Publisher EA has just announced that they are acquiring Titanfall and Titanfall 2 development studio Respawn Entertainment. The deal, which includes cash, equity, and performance milestone payments valued at $455M, will add one more studio to the publisher's wing, just weeks after EA announced the shuttering of Visceral Studios and the end of its single-player, linear, story-driven Star Wars game. EA fought for this acquisition, outbidding South Korean publisher Nexon, who also had their eyes on Respawn.

"We've had success as an independent company but as we look to how we want to compete in the future, and the challenges that face us in a rapidly changing landscape, now is the time for us to combine forces with a global industry leader like EA," said Vince Zampella, Respawn Entertainment's CEO in a blog post on Respawn's website. "EA will provide us with more resources, access to new technologies, and expertise that we can tap into to that will help us make better games, and Respawn will retain the same creative freedom and culture we've always had," he added. "We've been talking closely with the leadership at EA and we share their values and vision for the future of being a developer-focused company that puts the players first."EA was publisher for Respawn's Titanfall and Titanfall 2, which were released to critical and user acclaim. Titanfall 2, in particular, was extremely well received by reviewers and users, and has been receiving continued free support by way of patches and additional multiplayer content by the developers. However, the game did launch to somewhat disappointing sales that didn't line up with expectations, which was to be expected: the game's release was sandwiched between two industry FPS heavy-hitters, Call of Duty: infinite Warfare and Battlefield 1. It's being mentioned that EA's choice to launch Titanfall 2 between those two big releases might have been a way for the publisher to soften and prime Respawn Entertainment's position so as to facilitate an eventual acquisition. Respawn will receive bonuses tied to Metacritic scores for both its upcoming Star Wars game and the as-of-yet-unannounced (but known to be in development) Titanfall 3. Given EA's decision to move all studios under its helm towards developing under the Frostbite engine, it's likely future Respawn Entertainment projects will also make use of the engine.