Frostbite Engine
The versatile game engine powering EA's biggest franchises since 2008.
Frostbite is a game engine developed by DICE and used by multiple Electronic Arts studios. It was first released in 2008 for use in Battlefield: Bad Company, and has since expanded to many other first-person shooter video games and a variety of other genres.
- Developer
- DICE / Electronic Arts
- First FIFA Appearance
- FIFA 17
- Primary Franchise Origin
- Battlefield
- Platform Support
- Multi-platform (Consoles and PC)
- Status
- Active
Verified Timeline
Lore & Background
The first iteration of Frostbite made its debut in the 2008 video game Battlefield: Bad Company. Frostbite 1.5 was used in Battlefield 1943 (2009) and Battlefield: Bad Company 2 (2010). Frostbite 2 debuted in Battlefield 3 on 25 October 2011. Frostbite 3 debuted in Battlefield 4 on 29 October 2013. In November 2021, Battlefield 2042 used a new version of the engine rebranded simply as 'Frostbite'. The 2023 remake of Dead Space also utilizes Frostbite. Dragon Age: The Veilguard, which uses another version of Frostbite, was released in 2024. The next installment of the Battlefield franchise, later revealed to be Battlefield 6, will be developed on an upgraded version of Frostbite. Battlefield 6 shipped on October 10, 2025. The reboot of Skate shipped on Frostbite, marking the engine's first appearance on macOS and mobile platforms. Since the release of Rory McIlroy PGA Tour in 2015, Frostbite has seen use in EA Sports' annual sports titles, which previously used the Ignite engine. FIFA 17 in 2016 was the first game in the series to use Frostbite, replacing the Ignite engine on PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and PC.
In Their Own Story
The stadium lights hummed with a new intensity as the virtual crowd roared, their faces rendered with unprecedented clarity. As the striker wound up for a shot, the ball didn't just follow a pre-determined arc; it reacted to the wind, the grass texture, and the precise angle of impact against the defender's boot. The physics engine calculated every millisecond in real-time, turning a simple pass into a chaotic, beautiful moment of pure simulation.
Reader's Guide
Titles running on the engine are released on multiple platforms, including Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch 2, iOS, Android, and Amazon Luna. Previously, Frostbite titles were released on PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360, in addition to Google Stadia.
Did You Know?
- Frostbite was first released in 2008 for Battlefield: Bad Company.
- Frostbite 1.5 allowed players to entirely demolish structures.
- Frostbite 2 introduced Destruction 3.0, making falling debris potentially lethal.
- Frostbite 3 introduced Levolution, allowing dynamic environmental changes like flooding a map.
- The first VR title to use Frostbite was the Rogue One X-Wing VR Mission expansion for Star Wars Battlefront.
More in Modes & Mechanics
Elsewhere in the FIFA universe
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