EA Play Live 2021 Recap

(Image credit: Zoink)

Electronic Arts held their capstone event after four separate spotlights on first-person shooters, indie developers, Madden NFL 22, and FIFA 22. The EA Play Live 2021 event revealed new titles, expanded content for existing games, and a release date for the anticipated indie Lost in Random. The Load Screen recaps what they are looking forward to playing in the next few years from EA.

Racing gamers got a look into Grid Legends from Codemasters, which EA recently acquired. This game is one of the titles to come from the February purchase of the studio by EA; see the Codemasters and EA press release for more details. The game’s photorealistic cut scenes and dynamic character dialogue are impressive using XR capture technology for its diverse cast.

Two titles announced additional content; the first is Apex Legends: Emergence from Respawn Entertainment. The new expansion focused on Seer, who can track unsuspecting opponents and unleash an energy attack from his chest. The second title is Knockout City from Velan Studios, and they announced its Season 2. It is named Fight at the Movies, and it features film sets and even a giant child’s bedroom. Maybe this is a reference to the Antman movies or the Honey I Shrunk the Kids series? Hopefully, it will make more sense when Season 2 drops July 27 with crossplay on all platforms.

Then there is Battlefield 2042, which took center stage at EA Play Live 2021. The developers demonstrated one of three play modes for the latest title from DICE called Battlefield Portal. The mode was developed by Ripple Effect studio, and it has the most open-ended gameplay ever within the Battlefield franchise. It allows players to create and share their custom lobbies with content from every game in the collection back to the original Battlefield 1942. The level selection is limited, but it contains all the 2042 maps plus a selection of fan favorites from across the franchise. Players can blend genres and equipment from any of the games, including balancing teams to match any crazy setup they can come up with in Portal.

Indie developer Zoink finally gave a release date for their twisted epic narrative called Lost in Random. The artistic game comes out on September 10 for PC, Xbox, and PlayStation. A gameplay trailer showed off the title’s unique style, including how the main character named Odd rolls her companion Dicey for extra damage and effect. The world of Random is ruled by an evil queen who has turned large sections into a giant board game. The story implications plus unique gameplay make this an indie to look out for later this year.

Finally, EA had one more trick left in-store and revealed a Dead Space remake from Frostbite at the end of the show. While the next-gen edition is highly anticipated, the game is barely in development and has no projected release date. The EA Play Live 2021 event had a lot packed into 30 minutes, and there was even more in the preshow. Check out the entire event on the EA Play Live page or read the EA Play Live in brief artricle. The Lost in Random gameplay and the release date was the biggest unveil for the team at The Load Screen, but the new Battlefield Portal concept is just as enticing. Either way, EA has a lot of gameplay coming in the next few years across multiple genres.