EA Head Leading Black Panther Game Developer, Among Other Studios, Departs

The upcoming open-world Black Panther game from EA has turned quite a few heads already. But devs at EA are already going through internal restructuring as General Manager Samantha Ryan has left the company. Ryan was lading Cliffhanger Games, a sister group of EA Sports. Cliffhanger Games is developing Black Panther and is rumored to boast some of the industry veterans.

Ryan has also been in charge of multiple EA divisions that develop games like The Sims, Skate, Mass Effect, and Dead Space. With her departure, EA is believed to have plans that look to promote Rachel Franklin from the Positive Play division.

Reshuffle at EA will see new leadership

With Samantha Ryan leaving EA, the company now needs to restructure its internal divisions to make sure the upcoming projects are not derailed. Along with the new Black Panther IP, there are several other titles in the development stage right now.

EA Sports is comprised of multiple subdivisions including BioWare, Full Circle, Motive Studios, Cliffhanger Games, and Maxis Studios. These departments all have their hands full with multiple titles. With Ryan gone, her responsibilities will now be split between two new people. Motive, Cliffhanger Games, and BioWare will now be reporting to Laura Miele, head of EA Entertainment. Titles like Apex Legends and Star Wars will be overseen by EA Entertainment, making it one of the biggest sub-divisions of EA Sports.

Read more Rumor: Upcoming Black Panther Game Will be Open-World and Built on Unreal Engine 5

On the other hand, Full Circle and Maxis are set to come under Rachel Franklin’s leadership, who is now the general manager of Lifestyle Entertainment. With Maxis and Full Circle having similar community expectations, it only makes sense for these two divisions to be headed by Franklin.

Works to begin soon on the Black Panther IP

A couple of weeks back, EA Sports confirmed rumors of an upcoming Black Panther game to be developed by Cliffhanger. To make sure the experience of Wakanda is replicated properly for the fans, the devs set up the new studio. Bringing together some of the biggest names from the industry, EA hopes to make Black Panther a sort of flagship release.

Designed using Unreal Engine 5, fans hope Black Panther will mark a titular shift in the RPG gaming experience. The rumors of the game being in development were confirmed with two job postings by Cliffhanger Games that caught the eyes of the community. Cliffhanger has been looking for a Senior Game Designer and a Senior Software Engineer, with the possible motivations to develop an expansive world for Black Panther.

How do you think the restructuring is likely to affect EA’s operations? Share your thoughts below.

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