along with many other third-party publishers, are on tenterhooks waiting for Rockstar to announce the GTA 6 release date. Once that's revealed, whether it sticks to the planned fall 2025 or shifts to 2026, the rest of the industry's release calendar will likely adjust accordingly.