The long awaited sequels will debut sooner rather than later

Apr 10, 2015 17:03 GMT  ·  By

The so-called Mass Effect 4 and Mirror's Edge 2 titles from Electronic Arts are most likely going to debut in early 2016, according to games industry analyst Michael Pachter, who believes that EA wants to release them as soon as possible.

Electronic Arts is currently working with its internal studios on a variety of different projects, and while some are sequels in prestigious franchises, like the next Mass Effect, others are reboots, like the upcoming Mirror's Edge, or completely new properties.

Both Mass Effect and Mirror's Edge are coming in early 2016

In terms of the publisher's financial forecast for the financial year of 2016, which starts this month and ends in March 2016, Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter believes that there will be a few surprises. Not only will EA launch major already-confirmed releases, like Star Wars Battlefront or the next Need for Speed, but it will also surprise fans with early debuts for the new Mass Effect and Mirror's Edge titles.

"FY:16 is expected to feature incremental releases Mass Effect 4, Mirror's Edge 2, a new Need For Speed game, and Star Wars: Battlefront, as well as meaningful re-orders for Battlefield Hardline, which launched in late Q4:15," Pachter mentions in a financial report, via Videogamer.

Bear in mind that, so far, EA has only confirmed that Star Wars Battlefront is going to launch in the winter holiday season of 2015, while its long awaited next installment in the Need for Speed series was given an extra year of development so that it can dazzle fans in the fall of 2016.

Meanwhile, the next Mass Effect title and the future Mirror's Edge reboot have been given no exact release estimates, as their respective developers, BioWare and DICE, are still working hard on the titles.

As such, take Pachter's early 2016 forecast with a grain of salt, at least until EA announces concrete plans, probably at E3 2015 in June.