2024 has only just started and things are already not looking good for the gaming industry with numerous studios laying off a large portion of their workforce in the span of two months. If this wasn’t enough, Marcus Lehto, who you may know as the co-creator of the Halo game series and the director for Battlefield, has confirmed that he has officially left EA.
Lehto shared this news via a series of heartfelt tweets in which he says he left EA on his own accord and that it “was very a tough decision for me to make.” He would then go on to thank the Battlefield community for their support and for giving him a chance to listen to their feedback and help make the Battlefield games “stronger.” However, Letho then went on to say that in the meantime, he will be taking some time away from games as he tries to figure out what he will do next.
Yes, I left EA on my own accord.
This was very a tough decision for me to make.I want to thank the Battlefield community for allowing me to listen to you while I was able. Your feedback will help make Battlefield stronger.
I wish the teams at EA all the best moving forward.— Marcus Lehto (@game_fabricator) February 27, 2024
As for the reason for Marcus Lehto’s departure from EA, a spokesperson from the company said in a statement that was shared with IGN that, “Marcus Lehto has made the personal decision to step down as the Director of Battlefield Narrative. The work on Battlefield 2042 and our upcoming, unannounced Battlefield Universe continues.” While it is unfortunate that Lehto will no longer be a part of the future developments of the Battlefield franchise, it is good to know that the series will continue.
As mentioned earlier, Marcus Lehto is most known for his contribution in co-creating Microsoft’s flagship sci-fi shooter, Halo. He also provided additional art direction for the first Destiny game and even formed his own video game studio, V1 Interactive, which was sadly rather short lived after the studio’s original sci-fi FPS Disintegration had a rather lackluster launch. Still, we wish all the best for Marcus Lehto and his future endeavors, whatever they may be.