Star Wars Battlefront 3 may finally be moving forward, with Lucasfilm reportedly searching for a studio to take on a new entry in the long-dormant shooter series.

DICE and Bungie are both said to be in the mix, according to a rumor published in the revived Quartermann column in Electronic Gaming Monthly's Issue 265 and discussed Monday by journalist Jeff Grubb on Game Mess Mornings. No deal has been announced, and Grubb cautioned that the game does not appear to be in production yet, but conversations are reportedly taking place over who could develop it.

The report comes nearly nine years after Star Wars Battlefront II launched in 2017 and more than six years after DICE ended active development on the game. Despite its notoriously troubled debut, Battlefront II went on to build a large following that has persisted well beyond the end of official support, and that longevity is reportedly one reason Lucasfilm is interested in returning to the series.

Lucasfilm Reportedly Wants Another Battlefront

According to the Quartermann report, Lucasfilm has been actively looking for a development partner for another Battlefront rather than simply waiting for a studio to pitch one.

DICE is the obvious candidate. The Swedish studio developed both of EA's modern Battlefront games, beginning with Star Wars Battlefront in 2015 and following it with Battlefront II two years later. Its version of the series established the large-scale multiplayer battles, vehicles, heroes and cinematic presentation that many players now associate with Battlefront.

Bungie is the more unexpected possibility. The studio behind Halo, Destiny and Marathon has never developed a Battlefront game, but it has decades of experience building multiplayer shooters and recently worked with Lucasfilm Games on Renegades, the Star Wars-themed Destiny 2 expansion released in 2025.

Grubb said the situation sounds more like early conversations than a game that has already entered full development. Neither Lucasfilm, DICE nor Bungie has publicly confirmed the project.

Battlefront II's Comeback May Have Changed the Equation

Another Battlefront once looked far less likely.

Battlefront II launched in 2017 under intense criticism over its progression system and use of loot boxes, with EA disabling in-game purchases just before release. The backlash quickly overwhelmed much of the conversation around what had been one of the publisher's biggest Star Wars releases.

DICE spent the following years rebuilding the game. Progression was overhauled, new heroes and maps were added, Clone Wars content expanded significantly, and Battlefront II continued receiving updates until support ended in 2020.

The game did not disappear with them. Battlefront II has continued drawing players years later, helped by renewed interest in Star Wars gaming, frequent sales and an active community that has kept producing mods and other unofficial content.

The Quartermann report specifically points to that staying power as part of Lucasfilm's interest in another game.

DICE Would Offer Continuity

A return to DICE would give Battlefront 3 a direct line back to the previous two games, although the studio itself is in a different position than it was when Battlefront II ended.

DICE has spent the years since focused primarily on Battlefield, including its current work supporting Battlefield 6. A new Battlefront would have to compete for resources inside a studio already responsible for one of EA's largest multiplayer franchises.

There would also be considerable expectations attached to a third DICE game. Battlefront II ended development with players still asking for more characters, planets and eras, and the years since have only expanded the list of Star Wars material a sequel could draw from.

If Lucasfilm instead went with Bungie, Battlefront 3 could take a much different shape.

Bungie Would Be a Major Change for Battlefront

Bungie's history makes it an intriguing fit for a Star Wars shooter, but not necessarily an obvious continuation of what DICE built.

Halo established the studio as one of the defining console shooter developers of its era, while Destiny turned Bungie's focus toward persistent online worlds, long-term progression and years of post-launch support. Those strengths could translate well to Battlefront, but they could also produce a game with a different structure from DICE's Battlefield-inspired approach.

Bungie is also busy. The studio continues to work on Destiny 2 while developing Marathon, making it unclear what capacity it would currently have for another major licensed shooter.

Its previous collaboration with Lucasfilm at least means the two companies already have an established working relationship, something that would make Bungie's inclusion in these discussions less surprising than it might have sounded a few years ago.

Lucasfilm Has More Options Than It Did in 2017

The business around Star Wars games has also changed dramatically since Battlefront II was released.

EA's exclusive agreement to produce major Star Wars games ended in 2023, opening the franchise to a broader group of publishers and developers. EA remains involved with Star Wars through projects including Respawn Entertainment's Jedi series, but Lucasfilm Games is no longer tied to a single publisher when deciding where new games should be made.

That freedom has already led to Star Wars projects spread across a wider range of studios. A new Battlefront could still return to EA and DICE, but it no longer has to.

The reported interest from Bungie is a reminder of how much that relationship has changed. Battlefront spent most of the last decade closely associated with EA. Lucasfilm can now consider taking it somewhere else.

Battlefront 3 Has Not Been Announced

For now, the biggest caveat remains that Star Wars Battlefront 3 is still a rumor.

The reporting does not indicate that either DICE or Bungie has signed a deal, nor that full production has started. There is no release window, no announced platforms and no indication of what form another Battlefront would take.

What the report does suggest is that Lucasfilm is no longer leaving the franchise untouched. After years in which Battlefront 3 existed mostly as something fans continued asking for, the company is reportedly trying to find a studio willing to make it.

Whether that ends with DICE returning, Bungie taking over or another developer entering the picture remains unresolved. But nearly a decade after Battlefront II, the prospect of a third game appears to be back in serious discussion.