Titanfall 2 Release Date Controversy: EA Thinks Many Players Will Buy TF2 and BF1

Titanfall 2, by almost all metrics including our own review, is a really good game. Following off the first title in the series, which was well regarded but had a short shelf life, it seems that Respawn Entertainment has righted almost every wrong that held back the original Titanfall. However, it’s looking more and more like sales won’t live up to the quality of the game. This is largely attributed to the Titanfall 2 release date, which put it right in the middle of some other massive shooters.

This has led to a lot of controversy over the release date decision, which Respawn has said was set a long time ago and could not be changed. Still, gamers are wondering what the thought process was behind putting Titanfall 2 so close to its fellow EA shooter Battlefield 1, and right ahead of what is likely its biggest competitor, Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare.

In an earnings call, via Gamespot, EA responded to this with CEO Andrew Wilson saying that Battlefield 1 and Titanfall 2 “have some overlap” but that they “fulfill very different motivations in what a player is looking for.” In fact, he goes on to explain that EA thought there were three different types of shooter fans.

“We think there’s really three types of players,” explained Wilson. “People that really love Battlefield and that kind of big strategic gameplay that will orient in that direction; the player that loves the fast, fluid, kinetic gameplay of Titanfall 2 that really orient in that direction; and the player that just has to play the two greatest shooters this year and will buy both.”

Wilson went on to praise both games and the reception that they have received. “And again, we’re very very excited about the quality in both titles. We believe they both will have a long sale cycle, both this quarter through the festive season and deep into the years to come. And so as we think about the long game on this, we couldn’t be in a better position for what we think is delivering great games to a very, very big player base.”

Do you think EA assessed things correctly? Will shooter fans end up buying both Battlefield 1 and Titanfall 2, and perhaps Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare as well? Will you? Let us know in the comments below.