EA Shares Plunge After One Month 'Battlefield V' Delay

Electronic Arts (EA) had to delay one of its biggest upcoming games with relatively short notice this week, and investors were not pleased with the decision. In the wake of Thursday’s delay of “Battlefield V,” EA stocks dropped by around 9 percent by market close.

The upcoming World War II-themed first-person shooter was less than two months away from its launch when EA decided to give it a new release date of Nov. 20. Though that is only a month delay from its original late October launch date, it came relatively late in the game’s marketing cycle.

In a blog post, DICE general manager Oskar Gabrielson explained the decision to push back the release date was to make some final adjustments to gameplay. However, the decision may have had something to do with the Oct. 26 release of “Red Dead Redemption 2.” The newest game from “Grand Theft Auto” developer Rockstar Games is expected to be a big seller, and EA may have wanted to move out of its way.

Though not nearly as dramatically as Thursday’s plunge, EA shares dropped a bit just after the markets opened on Friday, as well. At the time of writing, EA’s stock price was down 1.2 percent.

EA’s holiday season release slate is still filled with reliable heavy-hitters like “Madden 19” and the upcoming “FIFA 19.” The newest game in the annual NFL franchise has reportedly done fine for EA, while “FIFA” is a veritable sales behemoth every year. If “Battlefield V” is anything like its 2016 predecessor “Battlefield 1,” it will likely be a success, too.

Still, questions linger about EA thanks to a slew of PR scandals and disappointments, as well as shifting industry trends. In 2017, the once-powerful “Need for Speed” series disappointed with its latest entry in “Payback.” In the same holiday season, EA contended with the disastrous “Star Wars Battlefront II” paid loot box scandal.

The continued dominance of “Fortnite” has also backed major publishers like EA and Activision Blizzard into a corner. Bank of America Merrill Lynch downgraded its rating for both firms this week over worries that “Fortnite” might take a bite out of sales of EA’s “Battlefield V” and Activision’s “Call of Duty: Black Ops 4.”

Both games will feature modes reminiscent of the battle royale, last-man-standing mode that made “Fortnite” one of the biggest games in the world.