When EA announced their exclusivity deal with Disney to make Star Wars games, EA had pegged DICE, Visceral, and BioWare as the front runners to work on making games for the brand. Plans are moving forward, as EA has announced the formation of DICE LA, a US based arm of the developer.
The Wall Street Journal writes, "Electronic Arts, fresh off announcing it cut 10% of its workforce to trim costs, is investing in a new Los Angeles studio for its Stockholm-based DICE game developer with the goal of poaching talent from rivals like Activision Blizzard."
Poaching talent? Apparently. As DICE's general manager Karl-Magnus Troedsson told the Journal, "There is an extreme talent pool over that we want a part of. It's no secret that our main competitor is there." Troedsson is referring to the developers behind Battlefield's own FPS rival Call of Duty, Activision and its own studios, Treyarch and Infinity Ward.
It's unclear if DICE LA will be making Star Wars games based on original concepts, the upcoming movies, or something from the huge expanded universe. Going from EA Labels president Frank Gibeau's previous statements, Frostbite will be the primary engine for the new Star Wars games.
The new studio is already in the midst of recruiting, using the Battlefield Twitter handle to spread the word. As of late, they've already scooped up Danger Close, the studio behind Medal of Honor: Warfighter. According to DICE's job site, the studio is also looking for a development manager, level designer, and various other positions. The studio hopes to add 60 new staff members by the end of 2013.
