Back in April 2023, head of Respawn Entertainment Vince Zampella said he’d love to seeTitanfall 3happen one day. Just two months later, Respawn developer Mohammad Alavi revealed thatEA didn’t cancelTitanfall 3; Respawn did, believing that a multiplayer battle royale game was the best move for both the studio and the franchise at the time.
Of course, that battle royale ended up beingApex Legends, a multiplayer title set in the same universe asTitanfall, but one disconnected enough that it could attract a horde of new players.Apex Legendshas just had its sixth birthday, and it’s currently in the middle of its 24th season, showing no signs of stopping just yet. But there’s still room for a newTitanfallgame, and if it ever happens, it could useApex Legendsas a launchpad.
Apex Legends Should Be Titanfall 3’s Greatest Marketing Tool
Live-Service Games Are Frequently Used as Marketing Tools
By their very nature, live-service games are in a constant state of flux. Maps are always changing and evolving, points-of-interest are removed and added, and new weapons and items are moved in and out of rotation frequently. This ever-changing nature also paves the way for unique forms of interactive marketing.
Over the last few years,Fortnitehas often teased upcoming seasonal events or crossovers by placing new objects in the environment and slowly changing their state over time. For instance, in the lead up toFortnite’s 2024 Halloween event, a retro TV suddenly appeared in Castle Doom. Over the course of the season, the TV changed several times, eventually teasing the then-upcomingSawcollaboration.
Call of Duty: Black Ops 6recently featured a similar kind of teaser, but for a product outside of its own game. Back in February,Black Ops 6added aremastered version ofBlack Ops 2’s ‘Grind’ map. In this new iteration of the skatepark-themed map, players found a banner that seemingly teased a reveal date for the long-awaitedTony Hawk’s Pro Skater 3+4.
How Apex Legends Could Tease Titanfall 3
IfTitanfall 3ever happens and Respawn is ready to reveal it, the developers should start the sequel’s marketing journey by dropping a ton of teasers inApex Legendsfirst. These teasers should start off small and subtle, such as adding some new objects to the environment that are taken directly fromtheTitanfallgames, or adding logos from the series to certain in-game structures.
These teasers should then progress to something a little bigger, like an Easter egg hunt where players need to find clues dotted around the map and decipher a secret message that hints ata reveal date forTitanfall 3. Then when Respawn is ready to finally pull the trigger, it could debutTitanfall 3’s teaser trailer inApex Legends, turning the in-game screens into temporary billboards.
Even when the cat is out of the bag, Respawn could continue itsTitanfall 3pre-release marketing inApex Legends. The multiplayer game could host a season themed solely aroundTitanfall’s various factions, giving each character a new skin based more directly on the series. Then, to cap things off, Respawn could add a new playable Legend toApex, taken straight fromTitanfall 3.
This marketing strategy would be a great way to introduceApex Legendsfans to the widerTitanfalluniverse, and get them excited to see a new entry in the franchise alongside long-time fans.
