PlanetSide 2 is getting a big update as developer tries to build interest in a sequel

PlanetSide 2, the multiplayer combat game that first launched in 2012, is getting a big update on Feb. 26. Executive producer Andy Sites tells Polygon that it’s part of an effort to pave the way for a potential PlanetSide 3. He says the sequel has not formally been announced, but his newly reorganized studio is committed to doing “whatever” it needs to do to keep the franchise viable. For now that means “shoring up” the live version of PlanetSide 2 with new features and content.

Rumors of a PlanetSide 3 have been circulating for a while, reaching newfound intensity in October 2019. That’s when Sites himself seemingly confirmed that the game had been greenlit in an official blog post. Now, he says that’s simply not the case.

“I did not officially announce that PlanetSide 3 was in development,” Sites told Polygon during a telephone interview in January.

The last few months have been a tumultuous time for Daybreak Games, the company behind not only PlanetSide but also EverQuest, DC Universe Online and H1Z1. It recently transitioned to the role of publisher, reorganizing its major brands under three separate studios. Rogue Planet Games, which Sites leads, is now solely responsible for the PlanetSide franchise. But that studio itself is enduring its own set of challenges, including the decision to wind down PlanetSide Arena, an early access game that was only live on Steam for a few months.

Now Sites says his team is putting all its energy into reinvigorating PlanetSide 2, which is available on PC and PlayStation 4.

“Like all games and franchises that have been running for almost 17 years like PlanetSide, we’re always thinking about the future,” Sites said. “We’re not by any means ready to start talking about PlanetSide 3 in any sort of extensive detail. [...] Our emphasis is really shoring up PlanetSide 2.”

The new update, which goes live tomorrow for PC players, is called Escalation. It will include Bastion Fleet Carriers, which Rogue Planet describes as a “massive interplanetary craft can be called into battle once refueled and rearmed.” Bastions will serve as a mobile base of operations for factions as they do battle across the game’s massive 64-kilometer-square battlefields. It’s something the community has been looking forward to for a long time, and will hopefully breathe new life into the game.

“There will be no PlanetSide 3 if we don’t continue supporting PlanetSide 2, and we don’t continue showing that the PlanetSide experience is unmatched and amazing,” Sites said. “So our focus right now in the short term is continuing to reinforce that with the live game. In due time we’ll be ready to start talking about the future, which would be a PlanetSide 3.”

When asked if, given the new studio structure, Daybreak would publish Planetside 3 should the game get made, Sites said the studio would do “whatever [it needs] to do to continue moving the franchise forward.”

“Ideally that’s with Daybreak,” Sites said. “If there’s alternate means of publishing, and Daybreak’s okay with that, then we’re good to go as so long as that means we’re able to continue delivering what we want to with PlanetSide.”

Update: Rogue Planet delayed the release of Escalation by one week. We’ve updated the article to reflect that.