Battlefield 6 was a commercial triumph for Electronic Arts, but the outcome for some of the people who made it was far less positive. Even with a major hit on its hands, the publisher still cut workers connected to the game.
What happened?
Despite Battlefield 6's success, EA let go of an undisclosed number of developers tied to the game earlier this year. Meanwhile, a later executive compensation filing showed that CEO Andrew Wilson received over $38 million in total pay for the previous fiscal year, according to Polygon. That total was more than $8 million higher than the year before.
The filing also showed multimillion-dollar compensation for other senior leaders: CFO Stuart Canfield made more than $11.3 million, EA Entertainment president Laura Miele earned $13.7 million, chief people officer Mala Singh received $8.4 million, and general counsel Jacob Schatz made $8.5 million.
Those payouts came during a record year for EA. The company said net revenue reached $7.531 billion, up 9%, with Battlefield 6 playing a major role in that growth after becoming the biggest launch in franchise history.
By December, analyst Rhys Elliott said the game had sold more than 20 million copies, making it the top-selling game in the U.S. in 2025 and the first Battlefield title to outsell that year's Call of Duty entry.
Why does it matter?
Reports said the March cuts affected developers at Criterion, Dice, Ripple Effect, and Motive Studios as EA carried out what it described as a "realignment."
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Across the gaming industry, companies have pointed to rising costs, crowded release schedules, and hardware issues.
It's just another example of a company laying off large numbers of employees while executives take home record compensation. Tech companies, the insurance industry, and utility companies claim that they can't do anything about rising costs or layoffs, yet executives keep cashing in.
What's being done?
EA has said the layoffs were part of a restructuring effort meant to sharpen its focus on Battlefield. Even after cutting staff tied to the franchise, the company has indicated that it remains central to its future plans.
At the same time, EA is moving closer to a major ownership change. Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund is pursuing a $55 billion acquisition of the company alongside Silver Lake and Affinity Partners, the investment firm founded by Jared Kushner. The European Commission recently approved the deal.
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Wilson praised the company's performance, saying, "Driven by our talented teams and disciplined execution, we delivered a record FY26, highlighted by the incredibly successful launch of our iconic Battlefield franchise." An EA spokesperson said, "We've made select changes within our Battlefield organization to better align our teams around what matters most to our community."
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